University of North Texas 50 Years of Progress & Opportunity, 1954-2004
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  A long line of students waiting to register in front of the Administration  building.  
 

Waiting in long lines is a traditional part of the registration procedure.

Fall Brings Changes... Excitement and Adjustment Fill First Days

Freshman students caught their first glimpse of the North Texas campus September 17th - a glimpse which would soon change to a photographic knowledge of the main walkways, short cuts, and buildings.

They encountered every conceivable obstacle and made every blunder on their first day on campus; yet each problem had a memorable charm, and each mistake inspired rueful nostalgia.

Formal orientation began the following morning when hundreds flocked to the Main Auditorium for guidance. Some 500 were sent to the Music Recital Hall because of lack of space. Once admitted, they all floundered over the decisions that were expected of them.

Orientation is dreaded but necessary. It is the first acquaintance freshmen have with the life they will lead for four years at the university. Confusion eventually gives way to understanding, and students assume the sophisticated ease of self-reliance. Their program includes fun as well as lectures, and students find campus life is not drudgery. The Big Wheel Dance and Howdy Party are standard entertainments during the first week of school.

Frosh girls displace upperclasswomen in boys' favor, and freshmen boys daily translate experience into maturity and confidence.

The new North Texans soon become tightly bound to campus life; home begins to be just a place to visit periodically.

Almost immediately after enormous numbers of freshmen converged on the campus, hordes of upperclassmen descended upon the Library to scurry once more through the frustration of long registration lines.

Freshmen were lucky; they did not have to battle with upperclassmen for classes, for they had separate days of registration.

Regardless of classifications, students learned quickly to utilize all the wiles they possessed. They skillfully begged, cajoled, or told a sob story to end all sob stories.

Professors were just as determines to keep classes open or closed until the required number enrolled.

After three days of pushy-pully crowds, registration lines disbanded, and peace once again mantled the campus as classes began.

The Yucca, 1962
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