Carleton’s Fall Orientation ended on Sept. 10, with an overall participation of 3,150 first-year students.
Jeremy Brzozowski, the manager at the Student Experience Office (SEO), said in an email that 2,300 students registered for this year’s general orientation, 550 for EngFrosh, and over 300 for Sprosh. He said each one of these programs manages their own budget and Carleton does not make a profit on the event.
Brzozowski said the biggest part of Frosh’s budget goes towards entertainment for first years. He said expenditures could be estimated as 40 per cent going towards entertainment, 25 per cent for food, 20 per cent for merchandise, 10 per cent for staffing, and 5 per cent for other expenses.
“The cost to Carleton for Fall Orientation is difficult to quantify as there are several factors that must be accounted for, including indirect costs,” Brzozowski said in an email.
He added he could not provide the cost of bringing Frosh headliner Walk Off the Earth because of a confidentiality agreement.
Students pay $125 to register for the general Fall Orientation program, which includes access to all the week’s activities, an orientation kit, assorted t-shirts and gear, a season pass to all varsity games, and access to the City Folk festival.
He added that the general Frosh and Sprosh, the Frosh program for the Sprott School of Business students, cost the same, while EngFrosh is five dollars more. Students registering for EngFrosh also have the option to pay an extra $80 to go white-water rafting.
“[The Carleton University Students’ Association], [the Rideau River Residence Association], and the SEO have partnered on [Frosh] so we have not increased the cost of Fall Orientation registration. The program has remained the same cost for at least seven years,” Brzozowski said. “Fall Orientation itself . . . is funded through student registration fees and our approach has always been to break even,” Brzozowski said.
“These are pretty accurate estimates based on past expenditures without providing specific booking fees of artists or specifics of the contractual agreements with our vendors,” he said.
Brzozowski said all the giveaways and merchandise in the orientation kits were accounted for in the budget.
“Our sponsorship team is very active in procuring great giveaways for our students to add additional value to the fall orientation experience,” he said.
Brzozowski said frosh is run mostly by volunteer facilitators, but the three orientation co-ordinators are paid, as it is a full-time job over the summer.
“The volunteers are certainly the life line of the program, as the program wouldn’t exist without their vibrant energy and strong commitment to the [Carleton] community,” he said. Brzozowski added that Frosh has been consistent financially throughout the years.
“The ultimate goal [of Fall Orientation] is to maximize student value while demonstrating fiscal responsibility and I’m happy to say that this year is no different,” he said.
