Many factors go into our students’ success. One of the best ways for your student to ensure success in college is to become engaged in campus life. The Southern Miss experience is rich and exciting with a variety of ways for your student to express his unique individual personality. Our dedicated faculty and staff have services in place to provide assistance whenever needed. Whatever your student’s goal, it can be achieved at Southern Miss.

Traditions
Athletics
University 101
First Year Experience
On-campus Housing
Eagle Dining
Student Organizations
Student Employment
Career Services
Alumni Association
SOAR
Code of Honor
FERPA and Parents

Traditions

From Founder’s Day to Friday Night at the Fountain, our students and alumni find ways to celebrate the heritage of Southern Miss throughout the year. To learn more about traditions at Southern Miss, click here.

Athletics

Southern Miss Athletics is home to 16 NCAA Division I athletic teams that compete in Conference USA. Our athletic programs are a source of pride with one of the highest student-athlete graduation rates in the country.

University 101

University 101 is a two-hour, letter-graded class for first-year students that encourages active learning skills, promotes responsible decision-making, facilitates exploration of academic majors and career planning, and helps students establish rewarding relationships in college with peers, professors and university staff.

First Year Experience

The Office of the First Year Experience (FYE) helps students navigate through their first year at Southern Miss, beginning with Preview (orientation). FYE kicks off the year with Golden Eagle Welcome Week (GEWW) in the days leading up to the start of the fall semester, which features exciting activities and traditions like freshmen painting the Eagle Walk. FYE is available to students to assist with the variety of issues that may arise during the first year at Southern Miss and can connect students with other departments and resources on campus.

Housing

Studies have shown that if students choose to live on campus for the first year of college, not only will those students reap the social benefits of on-campus living, but those students will go to class more often, make better grades and graduate in four years. While it is not mandatory at this time for freshmen to live on campus, the Department of Residence Life offers a variety of on-campus housing options for freshmen, honors students, Greeks and more. The priority deadline for housing applications for 2009-10 is February 1, 2009.

Eagle Dining

With eateries such as The Fresh Food Company, Starbuck’s, The Agora and Seymour’s, on-campus dining is convenient and affordable for students. All students living on campus are required to purchase a meal plan. Learn more about meal plan details and prices through Eagle Dining.

Student Organizations

There are over 270 student organizations on campus – Student Government Association, Greek Life, religious and service organizations, and academic honoraries, to name just a few! Your student is sure to find a home in one or several of these groups.

Student Employment

Our Office of Student Employment can help your student earn money to cover expenses, acquire work experience that will enhance his education, and locate part-time work (on- or off-campus).

Career Services

Career Services offers a range of helpful services to students as they prepare to begin a career after graduation. Whether your student needs guidance selecting the right major, is looking for an internship opportunity or needs help polishing a resumé or perfecting interview skills, Career Services is available to help. A dedicated alumni mentor network is also in place to assist students with job searches. To learn more about what our students are doing after graduation, read our Young Alumni Profiles.

Alumni Association

The Alumni Association is a driving force in the efforts to advance The University of Southern Mississippi. When your student joins with the thousands of others who support the Alumni Association, he or she will help the Association act on behalf of all alumni to support and maintain the greatness of the university while pushing the institution to new levels of accomplishment.

SOAR

SOAR (Southern’s Online Accessible Records) is your student’s one-stop shop for everything related to his or her enrollment at Southern Miss. To log on to SOAR, your student must have his six-digit Southern Miss ID and a password. Your student can use SOAR to check on admissions status and financial aid and search the class schedule guide.

Code of Honor

The Southern Miss community sets a high standard for behavior in all student environments. The Southern Miss Code of Honor reads:“I will respect and follow the Academic Integrity Pledge and as a scholar of The University of Southern Mississippi, I will respect others, honor their rights, privileges, and belongings. I will appreciate the values of differences among people, customs, and ideologies, while opposing hatred, bigotry, and bias toward others. Furthermore, I will pattern and project concerns for human dignity in my academic, social, and employment settings and work  toward a living and learning environment that is safe and secure for all.”

FERPA and Parents

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, as amended, protects the privacy of student education records. It gives students the right to review their educational records, the right to request amendment to records they believe to be inaccurate and the right to limit disclosure from those records. Because of FERPA, parents cannot gain access to certain areas of their student’s record at Southern Miss, including, but not limited to, grade reports, regardless of who is responsible for payment of tuition and fees. If your family decides that you, as parents, want to have access to all areas of your student’s record at Southern Miss, then you have three options: 1) The student may give the parent his or her SOAR account login and password; 2) The parent may provide documentation to the Office of the Registrar that the student is your dependent as defined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); or 3) Have your student file a FERPA release with the Office of the Registrar. For more information about FERPA and its effect on your student’s enrollment at Southern Miss, please visit the Office of the Registrar’s Web site.