We hope you will take the opportunity to browse our website. While much of the content is aimed at current undergraduates, we realize that you probably have a number of questions about academic life at Princeton as well. And — in the age of Twitter, Tumblr and text messages — you may not be getting quite as many details as you might like from your family member on campus.
In the sections on Curriculum, Advising and Support, you will find information on the undergraduate academic program as well as the network of resources and support in place to help students study what they love, take advantage of the opportunities around them and find help when they need it. Our resource libraries include links to important publications, websites and forms.
This website should answer most of the questions you have about how things work at Princeton, as well as provide information on practical details about how to get here and where to stay. Also take time to browse the Families section of the University's main website, which includes useful contacts and information. If you would like to share your excitement, questions or concerns with other parents, consider joining the Princeton Parents Facebook page.
It may surprise you to learn that much of our contact with students is not shared with parents or other family members. Indeed, many of our communications go directly to students’ personal email accounts, and so you will have to ask them to keep you in the loop. Even notification of the tuition bill is mailed directly to the student, and you will not be able to view this information until your student grants you access to the account.
You should also know that we don’t send grades home. Our practices are governed by federal law (the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act or FERPA), which states that students have a right to privacy with regard to their educational record.
To learn more about our campus, including the residential colleges, we offer a Virtual Tour. The student-led tour is available in four languages — English, Spanish, Mandarin and Korean. Each stop offers supplemental materials, including 360-degree panoramas, photos and videos. You can opt to “walk" the full tour via the arrows at the base of the screen or jump from stop to stop using the navigation panel on the left-hand side.
We hope that this website-including our month by month "What to Expect" guide-will help you to gain insight into the experiences of students on campus.