For Your First Year
An LU Family First-Year Experience
Parent & Family Connections is with you and your student through the journey! Allow us to familiarize you with the university’s schedule. We composed a timeline that interprets the key academic dates alongside the common stress points to help you pray for your student’s experience.
Take courage! The Lord is with you “even to the end of the earth” (Matthew 28:20).
Academic Timeline, Highs and Lows
Academic Calendar
Residence Life will contact students in the summer about move-in schedules. Use the Move-In page and What to Bring to Liberty for helpful information about living on campus.
The first week of the semester is noted as Add/Drop. This is the only week of the semester that students may change their course selections without penalty (read more about Add/Drop in the Academic Catalog).
Common Stressors
- Missing home, family, and friends
- Anxiety over a new routine
- Making friends and sharing a room
Points of Prayer
Ephesians 6:14-17 – For the helmet of salvation to protect their thoughts and the sword of truth to fight against lies about themselves or may believe of others
2 Timothy 1:7 – For strength in the Lord
Psalm 91:6, 14-16 – For protection from temptations that would destroy their faith
Ephesians 4:32 – For them to be able to resolve conflicts quickly and to seek harmony and understanding with others
Academic Calendar
Fall Break marks the halfway point of the semester. Dining services are open but the hours may vary.
Course registration for the Spring begins the Monday following Fall Break. Room Renewal Requests ($) and Financial Check-In (FCI) are open.
Freshmen, first-semester transfers, and students in academic caution status are required to meet with their CASAS Professional Advisor to register for their spring courses.
FAFSA (Free Application Federal Student Aid) opens for the next academic year. Have your student complete the FAFSA to ensure their Financial Aid will be available on time.
Common Stressors
- Midterm papers and exams
- Feelings of isolation and loneliness
- Fatigue and illness
- Changing majors
Points of Prayer
2 Timothy 1:7 – For self-discipline
Psalm 91:1-16 – For protection in relationships
James 1:2-4 – For courage and perseverance; to meet opportunities with the gospel
Philippians 3:14 – For comfort and strength against homesickness and discouragement
James 1:5-6 – For the Lord’s wisdom in decisions
Romans 8:28-29 – For their minds to recall and apply what they have learned
Find a Way Through Homesickness and Empty Nesting (E/4:29 Parent-to-Parent blog series)
Academic Calendar
Plan ahead for Thanksgiving Break. Residence Halls are open to students who stay on campus, but the Dining Center is closed. Students will need Flames Cash to use at off-campus merchants and at the available campus eateries.
Financial Check-In (FCI)’s deadline is the first week in December for the spring semester. Note that January (Winter) intensives are a separate academic term and must be paid for separately from spring semester courses. Financial Aid packages typically do not cover intensives.
Final exams are scheduled, so be sure to check with your student before making travel arrangements. The last day of classes is the last day to withdraw from a class and get a “W.”
Students must schedule an End-of-Semester Checkout and depart their hall within 24 hours of their last exam. Returning students who are enrolled for the spring may leave their belongings over the break.
Common Stressors
- Travel plans for Thanksgiving or staying on campus
- The last two weeks of classes
- Final exams, group projects, and papers
- Packing up for the break and scheduling a checkout appointment with their RA
- Transitioning again back home
- Wondering about spending time with friends, doing a part-time job, or mission trip
Points of Prayer
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – That they may find something to praise God in every situation
John 14:27 – For peace in their heart in all circumstances
Colossians 3:15 – That they will allow His peace to rule the path of their thoughts and feelings
Romans 8:28-29 – For their minds to recall and apply what they have learned
Academic Calendar
Residence Life contacts new students about moving in. There is a Welcome Week Team that welcomes new students the week prior to classes beginning. Use the Move-In page and What to Bring to Liberty for helpful information about living on campus.
The first week of the semester is noted as Add/Drop. It is the only week of the semester that students may change their course selections without penalty (read more about Add/Drop in the Academic Catalog).
Classes are in session on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It is also a Day of Service.
Common Stressors
- New students’ starting in the spring semester, for courage and strength
- Returning students’ fellowship and being open to new friends
- Grace in all students as they develop into the adults that God has designed them to be
Points of Prayer
Ephesians 6:10-18 – Refresh your spiritual battle plan with the full armor of God
Proverbs 15:22; James 1:5-6 – For wisdom and balance in time management and choices
Ephesians 4:29-32 – For wholesome and edifying conversations with friends, roommates, and families at home
Hebrews 12:14 – For roommates to be God-honoring relationships that are filled with grace and hope
Academic Calendar
Spring Break begins after the last day of your student’s classes.
Plan ahead for Spring Break. Residence Halls remain open to students, but the Dining Center is closed. Students will need Flames Cash to use at off-campus merchants and at the available campus eateries.
Registration for fall courses and Financial Check-In (FCI) open for current students after Spring Break. Freshmen, transfers, and students on academic caution are required to meet with their CASAS Professional Advisor prior to registering for courses, so it is good to do this before break.
The deadline to apply for Graduation is in March. Please refer to Graduation Preparation for eligibility requirements and important dates.
Easter Holiday is the Monday following Easter Sunday; there are no classes on Easter Monday.
Common Stressors
- Homesickness for family and friends
- Writing papers and studying for midterms
- Managing time and responsibility to group projects
- Feelings of fatigue, isolation, and discouragement
- Travel during Spring Break; mission trips, jobs, and Study Abroad
- Deciding a change of major to align with God’s calling in their lives
Points of Prayer
Ephesians 6:16 – To defend against discouragement and doubt
Philippians 4:4-9 – To reset expectations and for the grace and strength to adapt
Psalm 105:1-9 – As encouragement and promise for God’s faithfulness to their calling
John 11:25 – To remind them of the vastness of what Jesus’ resurrection means to them
Academic Calendar
Look ahead to the week of Final Exams. The last day of classes is also the last day a student may withdraw from a course for a “W” on their transcript.
Students must move out within 24 hours of their last final and they are required to complete a checkout appointment with their RA before moving out. A Beyond Checkout request is available to students in the ResLife Portal.
Residence Halls close at 12 p.m. on the last day of scheduled exams. Meal plans expire with dinner on Friday!
Students who renewed their room for the next academic year cannot leave their belongings over the summer (for more information, see ResLife’s FAQs page).
You may want to rent a storage unit; students often share storage units over the summer. Here is a Google Maps link to local storage units.
Commencement activities are Thursday through Saturday (Welcome Fair begins on Wednesday at 1 p.m.). Commencement Housing and Dining webpage may help your travel plans around Graduation.
Common Stressors
- Finals, papers, and group projects
- Scheduling a checkout appointment with the RA (often referred to as “white glove inspection”)
- Packing up for home and scheduling a checkout appointment with their RA (who is also a student faced with final exams and moving out, too)
- Transitioning back home
- Planning for summer classes, mission trips, Study Abroad, internships, and/or employment
Points of Prayer
2 Timothy 4:7 – To fight the good fight of faith
Philippians 3:14 – To press on for the prize of their highest calling in Jesus Christ
Ephesians 6:15 – To be prepared to take hope, grace, mercy, and forgiveness everywhere they go
Ecclesiastes 3:1 – To balance and appoint a time for study and a time for rest
Isaiah 55:12 – “For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”