Open Days tips for parents

5 top tips to help parents/caregivers prepare for Open Days

What to expect at Open Days?

Whether you come to Bedford Park on the Friday or Saturday, or our city campus at Festival Plaza on Sunday, expect to move around a lot – checking out displays, attending information sessions and activities, asking questions, or just exploring the campus. Open Days are busy, and as a parent/caregiver (just like a student), you might find yourself overwhelmed. So, here are our top tips to help you make the most of your experience.

5 top tips for Open Days

1. Don’t ignore the importance of planning

By now, your child should have registered for our Open Days and looked through all the activities available. Make sure you‘re aware of the different presentation times, and give yourself plenty of time to move from session to session. There’s a lot to take in, and you don’t want to rush through it all.

Apart from information on all our study areas, you’ll also find info on:

careers and study areas
course options
study pathways
how to apply
student life
student support.

If you can, sit down with your teenager before you come to Open Days and run through the programme so you’re both comfortable with what you’ve planned to do.

Planning how to get to Flinders is also important. If you’re visiting our Bedford Pak campus, you’ll find multiple carparks, and free parking on both Friday and Saturday. Bedford Park is also accessible via bus, and the adjacent Flinders Station is a short, 22-minute train ride from the CBD (leaving from Adelaide Railway Station, next to our new city campus). Just enough time to run through your plans for the day.

If you’re visiting our city campus on Sunday, the central location is perfect for public transport, and there are plenty of carparks in the CBD.

2. Look for the Open Days guides

Bedford Park is a beautiful campus. It’s also big. Really big. Fortunately, we have stacks of staff and student ambassadors on hand to help point you in the right directions. You can spot them by their branded t-shirts, and probably by the slightly flustered looks on their faces (don’t worry, they’re actually having a great time). We also have campus maps on display, and a handy online map to guide you.

The same ambassadors will be on hand to help you at our city campus (although if they’ve worked all three days, you may want to look for them next to the coffee station on Level 2).

3. Hangry happens. Burger anyone?

There is so much to see at Flinders Open Days that you’ll be surprised at how fast the time flies. You’ll also be surprised how quickly your stomach will start rumbling. Fortunately, whether you’re in the city or at Bedford Park, if you’ve brought your lunch there are heaps of gorgeous spots to stop and relax for a moment while you recharge.

If you didn’t, we’ve got you covered. On Sunday at our city campus, you’ll find plenty of food options, plus we are in the heart of the city. On Friday and Saturday at Bedford Park we have food outlets on campus including Subway, Burger Theory at the Tavern, Toly Vietnamese, Mr Wuhu sushi, Bakmi Lim Noodle Project, Chico Tea Boba Project, Curry Campus and more, so there are plenty of options to keep your teenager fuelled up and focused on the important stuff. Because we all know… hangry happens.

4. Wear comfortable shoes

Seriously. Our city campus has seven levels of awesome to explore, and Flinders Bedford Park is huge. We have hectares of landscaped grounds, our own lake and plenty of stunning paths to walk. Take the time to familiarise yourself with the campus and explore all the key areas. Take photos with the ducks. See if you can spot a koala. It means you’ll be giving the Fitbit a workout, so please dress for the weather and slip on your walking shoes.

5. Risk teenage frowns. Ask questions.

We know you may get a teenage eye roll when you ask questions, but this is a great opportunity to get answers. Flinders’ Open Days exist for a reason - to give you and your teen a taste of everything that Flinders has to offer. So, we strongly recommend taking advantage of the opportunity.

When it comes to Open Days, questions are a vital part of the equation. Before you arrive on campus, make sure they think carefully about what questions you both want to ask. And remember, talk to your teen as soon as you can after your Open Days visit. You’ll gain a good overview of their Open Days experience, and talking through the key takeaways will help your teen commit them to long-term memory.

If you miss something, or have further questions, Flinders Connect and Ask Flinders are always on hand to help out.

We are looking forward to an exciting time on campus, and we hope you enjoy your Flinders Open Days experience. Our staff and student ambassadors are on hand to help you out, so please don’t hesitate to utilise them. Take your time, have fun and enjoy everything Flinders has to offer.

Be forever fearless at Flinders Open Days

There are more than 200 sessions, activities and tours available at Flinders Open Days. Register now and use the online planner to plan your ideal open day experience!