For many incoming freshmen, the transition from high school to college can seem intimidating. Many students have trouble meeting friends and getting acquainted with the campus and college-level classes.

The New Start program, which has three components, is designed to help incoming freshmen ease that transition, and familiarize themselves with the UA.

New Start is a six-week program for UA students, sponsored by the Department of Multicultural Programs and Services, said Patrick Bryan, student recruitment and retention specialist.

Each component of the program introduces the students to college life, said Bryan, a senior majoring in graphic design and Spanish.

The first component is a university-level course offered to acquaint students with classes. Students are given an opportunity for tutoring, both in and out of class, according to the New Start Program Web site.

The second is an advising component that offers students a peer advisor who can provide insight about the university and resources the UA has to offer, according to the Web site.

Finally, the students get a chance to live in a residence hall for "social and educational programming," according to the site.

Students who have participated in the program found it to be very helpful to make the intimidating transition a little easier.

Bryan, a New Start alum, said the students develop a network of friends and are not alone when they come back to school after the program.

As well as returning with a group of friends, students are almost like sophomores, because they already know the campus and what classes are like, Bryan said.

Jamila Arnold, a public health senior, participated in the New Start Program when she was an incoming freshman.

Arnold said she participated because she was the first one in her family to attend college and she wanted an opportunity to get to know what the classes, college life, and the residence halls were like before her first semester began.

The New Start Program is having an awards ceremony on Friday to honor "New Start and Engineering Friends and Alumni," as well as to award President Peter Likins, professor Marc Tischler and University College Director Sylvia Mioduski for their "unfailing commitment to student retention," a press release said.