r/UIUC

any tips?

I just got off the waitlist for CS and I'm so excited to attend. I saw online that the chances for getting off the wait list was ludicrously low and so this was a very unexpected (but very welcome) surprise :))

I feel like I'm so behind lol. Is there anything In particular I need to get done asap? Literally any advice would be godsent rn 🙏

If you were in Rhet-233 Section G, which occurred Monday, Wednesday, Friday, at 1000 to 1050; check your email!

I am missing multiple final submissions, or some finals are not in a format I can view. If you do not turn this final in you will fail the entire course!

Talk to your battle buddies to ensure they also have their final squared away!

Hello! I'm staying on campus for the summer, and the $115 is too steep for me to justify buying a summer membership for the ARC, just to only use their pool.

Does anyone know any good spots locally (or within the surrounding areas) to swim? Pools, lakes, ponds, rivers, etc. I'm not picky, just looking for a clean and safe spot to get some exercise without spending $100!

I literally cannot wait to graduate and get things in order for move in! I'm so excited to attend UIUC because everyone just has so much good to say about it! My roommate is awesome and this morning we got the dorm we really wanted (ISR), so everything is just kind of coming together and getting me really hype! All the resources and opportunities provided are so interesting and it's definitely something I want to take advantage of. I'm visiting UIUC this weekend and I can't wait to explore the Champaign-Urbana area. As a comp sci student I feel so grateful to be able to attend a school with such a good program. Congrats to all other incoming freshmen and I'm so excited to meet everyone!!!!!!!!

I did my best and maintained a higher than 2.0 gpa, i accidentally forgot to submit my research participation and now i failed the class, im so so cooked i tried so hard just to mess up everything in the end im so disappointed in myself i hate myself

i have a 4 feet teddy bear and i don’t want to throw it away so im giving it away for free, need it gone by tonight, pickup near the bookstore

sold

hello! i wanted to make a quick post now that summer has begun and ive gotten a new job offer so i'm able to move places. for the past year i've worked at a busy cafe on sixth/green that has recently undergone a lot of major renovations (from beautiful hardwood and plants to really tacky posters and concrete walls) with the change of owners. it used to be tied to an urbana cafe but is now a standalone place.

i started working last summer with the intention of being full-time temporarily, but ended up stuck there for a few different reasons. anyways, i wanted to make sure that when the summer ends and students return, they're well aware of what the environment is like and can avoid this place.

like a lot of places, you will not get the hours you were promised. they also cut hours if you ask for any sort of reasonable adjustment to your schedule. you will not get your tips. anything that goes into the tip jar goes straight to the owner/ manager. when i asked about tips, they lied and said they used it to buy christmas presents for employees (only two of us got anything, and it was worth wayyyyyy less than what we were tipped), then it was for lunches (that most employees never get). (according to my call to the department of labor, this is legal if the tips are in a jar.) they will also send you your schedule the night before the next work week and be incredibly rude when you remind them that the schedule doesn't align with the availability you gave them. they'll also be late with your paychecks. this is pretty typical when you work anywhere around campus, and work is work.

however, the extent that the owner dislikes any form of comfort or happiness for the employees is almost insane. for example, the store manager was reported for sexual harassment (both verbal and physical) of one of the undergrad employees. this manager works almost exclusively with younger girls, and should not be in a position to abuse his power over them. the owner was made aware of every detail, and decided it wasn't a big deal and continued to schedule that undergrad with that manager, despite there being other open parts of the schedule when the manager wasn't present.

we were originally given a stool to sit on during down time, given that every task was completed. this is because the floors behind the counter are concrete and can be painful to work on for long periods of time. i ended up getting a minor deformity in my foot & ankle from standing on the concrete all day and had to have a procedure done to correct it. i made the owner and manager aware of this, and asked for an anti-fatigue mat so that i could recover and work in comfort, and to reduce the risk of other employees developing the same issue. the mat was $35 and could have been paid for easily with the tips that we make (since they weren't going to us anyways). the owner refused on the grounds that the mat would have to be cleaned at the end of the day, though the team agreed that cleaning it would be worth it to stand on the mat. i've heard that next semester there will be no stool. these are measures taken to ensure that employees are not comfortable, despite the stool and mat not lowering the quality of our work (it would actually improve it!).

i made my manager aware that i had to stay over my scheduled time to complete advertising work that was assigned to me by both him and the cafe owner, and was granted permission. when the owner found out that i had worked overtime (to do the extra work she was demanding from me), she ordered the manager to change my timeclock to avoid paying me. this is ILLEGAL, and also just insanely greedy as i'd only worked an extra 25 minutes. the manager will never advocate for employees, whether the owner is doing something illegal (changing timeclocks) or just unethical (no stool, stolen tips). someone who owns multiple businesses around campustown can afford to pay their employee for the work that they assigned them to do.

the manager is also extremely racist. he's made multiple comments around employees that have made us all very uncomfortable, especially having the diverse staff that we do, even after we've called him out for it. beyond not working at this place, i would not recommend handing your money over for overpriced, low-quality products to a creepy racist and an inconsiderate owner. don't be fooled by any of the wages listed on their hiring signs, that's also a lie and they have no intention of paying you what they advertise.

my advice: let this place go out of business. every change that's been made since the new owners took over has ruined the atmosphere and the menu that had once made it so charming. they don't care about the well-being or safety of their employees. the money that you generously give to the baristas will never make it to them. don't waste your time, energy, or money on them.

EDIT/ UPDATE: i’ve worked my last shift and gotten my last check, so i’ll clarify/ expand on a few things.

yes, i am referring to caffe bene’s green street location. we aren’t affiliated with the urbana one, so i can’t speak on what it’s like to work there. i think eventually the cafe will rebrand to something like Lucky Cafe or something.

the owner is a very pleasant and nice person on a day-to-day basis, but cannot be trusted to make decisions while also keeping the well-being and dignity of her staff in mind. she is focused solely on profit.

i have spoken to the department of labor about the tips, and usually stealing tips is illegal. however, the loophole is that if staff is paid above minimum wage and the cash goes into a tip jar (as opposed to being handed directly to staff or given via pos), then the restaurant can use the cash however. it sucks, and it’s highly unethical, but my report amounted to nothing. as for the timeclock tampering, i got cheated out of less than $10, so while i argued with the manager about it, i didn’t have the time to go through the department just to get that payment back. instead, i never stayed after my scheduled time to help out again, regardless of how busy it was.

the team at the cafe is wonderful, and maybe id like the owner more if she’d never been my boss. but working there is absolutely hellish, and i don’t think customers deserve to be lied to about how their money is being used.

Hey r/UIUC! 👋

Just finished my first year as an international Master's student here. Academically it went well, but honestly I didn't get much chance to meet people and make real friends along the way.

I would love to start connecting with people, even just chatting, getting to know each other, and hopefully building some friendships.

If you're in a similar boat or just want to meet someone new, feel free to drop a comment or DM me😊

i just got off the waitlist for uofi but I originally planned on major in biochemistry (pre med) but now im las undeclared and idk what to expect if im gonna be undeclared, also have no financial aid info yet and how long do i have to decide?

Is campus safe? Will I be safe walking from studying to my dorm at night alone? I’m a 5 foot female and legit concerned. Should I make sure I’m always with someone? TIA

I have my slot at 11:30 am CST on May 21st and I was wondering what halls I will have chances in. I’m an aerospace engineering freshman so any suggestions relating the same would be a great help.

And how does the whole process work? Cause my university housing portal (the one from the admitted checklist) doesn’t show anything yet.

Also, I’m going for random roommates so any related experiences would be greatly appreciated!

So I've received a D in like 3 classes that are for my major & I was wondering if anyone else has felt discouraged but don't want to switch paths. Like even when people tell me to switch majors or look for a backup, I always look the other way because I really don't want to switch my major, & I'm gonna retake one of the classes....but it's like this STEM shit is really hard , but I don't wanna switch majors. Has anyone else delt with this?