Orientation and Immunizations

In my last post, I told you I'm going back to school and I took my placement exams. I got my results back and reaffirmed that I really need a refresher in the math department.

What I forgot to mention is my major will be biology. I decided on my major before I chose a college. I chose MSU Denver because they have a conservation biology and a wildlife biology focus for masters programs and I haven't decided on my masters plans just yet. I'm not even sure if I will pursue my masters at MSU. Papa has suggested we move to Australia for that portion, but that seems prohibitively expensive and complicated (but I could still homeschool the kids in Australia!).

Anyway, I had my orientation on Monday. I showed up nervous and kind of hungry because non-traditional student orientation is from 5pm to 8pm and I normally have dinner at 6. I did eat before I left, but a nervous, half-hour drive must have burned a lot of calories. Unfortunately, the food court and all of the various shops in the student union building (where orientation was held) were closed for lack of evening business traffic in the summer.

It's hard to learn much when you're hungry, but they did give me a folder of information to take home.

I got some holds removed from my account. I even signed up for American Sign Language 1, my first english class and Intro to Sociology. I'm still trying to determine what my fourth class will be for the first semester.

I spent yesterday and today calling seven different places in an attempt to track down my vaccination records. The last doctor's office I went to said my insurance provider would have them. My insurance provider said to call the doctor's office. I called my high school. They said to call the last college I attended. My college didn't have them because I was an online student. I called the health department where I got the shots in question and they said they only keep records until the person is 23. I'm 26. I called the last health department that gave me a shot and they only had that one shot on record, not the ones MSU wants proof of.

A couple of the people I talked to throughout that process suggested I ask about a titer test. It's a blood test to determine your immunity to certain things. MSU's health center said a titer test showing positive immunity would suffice for my records... but titer tests are uncomfortably expensive, especially when you consider that it could show levels below requirement (even though I've definitely had the shots) and then I'd have to have the vaccines anyway.

Ultimately, after much confusion and phone time and some help from Papa, I determined that I will have to get my MMR vaccines updated through the county health department and it will cost me less than $30 to do so. I have to have two shots before I start classes, and I have to get them at least one month apart. I better get started soon.