Fall Orientation: Waterloo welcomes new students to campus

Orientation is an important rite of passage for the more than 9,000 new students to campus. That’s why the University of Waterloo is delivering even more customized Orientation activities to meet the varied needs for our diverse group of students, including:

• International Undergraduate Orientation (September 2-4) - for any first-year student and their family members who have a study permit, or attended high school internationally, is new to Canadian culture, or is developing their English language skills.
• American and Out-of-Province Undergraduate Orientation (September 4) – for first-year students and their family members from across Canada and the United States to get introduced to Waterloo.
• First-Year Undergraduate Orientation (September 4-10) - for all new first-year students. Many will participate in International, American and Out-of-Province Orientation before joining in with First-Year Fall Orientation.
• Undergraduate Transfer Orientation (September 5–10) - for college transfer students, university transfer students, 2+2 students
• Exchange/Study Abroad Orientation (September 5-10) – for undergraduate and graduate students coming to Waterloo as an exchange or study abroad student.
• Graduate Student Orientation (September 4-10) - for all incoming graduate students
• Program-specific Orientation - Many departments also host program-specific orientation programming

Engineering students build a wall for an Orientation event called Earn Your Hardhat

“We are excited to welcome all new students starting at the University of Waterloo this fall. Based on our research and consultation, we have targeted key groups to deliver the customized programs and activities that will help students to succeed at Waterloo, before bringing them together across campus,” says Pam Charbonneau, director of the Student Success Office.

“Collaborating with key campus partners, especially the Federation of Students, Graduate Student Association, and each of the faculties, helps to give students the tools they need, resources they want, and a meaningful experience at Orientation,” said Charbonneau.

New and exciting at Fall Undergraduate Orientation 2016

All new first-year undergraduate students will come together for new events as part of Orientation this year including:

• Warrior Wander - An event that introduces new students to their Digital Community and the City of Waterloo.  
• Feds Showcase – An opportunity for students to learn about the services that Feds has to offer and pick up free stuff.
• Black v Gold – Students are put into teams to earn points by competing at events like Canadian Ninja Warrior, Escape Rooms, Lions Lair, Capture the Calculus, Geocaching and so much more.
• Faculty checklist (Portal)- A checklist for students to get prepared and organized for school. Lists includes things like: meet an academic advisor, attend a student design team open house, get your textbooks, etc.
• Portal App and Orientation widget – Portal is now available as an app download and includes an enhanced Orientation widget with faculty checklists, Black v Gold map, and personalized event schedules.
• Single & Sexy in the PAC - Single & Sexy’s script has been given an overhaul by a fourth-year drama class. We’ve also moved the play to the PAC so students can see the play with their residence dons and engage in pre- and post-discussions about the provocative topics presented.
• Staff and faculty engagement – We are offering more opportunities for the entire University of Waterloo community to be a part of the student transition including: Family welcome, Family sendoff, Warrior Wayfinding and Welcome Back. Find out more about the Here to Help campaign.

"Orientation is always a great time of year on campus. The Federation of Students (FEDS) is proud to join the University of Waterloo in presenting an inclusive, meaningful, and exciting Orientation for our new students. These events could not have been done without the help of over 1,000 student volunteers, especially the members of the Federation Orientation Committee (FOC), who have spent the past year preparing for this amazing week," said FEDS President Chris Lolas.

You can follow the fall 2016 Orientation excitement on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with the hashtag #UWOW16. Also new this year - add @uofwaterloo on snapchat for live video snaps from student leaders.

Remember, classes start on Thursday, September 8, but Orientation activities will continue until Saturday, September 10.