O-Week, or ‘Orientation Week’, is your chance to become acquainted with your campus, its culture and other services you may not have been aware of. It gives you a chance to jump straight into university life and learn about all the opportunities available to students. It’s also a great time to go to social events and meet other first years. So what are some of the things you should be looking for during your time throughout O-Week?
Tours
It can be tempting to just have a look around on your own or with some friends when you first turn up to O-Week, and by all means do so! However we’d also recommend going on one of the tours so you get a chance to understand what each of the buildings are for, learn a bit about their history and familiarise yourself with the campus more than a self-guided wander might. This is perhaps the most essential part of O-Week. After all, you’re getting oriented!
Club stalls
Student clubs are one of the best ways to make friends on campus. It doesn’t matter what you’re interested in; there’s bound to be a club that caters to you. From sport clubs ranging from footy and soccer to lacrosse, netball and basketball to video game clubs, finance societies, poetry societies, business clubs and more, there’s a lot that could take your fancy. Don’t be afraid to get out there and say hi to students running the stalls. Not so long ago, they were in your position and know exactly what you’re going through! This is one of the best ways to make friends early on in your university career. During O-Week, they’re all on display.
Employers also love when students have taken part in clubs throughout uni, as it shows dedication and commitment. Getting stuck in early gives you more chances to help run events, meet more people and potentially even learn employable skills.
Information sessions
These let you learn more about your campus and opportunities available, such as overseas exchanges and study tours. If you find out any of these are running, it’s worth going out of your way to attend, as you never know what cool stuff you’ll find out.
Campus events
Senior students and university unions like to hold all kinds of quirky events during O-Week. Sausage sizzles, movie nights, competitions, impromptu makeovers, infamous pub-crawls, breakfasts, games and raffles are just some of what you’ll encounter. Putting yourself out there and giving things a go is a great way to make new friends with other first years and older students alike.
Getting your IT in order
If you didn’t manage to get this sorted before O-Week, now’s the ideal time. Make sure you have ordered your student ID card and familiarised yourself with your university’s online services. There should be plenty of help on-campus should you need it. If you don’t know where you’re going, don’t be afraid to ask someone for directions. Getting that student ID card early gives you some important benefits, such as public transport concession and after hours building access.
IT help on campus will be able to walk you through whichever online LMS (learning management system) your uni uses. This is basically your hub for assignments, lecture notes, recordings, discussion boards, wikis, digital library and more. The earlier you get this up and running, the sooner you can get prepared for classes next week.
Special lectures
Some courses have lectures running during O-Week. These are an invaluable insight into what attending a lecture is like and what’s expected of you, which most students find very different to their old classrooms! Come prepared with some water to stay hydrated, a few pens and a notepad. These give you the chance to get a leg-up on the course material, familiarise yourself with what you’ll soon be learning and maybe start to recognise a few people in your cohort. Can’t go wrong with that! To find out if you’ve got lectures during O-Week, check your timetable, LMS and email.
At the end of the day, the most important thing is to relax and have fun learning about your uni. If you make use of each available day, you’ll get heaps out of it. Good luck!