When new students entered the University's graduate school last year, they were welcomed with a single event held in an auditorium.
This year, however, incoming graduate students were greeted with a three-week orientation program designed to ease their arrival in Durham.
"We expanded [the orientation] to really involve the broader campus and community issues," said Ayanna Boyd-Williams, assistant dean of student affairs and minority programming for the Graduate School. "The purpose of this orientation was to let the students see their multiple roles, both at the University and in the community [and] to give them a broad focus to their academic careers."
To help students feel more welcome, Boyd-Williams said, a number of offices held open houses for the students. These included the Career Development Center, Counseling and Psychological Services, the Office of Information Technology, Perkins Library and Duke University Police Department.
In addition, student groups were largely responsible for orientation programming, said Mariel Swiggard, assistant in the Office of Graduate Student Affairs and Minority Programs.
Some of the student groups participating in the orientation were the Graduate and Professional Students Council, the Graduate and Professional Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Association, and the Graduate and Professional Women's Network.
The general orientation program featured a welcome session in which leaders emphasized the relationship between the academic community and students in the Graduate School, as well as a pragmatic session about settling in at the University.
Each department also held its own orientation programs in conjunction with the general session. Specialized sessions, such as programs for teaching assistants, were also held.
Student response to the orientation was largely positive. Catherine Chin, a first-year graduate student in religion, said that she went to about half of the orientation programs. "They were helpful," she said. "I think most of the information we could have figured out on our own, but it was more convenient to have it presented to us."
Ye Tao, a first-year student in computer science, agreed with Chin. "I think [the orientation was] well-organized," he said. "It really gave some valuable information about how to settle here."
Other students, however, pointed out shortcomings in the orientation events.
Neil Bernstein, a first-year graduate student in classical studies, said the welcoming was more inspirational than informative.
"[The orientation] was helpful in the sense that you're not suffering in silence, but as far as significant information goes," it was not helpful, he said, citing taxes, parking, and health insurance as topics not covered.
In general, Swiggard said, graduate students responded very positively in a survey distributed after the two-hour school welcome session.
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