Entering college is a transitional period that first-year students face with anticipation and anxiety. It’s often the first time these young adults are on their own, and adjusting to campus life can be challenging. Freshmen Welcome Week gives first-year students an opportunity to get acquainted with their new surroundings and form friendships that will shape their college experience. But fostering student engagement isn’t always easy, and many first-year students may be tempted to linger in their dorms instead of attending orientation activities. These ten Freshman Welcome Week ideas can help you create an engaging move-in week to help new students start their college journey on the right foot and create lasting memories with new friends that will last beyond the years they spend on campus.
1. Provide an Interactive Map for Easy Student Navigation
The first days spent on a sprawling college campus can be intimidating. Incoming students must learn to navigate an unfamiliar environment quickly to find campus resources and participate in planned events. Interactive maps are the ideal wayfinding solution to help first-year students adjust to their new surroundings and locate the fun activities orientation leaders have planned for Welcome Week. Interactive campus maps include details about parking, the residence hall, student organizations, and more. They can support self-guided campus tours designed to familiarize students with their environment.
Beyond wayfinding, interactive maps can be used to highlight locations for specific events. Students can share locations and directions to connect with friends for an event. Since interactive maps provide real-time information, they can also use live data feeds to show occupancy rates in specific parking lots and timely locations of campus shuttle buses. When students have all the information they need at their fingertips, they can confidently explore their new surroundings and access welcome week events.
2. Organize All Welcome Week Activities in a Unified Event Calendar
Freshman Welcome Week ideas come in a wide range of shapes and sizes to develop events that will cover an array of personal interests. Keeping up with all the available choices and timelines for social events can quickly become overwhelming.
A centralized event calendar aggregates your events into a single interactive calendar to create a unified experience. Event week coordinators can use interactive tools to classify and display events by date, interest, location, and more. Students can use the event calendar to learn specific details about events and plan attendance at the ones they’re most interested in attending. Virtual calendars can even connect with relevant websites to provide additional information.
3. Invite Students to Post on Social Media
Approximately 70% of college students use social media every day, and 75% of them spend more than one hour daily on social media. Taking Welcome Week to social media offers a way to boost engagement before events occur and build a sense of community among event attendees.
From posting Freshman Welcome Week ideas on the college platform to encouraging social connections among students with Welcome Week hashtags, you can create a foundation for students to share their own experiences. Once orientation is in full swing, encourage students to share their Welcome Week experiences on social media to foster a sense of community among attendees and build a sense of belonging.
4. Implement a Peer Mentorship Program
Welcome Week doesn’t have to focus strictly on connections within the freshman class. Programs that pair new students with upper-level students provide first-year students with mentors for guidance, support, and a sense of connection. The first year of college can be overwhelming. Students face new responsibilities of heavy study loads, working to support themselves, and planning for their future. Mentorship programs help reduce the stress of the college transition. This then leads to higher participation rates, improved performance, and lower dropout rates.
5. Have a Mix of In-Person and Online Events
Keep new students comfortable with a range of activities that will provide the flexibility to participate at the level best suited to their needs. Offering a blend of in-person and online events allows students to test their boundaries on their own terms without skipping events they’re interested in. Modern virtual events can be hosted on various interactive platforms to increase engagement and facilitate connections between students. Balance both virtual and in-person activities to build excitement and provide essential information.
6. Provide Welcome Week Swag Bags
College campuses are the ideal place for swag that helps students form connections with their school spirit. Create Welcome Week swag bags with useful items and college merchandise to help students feel welcomed and appreciated. College swag doesn’t have to be all hats and t-shirts. Gather items that will be useful for all facets of student life that can feature school branding.
Top Freshman Wellcome Week ideas for swag include:
- Cell phone wallets
- Campus store gift cards
- Wireless charging pads
- Mobile phone stand
- Headphones
- Popsockets
- Bumper stickers
- Water bottles
- Laptop case
Looking for a way to elevate your swag bags? Package everything in a high-quality tote or backpack customized with your school’s colors and logo.
7. Partner With Local Businesses
Local business owners are typically proud to be located within a college town. Students and visitors boost business, and the local institution also becomes a pivotal part of business branding. Incorporating local businesses into your Freshman Welcome Week ideas is a winning solution for everyone.
Businesses can participate in student orientation by offering discounts for new students and hosting giveaways and events to showcase community support.
Students can experience life outside of campus borders and become acquainted with local hotspots and attractions. Businesses can make their establishment the first place that comes to mind when students seek a place to gather off campus. You can also make wayfinding easy by showcasing participating venues on your interactive campus map.
8. Have a Variety of Social Events for Different Interests
Friends often make connections based on shared interests. So, help new students find like-minded peers by developing Freshman Welcome Week ideas encompassing diverse social events to cater to varied student interests. Event ideas can range from athletics to trivia and include everything in between. Developing a wide range of social events helps every student find their place, helping to build a sense of belonging that makes the campus feel like home. The right events can help students connect with others through similar interests and participation in new activities.
9. Host Helpful Workshops
Adulting is hard, but workshops can offer valuable advice and tools for learning life skills that enhance college life inside and outside of class. These workshops can include demonstrations, games, interactive activities, crafts, trivia, and more. Also, ask upper-level students, guests, faculty members, and other volunteers to host various workshops to make life easier.
Ideas include:
- Time management
- Study techniques
- Self-care tips to improve mental health
- Crafts
- Meal prep
- Financial literacy
- Test-taking
- Critical thinking
- Goal setting
- Stress management
10. Involve Faculty and Returning Students
College orientation is designed to help first-year students develop a sense of belonging at the school they’re becoming a part of. Developing Freshman Welcome Week ideas that involve faculty and returning students can provide new students with valuable insights and a sense of community.
It’s common to launch Welcome Week with a convocation hosted by the college president. Faculty members can participate by hosting events, including lectures, motivational speeches, and games. Upperclassmen can mentor new students and share valuable information about campus life. They can also empathize with the mixture of excitement and anxiety transitioning to college brings.
Facilitate an Unforgettable Welcome Week With Concept3D
Freshman Welcome Week ideas that help new students become accustomed to campus life should include fun events and practical implementation to help students feel at home. Combining digital tools and constructive practices works to eliminate challenges. They also improve engagement by encouraging students to easily participate in new experiences.
The types of events you plan play an important role in engaging first-year students during Welcome Week. But tools designed to support student participation are equally important. From the days leading up to move-in day to after classes begin, Concept3D can help your school facilitate an unforgettable Freshman Welcome Week. Interactive student maps and student event calendar software combine to provide students with a unique navigational and planning toolset that simplifies the college transition.
Interactive maps from Concept3D are designed to showcase your location and exhibit on-site experiences through immersive, interactive, and visual communication. It’s the ideal solution for Freshman Welcome Week, as maps can assist with wayfinding and highlight the location of orientation events. Introduce students to the maps before their arrival. Then, they can use 3D renderings and live data feeds to navigate move-in activities and welcome week events.
Student Event Calendar Software from Concept 3D centralizes school events into a fully branded calendar designed to simplify event discovery. Students gain immediate access to all events with user-friendly content that encourages social connectivity.
When you’re ready to plan unforgettable Freshman Welcome Week ideas, contact Concept3D. We’ll schedule a demo so you can learn more about how we can decrease logistical challenges for your incoming students.