31 August 2009
A warm welcome for freshers and their families
Freshers’ Week is not just about partying, as students about to embark upon their undergraduate careers at the University of Dundee are set to discover.
They are set to benefit from a new approach to helping students settle into academic life and familiarise themselves with the University and the city, with a full range of social, cultural, academic and sporting events planned for the next couple of weeks.
PLUS@Dundee, short for Personal Learning for University Success at the University of Dundee, aims to help all students to quickly and effectively become part of the University community.
Freshers’ 2009 starts with a special event for students from Tayside and Fife later this week ahead of the official start of their undergraduate careers. The special event – which takes place on Thursday, September 3rd – will give the students the chance to network with other freshers and meet with University staff.
This is the first time the University has held such an event specifically aimed at local students, and hopes large numbers will come to discover more about the University and the services it offers.
In total, more than 3500 new students will help to swell Dundee’s population from next weekend onwards and Dr Kathleen McMillan, Director of PLUS@Dundee, says attending these early events can make a difference to how students settle in.
“We know from our own experience and from a considerable research base that many students may feel that they don’t fit in and that university is not for them. That’s why Freshers’ Week is so important,” she said, “It gets them to feel that they are a key member of the university community right from the start.”
“We’ve developed a new approach to introducing our students to the University through PLUS@Dundee. This concept begins with social, cultural, sporting and academic events that help students to integrate regardless of field of study, nationality or age.
“As we move through the academic year PLUS@Dundee will continue to support our students with further events so that they acquire the skills that they will need to fulfil their potential at university.”
On Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th September, all incoming students and their families will have a chance to find out more about the University campus when they begin arriving at their Halls of Residence and, in many cases, these students will embark on the adventure of life away from home for the first time.
A full range of events reflecting the breadth of student interests will take place from Saturday onwards, including sessions when the families of incoming students from near and far will be reassured that their student family member will be in good hands.
At 2pm and 3pm each day, Freshers’ Families’ Facts sessions will take place in the D’Arcy Thompson Lecture Theatre, Tower Building, when Vice PrincipalsProfessor Mike Ferguson and Professor Christopher Whatley, along with other members of academic staff will explain the rhythms of university life.
The University Library and Learning Centre will throw open its doors between 12pm and 4pm, and that evening will see the commencement of Dundee University Students’ Association’s Freshers’ programme.
New students will be officially welcomed to the University on Monday when Professor Pete Downes, Principal and Vice-Chancellor at the University, and Lord Provost John Letford, will greet them at the Caird Hall.
More information for new students, including the full range of Freshers events planned, is available by visiting www.dundee.ac.uk/freshers2009.
For media enquiries contact:
Grant Hill
Press Officer
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384768
E-MAIL: g.hill@dundee.ac.uk
MOBILE: 07854 953277
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