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The experience and process of onboarding to the University as a new graduate student can vary widely from the ways undergraduate students acclimate to campus. Graduate students, to speak generally, tend to be older, have more academic experience under their belt and may prefer to be more self-sufficient when it comes to adjusting to life in a new environment.

Ensuring graduate students feel welcome, valued and well-oriented to campus resources is an important goal of the , as well as graduate programs across schools and colleges. As the fall semester gets underway, here are six ways to start your graduate student experience off on a high note.

1. Attend Graduate Student Welcome on Aug. 26.

New graduate students are invited to come celebrate the start of the semester by attending a with Provost Gretchen Ritter and Graduate School Dean Peter Vanable. An information/resource session will be held in Schine Student Center’s Goldstein Auditorium beginning at 2 p.m., followed by a picnic on the Kenneth A. Shaw Quadrangle with free food, refreshments, music and the opportunity to socialize with fellow graduate students.

An abundance of orientation activities are also held by the individual schools/colleges at Syracuse. Look for more information from your school/college for any sessions pertinent to graduate students.

2. Join a student organization or affinity group.

This Saturday’s welcome picnic will also introduce you to various student groups via an engagement fair, so you can learn how to get involved in campus and community activities. Two groups you may want to join as you start your graduate career include:

• The (GSO) represents graduate students in the University Senate and to the University leadership, allowing graduate students a voice in the operations of the larger University. To learn more about the GSO and how to get involved, attend the GSO Town Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 30, at 5:30 p.m. in Maxwell Auditorium or join your fellow graduates at the first GSO Senate meeting of the season on Wednesday, Sept. 6, at 5:30 p.m. in Maxwell Auditorium. Follow that up with free food and fun at the GSO’s Fall Welcome Picnic on Tuesday, Sept. 8, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Women’s Building field.
• The (GBSA) focused on fostering academic success and building community in support of graduate students who self-identify as Black, Indigenous or other persons of color.

There are also a breadth of graduate student organizations formed around academic programs (i.e., Graduate Students of Architecture), as well as groups celebrating cultural identities and shared interests (i.e., Graduate Chess Club, Indigenous Graduate Student Association). .

3. Stay tuned for social opportunities organized by the Graduate School this fall.

Looking for informal and low-pressure ways to get to know other graduate students or branch out from the peers in your academic program? The Grad Social Spot offers monthly opportunities for relaxed conversation and community building—often with snacks!

and events are already on the calendar, with additional ones to come. Be sure to read your Graduate School newsletter, sent by email, for more community-building events, including occasional off-campus outings like snow tubing and apple picking!

4. Engage with career/professional development resources early and often.

Did you know that the Graduate School houses its own to help students at every stage of their graduate or postdoctoral journey? Professional staff members can assist you with career exploration and planning, resume review, preparing to become a teaching assistant (TA) or aspiring faculty development. They can also likely point you to dedicated career development resources in your school or college for more specialized support in your field of study.

5. Looking for a campus job? Get familiar with Handshake.

Handshake is the University’s centralized career management tool, and it’s where any TA, graduate assistant or research assistant jobs with the University will be posted. A swath of information and resources on Handshake is available on the .

6. Immerse yourself further by downloading University podcasts.

If podcasts are your thing, we encourage you to check out and/or subscribe to the produced by the Graduate School, and “’Cuse Conversations,” a Universitywide podcast produced by the Division of Communications.

New episodes of the “Gradcast” will start up again this fall highlighting such topics as professional and career development, alumni of Syracuse graduate programs and upcoming Graduate School events. “’Cuse Conversations” drops new episodes twice per month featuring the inspiring stories of the University’s talented students, decorated faculty members, dedicated staff members and accomplished alumni. Both are available wherever you get podcasts.