Trent University’s Office of Student Affairs hosted Bring It On! – a weekend-long orientation program for first-year students – on Saturday, July 26 and Sunday, July 27, 2014. Created in 2008, Bring It On! is different from the student orientation programs offered at many other universities.

“Bring It On! is a very unique program,” said Sako Khederlarian, orientation coordinator at Trent University. “It gives students an opportunity to meet their peers, connect with student leaders, as well as experience different activities around campus. In just a few days, they develop lasting relationships with other new students.”

Students spend the weekend in small groups, participating in a variety of activities led by upper-year classmates, many of whom are leaders on campus. Activities include rock climbing in the Athletics Centre, canoeing on the Otonabee River, hiking up the famous Trent Drumlin, and workshops on transitioning from high school to university, as well as an academic session run by the First Peoples’ House of Learning at Gzowski College.

The program gives students the chance to become familiar with living in residence and to create a connection with the University before arriving in September. It also provides students with a chance to learn and build strategies for academic and social success. With its balance of social and academic programming, Bring It On! leaves participants feeling excited and prepared.

“Students who take part in Bring It On! are much more likely to be successful in their first year at Trent, because they have already developed meaningful relationships with other students before they arrive in September,” Mr. Khederlarian said. “As well, students have a better understanding of the university services available to them.”

This year, Trent welcomed more students to Bring It On! than any previous year, with a total number of 185 new students, including those who will be living on-campus and off-campus, as well as mature and transfer students.

“With attendance numbers growing each year, it shows that students and parents understand the importance of transition programming,” Mr. Khederlarian said. “Many of the new students shared their excitement about starting at Trent and are ecstatic to call Peterborough their new home.”