If you helped your student move into residence this past September, you’ll probably remember the sea of people in red shirts who were there to help you out. They likely came up to your car, welcomed you, helped empty your car and carry everything up to your student’s new room and then said a quick goodbye before dashing off to help another family. Those people are called Orientation Volunteers and they play a HUGE role in making Orientation Week as successful as it is.

Now, your student has the opportunity to become one of approximately six hundred volunteers who are available to help with Orientation Week! There are several types of Orientation Volunteers that you can read about here: http://studentlife.uoguelph.ca/cns/navigate/orientation-week/volunteers. Most students start out as “General Orientation Volunteers”, “Residence Orientation Leaders”, or “Academic Community Builders”. For each of these positions, students are asked to help out on Move in Day and if they so wish, the Pep Rally. If your student would really like to be a “Central Orientation Volunteer”, they should feel free to apply, however those positions do require a student to have more experience.

Sometimes there’s a misconception that all Orientation Volunteers must be loud, outgoing, and enthusiastic all the time. While many volunteers are, there are also many volunteers who have more quiet and reserved personalities. If events like the Pep Rally aren’t your student’s idea of a good time, there are many more low key events that your student can help out at. If your student would like to avoid having to go to the Pep Rally, it’s suggested that they apply to be an Academic Community Builder or a Residence Orientation Leader instead of a General Orientation Volunteer. The only real criteria necessary to be an Orientation Volunteer is to be friendly and to want to help welcome students to the university.

If your students have time at the end of the summer, I would strongly encourage them all to apply to be a volunteer for Orientation Week. It’s a great opportunity to give back to the University and the week is fun for both incoming students and volunteers alike. I personally can’t wait until September to be an Orientation Volunteer again! Even though last year’s O-Week was cold and wet, I had the opportunity to meet so many amazing volunteers and get to know some pretty incredible incoming students.

If your students are interested in applying, please send them the link from earlier in the article and let them know that the applications are due by March 4th!

Alexandra