Fall Passages Orientation Schedule

Students will get the opportunity to discuss with professors about areas of study they are interested in pursuing while at Puget Sound.  Come check out all the options.  You do not need to know your major(s) of study.

All incoming Black students and families, members of the Black Alumni Union and Black Student Union, and university staff and faculty are invited to attend this Welcome Dinner.

This event is part of Passages Orientation at Puget Sound. Find your community and support, meet new friends, and glimpse everything campus has to offer you! Current students and families are welcome. Questions? Contact the office of Alumni and Parent Relations at alumoffice@pugetsound.edu.

Stop by the Campus Garden to learn more about our small-plot organic farm, the Garden Club, related courses, and how you can plug in.  No gardening experience necessary.

Stop by the Rotunda to connect with various campus office resources. Pick up your Logger Card here or get one printed if you didn’t already submit your photo prior to arriving. Visit with representatives from Career & Employment Services to complete your I-9 Form for campus employment. Have questions about technology services or need help connecting your computer to the campus network? Stop by the Tech Services Table. Chat with members of Campus Security and more!

Annual group photo of the incoming class of students taken following convocation on Friday, August 18.

This session helps new students better understand the expectations we hold for each other as Loggers.  We will talk about student rights and responsibilities, being part of a sustainable campus, and cover important Title IX information.

This workshop will review the meaning of consent, provide strategies for communicating healthy boundaries in personal relationships as well as how to intervene when you see something of concern, and will review the existing resources on the Puget Sound campus and in Tacoma for those who experience interpersonal and/or sexual violence. Mental health counselors and other professional staff will be onsite to support those who may need it due to the content of this presentation. 

Join us for the President’s Welcome to Puget Sound!

In this session, all students participating in backpacking and car camping Immersive Experiences will bring the indicated clothing and equipment from the provided packing list for leaders to review with their groups. Leaders will provide an overview of the trip and equipment required to help make sure you have everything you need for a successful and enjoyable experience. The Expeditionary will be open the next afternoon should you need to rent any additional equipment. Bring all required equipment for inspection. Students not participating in backpacking or car camping do not need to attend.

Students will have the chance to learn about experiential learning opportunities available to Puget Sound students including internships, study abroad/away, community-based learning, and summer research. These experiences draw students outside the traditional classroom to apply their knowledge in real-world contexts. Through active engagement, problem-solving, and reflection, students make connections between their academic growth, future goals, and understanding of self, others, and the world.

While there are a few orientation events during the first week of class, by Friday most of Passages Orientation is finished.  Join us for this end of Passages celebration. 

Students will meet their Resident Assistants (RA), Resident Directors (RDs), and gather with their Residence Floors for this first Floor Meeting.  Learn about hall resources and safety protocols, how your RA can assist you, and start getting to know those in your new living community.  

Are you a first generation college student? (You are considered first-gen if neither of your parents/guardians possess a four-year college degree). If so, please join us at this welcome lunch to connect with other first-gen students as well as first-gen Puget Sound faculty and staff. You will also learn about the resources and support available to help you navigate your way through and thrive at Puget Sound. We hope you can join us!

Visit Grizz’s Garage for an inexpensive, reused, convenient, and sustainable way to approach outfitting your room!  We have a number of useful items for your residence hall. Check us out before heading to a retail store.  Supplies are limited and once it’s gone, it’s gone so plan to visit us right away! While we can accept both cash and card, small bills ($1s and $5s) are the preferred payment method.

Group Faculty Advising Session

This session is designed to help students understand the role of their first-year advisor and the advising relationship. Students will also sign up for their individual advising sessions during this time.

All are welcome to this casual, celebratory gathering within the Jewish tradition to mark the close of Shabbat. This event will be led by student leaders from the Jewish Student Union and the University Chaplaincy. While the Havdalah is open to all, this gathering is one of cultural and spiritual meaning; please attend respectfully.

For more information about I Am Puget Sound, please see our page dedicated to this important program. 

In addition to your campus-based orientation we offer a wide range of immersive experiences (IEs) designed to help you connect with a smaller group of incoming students while engaging in all that the Pacific Northwest has to offer. Your Passages Group will be facilitated by two returning student leaders who are excited to get to know you and show you around. Immersive experiences range from connecting with local social justice work and environmental justice engagement to exploring local theater arts or three-day backpacking trips and rocking-climbing adventures. When you register for Passages, you’ll select your top Immersive Experience preferences. Placement in your IE is based on your top choices, overall incoming student interest, and availability of local community partners and student leaders. We do our best to place you in an IE that meets your interests. For information about immersive experience, see the page dedicated to our offerings. 

Students will meet with their faculty and peer advisors individually to review current class schedule, discuss any changes that may be needed, and work on editing your course schedule. Your faculty advisor will invite you to sign up for an advising appointment during group advising on Tuesday morning. Students may meet with their academic peer advisor before, after, or during their meeting with their faculty advisor.

The annual LGBTQIA+ Welcome is an opportunity for incoming students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans or non-binary, queer, intersex, asexual, pansexual, agender, or as generally within the queer umbrella to meet and be welcomed by returning students, faculty, and staff who share these identities.  We acknowledge the diversity of experiences and identities within this large umbrella while also recognizing the power in building relationships within and across identities. Thus this gathering seeks to be one of the initial touchstones available for students to begin connecting with each other and with faculty and staff of shared identities.

Matriculation is the formal marking of your enrollment as a student at Puget Sound and entrance to the Puget Sound academic community.  At this ceremony, you will hear from the Provost for Academic Affairs and other esteemed faculty. You will learn the alma mater, integrity principle and pledge, and will formalize the beginning of your academic career at Puget Sound in the traditional Color Post ceremony and signing of the official register. 

On Tuesday, August 22, students have less scheduled time to allow them to schedule individual meetings as needed.  

Advising

During their Academic Orientation and Group Advising sessions, students will schedule individual meetings with their faculty advisors to discuss their class schedule, address questions they may have about majors, begin mapping out their academic pathway, or troubleshoot other academic concerns.  These individual meetings are scheduled for these less scheduled afternoon and morning times.

Music Ensemble Placements

Students interested in the School of Music will have individually scheduled music auditions based on their instrument throughout this timeframe. Ensemble Placement Auditions are open to all regardless of major or minor! For more information or to sign up for an audition please click here.  For more information about the School of Music in general, click here.  

Campus Employment

Students who are eligible for campus employment will need to reach out to the hiring manager for the position they are referred to schedule an interview.  Interviews can be scheduled during these more open times in the Passages schedule.

All are welcome to attend this short, informal chapel service celebrating community, liberation, and radical hospitality drawn from the Christian traditions.  Students and other guests are welcome to participate in or respectfully observe this time of prayer, reflection, and connection.

Featuring the breadth of what the liberal arts has to offer, you will get a taste of faculty research through this panel discussion, demonstrating how you’ll be able to connect your learning across classes and disciplines to tackle challenging real-world issues. Students will attend the panel with their Advising Course. 

Hosted by Alumni and Parent Relations, parents and families helping their students move-in to their residence halls will be able to register to attend these sessions geared toward helping parents connect with Puget Sound and be prepared to support their students throughout their college experience. The Parent Welcome will be kicked off by lunch on Karlen Quad at noon. Sessions include a welcome from Vice President for Student Affairs Sarah Comstock, a session on career and employment services, financial aid, technology support, supporting your students’ mental health needs, research and library services, and study abroad. Please register here to attend the Parent Welcome.

Stop by the Welcome Center to get checked in for your Passages experience.  Pick up your pre-ordered Passages T-shirt, go over your schedule for the week, and get ready for a great week learning about and settling into Puget Sound. Then head over the to Expeditionary to pick up and pay for any reserved equipment rentals.

Come get an overview of all you’ll get to participate in during Passages at this Passages Welcome. We’ll help provide you with a big-picture sense of the week and learn who is here to help you navigate it and support your transition to Puget Sound. This meeting will be followed immediately by a brief introductory meeting with your Passages Group and Leaders.

Your first full-length meeting with your Passages group - a time to get to know each other and learn more about your immersive experience.

These sessions allow you to get to know your Peer Advisor, who is a resource for you throughout the academic year.  This session will support your transition to college academics, offering time management tips, study skills, and help learning the academic culture at Puget Sound.

Presented by ASUPS and the Resident Student Association, students will gather in their respective quads to learn a little about what their campus student government and their hall governments can offer them, learn about upcoming hall elections and then kick off the fun with some first-night-on-campus entertainment.

Join us for root beer floats and mingling at the end of a long day of academic orientation, music auditions, individual advising meetings, and settling into campus for incoming students.  This is a casual, drop-in event; get a float and mingle on the Plaza or head over to Greek row for an introduction to what Greek Life looks like at Puget Sound and get to tour the Greek houses.

Come get to know the School of Music, mingle with other incoming students, meet the faculty, and enjoy a free lunch. For students enrolled in or participating in walk-on auditions with the School of Music or who would like to learn more about opportunities to be involved with the School of Music.

Students will gather with the RAs and residence floors. Following the meetings, students will head to the Tennis Pavilion in the Fieldhouse for the I Am Puget Sound Program.

All incoming Hispanic/Latinx students and families, members of the Hispanic/Latinx Alumni Union, and university staff and faculty are invited to attend the Sin Fronteras Welcome Dinner.  

This event is part of Passages Orientation at Puget Sound. Find your community and support, meet new friends, and glimpse everything campus has to offer you! Questions? Contact the office of Alumni and Parent relations at alumoffice@pugetsound.edu.

This event requires an RSVP.

The annual Students of Color Welcome is an opportunity for Black, Indigenous, Asian, Latin(e)/Hispanic, Bi- and Multi-Racial students and those who identify as People of Color to gather to welcome incoming students with these shared identities to campus.  We acknowledge the diversity of experiences and identities within this large group while also recognizing the power in building relationships within and across identities, in particular while at a predominantly White institution.  Thus this gathering seeks to be one of the initial touchstones available for students to begin connecting with each other and with faculty and staff of shared identities.

Meet your new fellow transfer students and meet President Crawford too! Academic Advising & the Registrar’s Office will present information specific to the transfer experience at Puget Sound.

If you are a Veteran or you grew in a family with Active Duty Members or Veterans then join us to be welcomed by student, faculty, and staff Veterans.

Stop by Wheelock Plaza to pick up some free swag from the Associated Students of University of Puget Sound leadership, chat with staff from the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity, and be treated to music from the student radio.

If your financial aid award includes federal or state work-study, you are required to attend this session. You will receive your job referral notification and learn about procedures, expectations, and benefits of on-campus employment. Please arrive 15 minutes early to check in and pick up your federal or state work study employment packet.

The Office of International Programs (OIP) hosts this special International Orientation for students coming to campus from abroad. This meeting will orient students to life in the US, resources with special attention to adapting to the US academic culture, and connecting with other students coming to college from secondary schools outside the US.

If you are not already in touch with OIP and want to participate in this event, reserve a spot by contacting us at internationalprograms@pugetsound.edu.