Tom Brophy

Orientation and Welcome Week(s) Programming is as synonymous with discussions around the first-year experience (as is co-operative education) when talking about experiential learning.  In this chapter, we will discuss:

• the history of orientation and welcome week(s) within the North American context and more specifically in Canada
• overview the different forms of orientation and welcome week(s) programming
• review trends and findings of such programming within the Canadian context reviewing two surveys from 2016 and 2022-23
• suggest future trends, opportunities, and challenges in orientation and welcome weeks programming

For the sake of this chapter, we will define orientation and welcome weeks as being, “…the deliberate communication, programmatic and service efforts designed to facilitate the transition of new students to the institution; prepare students for the institution’s educational opportunities and student responsibilities; begin the integration of new students into the intellectual, cultural, and social climate of the institution; and support the families and other support networks of the new student” (NODA Website, 2009 citing CASHE, 2009).  As you can see from this definition, it is very much inclusive of both orientation and welcome weeks programming, noting that  welcome weeks programming is often separated out from orientation.

As noted on this same website, such programming can include “single or multi-day…, Welcome Weeks, Extended orientation, …Population specific programs (e.g., first generation… international students, … commuter students), …outdoor wilderness…programming, special-interest and special population programming, pre-orientation programming, online orientation, parent /family orientation programs….”  This list reflects a wide variety of approaches based on timing, format of offering, focus of topics covered and populations being served in such programming.  Ultimately however, the programs listed above are all in essence onboarding programming designed to prepare students for and ease their transition into, a post-secondary environment.  Such programming equally fits within broader transition and retention efforts many of which are further articulated with Strategic Enrolment Management (SEM) Plans.  As such, for the remainder of this chapter, we will refer to all programming as being “orientation”, but with the understanding that it encapsulates the variety of programs listed above.

History of Orientation Overall and Within Canada

There are a wide range of views as to the origin of orientation and welcome week(s) programming both overall and within the Canadian context.  Most would agree that orientation programming as a systematic approach was founded in the United States of America (U.S.A).  Finnegan and Alleman (2013), recognize the orientation occurring in 1923 at the University of Maine as being the first institutionally sponsored extended orientation prior to the start of the semester focused on the transition of students into the university.  This program was called Freshmen Week.  The National Orientation Directors Association (NODA) (2024) state that the first orientation program was offered by Boston University but does not specify the exact year. However, NODA does identify that by 1925 over twenty-five colleges throughout U.S were running similar programs.

It is likely that many such programs evolved in the post World War I period with attempts by the post-secondary sector to welcome back and engage war veterans into the mainstream of society.  Similar foundational elements of Student Affairs and Services are noted to have occurred during the same time period.  There are mentions of the precursors of such student services programming connected to the American Civil War, and the post- Civil War period saw significant population growth, an evolving industrial society, and resulting federal legislation.

As colleges, universities and Faculties became more focused on the holistic growth of students such programs became more prevalent and focused.  Such evolving programming resulted in the creation of administrative roles. These were originally Dean of Men and Dean of Women positions. These positions continued to evolve with societal changes that would see structures form to reflect the racially segregated aspects of American society at the time, and then later in the 20th century changes  in response to the desegregation of post-secondary environments (NASPA, 2024).  As the post-secondary sector evolved, so too did orientation programming, which would become more formalized in the 1920s, grow and expand through the 1930s and ultimately lead a first national conference in Columbus, Ohio in 1948 to discuss the “objectives of orientation week” (NODA, 2024).

Within Canada, we were later in coming to a dedicated focus on the importance of orientation programming and it seemed to take more focus in the post World War II (WWII) era (CACUSS, 2024).   Services for the support and re-engagement of World War II veterans was very much a priority in Canada as it was in the U.S. Although this began in the early 1900s with limited organization and professional focus, starting with the first Dean of Women role at Queen’s University and in 1918, but it  continued to build momentum in the subsequent decades (Hardy-Cox and Strange, 2010, 7-9).

There are references to loosely based orientation programming in the 1960s and 70s however much of this was student government led and in many cases was motivated by trying to get students involved in special causes more so than assisting with a smooth transition into post-secondary life.  In the 1980s, this changed to become more of a partnership between student governments and the institutions that were welcoming the students (Mason, 2010).

The establishment of orientation programming within the post-secondary sector was also reflective of Post-Secondary Institutions (PSIs) starting to appreciate the importance of student retention. This was accelerated in the 1990s with the declining domestic birthrate limiting the number of university eligible students available to institutions.  In 1991, there were 403,816 births in Canada and by 2000 there were 328,577.  Of course, it is not until 18 years later that the impact of these birthrates are seen on university eligible enrolment.  Since 2002, the birthrates have continued to rise but plateaued in 2009 at 384,638 and have declined slightly to a plateau in 2022 at 351,670 (Statistics Canada, 2023).  The recent changes in Canadian federal immigration guidelines has the potential to further exasperate this decline with Statistics Canada (2024a) identifying that immigration is the driver of population growth in Canada and without it, we would be close to zero population growth.  This is likely a reflection of both the numbers of immigrants coming to Canada and these immigrants also starting to have families within Canada.  Certainly, all of this seems to indicate that the need to invest in programs, such as orientation programming, will continue to be a trend for decades to come.

Diversification of Orientation Programming

Orientation programming has continued to show an emphasis on diversity as we know from research conducted by George Kuh (2008), Alexander Astin (1994) and Vincent Tinto (1987).  The socio-economic, personal identity and cultural pre-determinants of how students arrive at college play a significant role in their adjustment and success in post-secondary institutions.  Equally as important, is an institution’s ability to provide services and programming to meet the needs of pre-entry identifiers.  Such emphasis on diversity programs resulted in programming beginning to evolve in the 1990s to support and engage a wide variety of students, including orientation of international, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQIA+ populations, etc. (Mason, 2010).

Further, orientation programming in the early 1990s and the 2000s increasingly came to understand that the first year of studies was a period of notable transition including establishing new relationships, adjusting study habits, note-taking and time management skills, managing stress, money management, renegotiating relationships with parents/supporters, substance use, and others (Mason, 2010). As such, programming began to spread and became more standard practice. So too did the challenges of getting students to actually engage in such programming.  As a result, many institutions began to grapple with the use of the words, “required” and “mandatory” with some short-term success but with declining long-term impact as students quickly realized that there was, in most cases, no institutional consequences if they did not participate (Mason, 2010).  This very much has and continues to be an on-going challenge in trying to engage students in programming they need but do not want, or as commonly know in the profession, “they don’t know what they don’t know”.

The further evolution of orientation programming saw the recognition of parents, supporters, and/or family programming as institutions saw a growing trend of parental involvement in the student experience.  Originally coined in a 1969 book by Dr. Haim Ginott, and then again identified by Cline and Fay in 1990 (Li, 2024) this became commonplace enough that the term “helicopter parent” became commonly used jargon to illustrate the hovering tendency of parents.

Not only did the types of programming diversify in the 1990s and 2000s but so too did the medium of when and how the programming was delivered.  More and more institutions started to invest in web-based programming and the use of social media platforms including but not limited to, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, etc. (Mason, 2010).  This would be further accelerated with the onset of the pandemic in 2020.  Adding to this, during the past twenty or so, years spanning back to the turn of the millennia, there was also a rise in on-line learning and the appearance of institutions such as the University of Pheonix in the U.S. and Athabasca University within the Canadian context. (Veletsianos, VanLeeuwen, Belikov, Johnson, 2021), which required online orientation programming for new students.

Survey Outcomes and Trends

To get a better sense of the state of orientation programming in the Canadian context a group of Student Affairs and Services professionals including Tom Brophy, Leslie D’Souza, Josh Hass, Liz Hilliard, and Ian Simmie (2016) began work on developing a survey.  This thinking resulted in the first ever Canadian National Orientation Benchmarking Survey which was supported by the Canadian Association of College and University Student Services (CACUSS) and the Orientation and Transition Community of Practice (CoP).  This survey was administered in 2016 and although having challenges as would be expected with many such surveys, it did give a point in time snapshot of where Canadian post-secondary institutions stood with their orientation programming.

Through the course of this Canadian Orientation Benchmarking Survey, we were able to have 98 institutions (including colleges and universities) to complete the survey.  Although many institutions began developing a variety of differently focused orientation programming back in the 1990s and leading into the 2000s, this survey did allow an opportunity to identify just how commonplace such programming were.  Not surprisingly, 98% of institutions reported having some form of orientation programming to assist students with their transition into their respective institutions (Brophy et. al., 2016, Unpublished).

From a diversity of programming perspective, 90% of institutions (Brophy et al., 2016) were offering international welcome weeks programming which goes to show that by 2016 enough institutions were seeing sufficient numbers of international students to justify the need for relevant transition programming.  This further clarifies why Canadian federal government changes imposed in 2023/24 to put limits on the numbers of accepted international students will indeed have significant operational and financial impacts on post-secondary institutions who have become very dependent on the enrolment and the tuition revenue it creates (Macdonald, 2024).

The second most frequently noted form of orientation programming found in the 2016 survey was focused on parent and supporter orientation, with 68% of PSIs responding they offered such programming.  As noted earlier, many institutions had identified such programs as of the mid-1990s but three out of every 10 participiating institutions were still reportedly not doing such programs in 2016.  It may be worth noting in this regard, that some institutions may be more focused on non-traditional age students hence parent and supporter programming may not be seen as relevant.

Other interesting finding from the Brophy et al. (2016), study was that First Nation, Metis and Inuit (FNMI) focused programming was the third most frequently cited type of orientation programming in the survey with 56% of institutions reporting conducting such programming.  It is surprising that with all post-secondary institutions being on traditional lands of Indigenous Peoples that such programming would not have been more prevalent by 2016.  It is certainly hoped that with the release of the National Truth and Reconciliation Report in 2015 that this would provide more of an impetus for institutions to provide such programming. This is especially important given the growing numbers of Indigenous students enrolling in post-secondary.  Survey data collected as part of the 25th First Year Experience (FYE) anniversary Canadian monograph (see Chapter 2) in 2022-23 does show an increase in programming for Indigenous students with 65% of responding institutions reporting such programming.  This is a hopeful expansion of programming.  It is worth noting that in the 2016 Orientation Benchmarking Survey that this question referenced FNMI while the monograph survey in 2022-23 referenced this category as Indigenous.  This should not account for this growth, but it does show that the differences in questions language does also continue to evolve and some changes may impact on response rates and findings.

Sadly, the overall high school graduation rates remain significantly lower for Indigenous youth than for their non-Indigenous peers with 63% of Indigenous youth reportedly graduating from high school vs. 91% for non-Indigenous populations.  It should not come as a surprise that this trend does carry over to the post-secondary enrolment trends with only 37% of Indigenous youth enrolling in post-secondary versus 72% of their non-Indigenous peers (Statistics Canada, 2023b).  Although post-secondary enrolment for Indigenous students has grown from 2016 – 2021 by 1.9% there is still much room for improvement to bring rates on par with that of non-Indigenous students (Statistics Canada, 2023c).  To achieve this, there will need to be changes both in the K-12 school system and further enhancements of academic programs, implementation of Indigenous ways of learning and knowing, more autonomous Indigenous developed and implemented curriculum, and significant changes to financially, psychologically, and culturally create safe and welcoming communities for Indigenous students.

The fourth most frequently noted programming in the 2016 Benchmarking Survey (Brophy et. al., 2016) was focused on engaging students who identify as having a disability.  In this regard, 53% of responding institutions had dedicated programming for students who have disabilities.  In the 2022-23 monograph survey responding PSIs noted this programming as being at 55% a (likely non-significant) growth of 3% over 2016.

Statistics Canada has shown a growing trend of more and more students who identify as having a disability coming to university.  According to the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) (Mohler and Godin-Jacques, 2023) the rate of students attending PSIs in Canada is growing but not at the rate of on par with the growth of students who do not report as having a disability.  Some of the reasons for this can be attributed to challenges around, “…barriers including physical inaccessibility, attitudinal barriers, like discrimination and lack of awareness of disability, a lack of programming to support the secondary to post-secondary transition, financial and transportation barriers, and inaccessible curriculum” (Mohler and Godin-Jacques, 2023, p.9).  The Canadian Survey on Disability (CSD) by Statistics Canada (2023d) notes that the number of youth (ages 15-24) that identify as having a disability has increased from 13% in 2017 to 20% in 2022.  It is likely safe to assume that this trend of students with disabilities enrolling in PSIs will continue going forward. Thus, there will be a need for orientation programming to do so as well as the Canadian educational system capacities to identify, diagnose and support students with disabilities continues to become both more available, funded, and refined.

The below table shows comparative results on some other types of orientation programming between the 2016 National Canadian Orientation Benchmarking Survey (Brophy et. al., 2016) and the 25th Anniversary Monograph survey in 2022-23.

The above comparative table does highlight challenges around such surveys.  The language used, the completion rates and the actual person who receives the survey and their scope of responsibility and capacity to complete the survey are all significant variables to consider.  There is a benefit in providing these results for future researchers as point-in-time data as ways of further clarifying trends of orientation programming.  The FYE Monograph Survey conducted in 2022-23 had a broader scope than the National Orientation Benchmarking Survey (Brophy et. al., 2016) completed in 2016.  The 2016 survey focused solely on elements of orientation programming and many related foundational and operational aspects of such programming.  Whereas the 2022-23 25th Anniversary Canadian Monograph on the First Year Experience looked at orientation, but also looked at much broader programming and topical themes.  This likely could change who would have received the survey and their intimate awareness of orientation programming versus that of broader first-year experience and transition programming.  There would certainly be overlap as well, but this may account for some of the variances and in some cases declines in programming being reported when this is likely not to be the case.

Another comparative point between the 2016 and 2022-23 surveys is the focus on gender-based or sexual violence-based programming.  In the 2016 survey, 53% identified having such on-boarding programming for arriving new students and at this time another 26% noted that they were working on developing it.  In 2016 70% of the institutions mentioned that they had stand-alone, institutional-wide sexual violence policies.  In the 2022-23 survey, 65% of responding institutions identified doing programming on the same topic.  This is surprisingly lower than the 2016 survey and may be more reflective of the fact that different people at institutions may be completing the survey that may either not be as aware of the nuances of the orientation programming, or it may reflect that the sexual violence awareness capacity building may be lead outside their area and as such they may not be aware.

Another area showing prominence in the 2022-23 FYE Monograph was the growth of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility (EDIA) programming.  It is difficult to compare this to the 2016 National Orientation Benchmarking survey as the questions were not organized in such a manner as to ask the same question.  The 2022-23 monograph survey did show that 59% of PSIs offer EDIA programming however only 5.9% of institutions noted it as being mandatory.  Despite the extent to which many Canadian institutions talk about emphasis on such programming it is still not as commonplace as one would expect and even less so when it comes to completion rates (likely due to lack of mandatory expectations).  It is reasonable to expect that such programming will continue to grow and become more entrenched as commitment to dedicated spaces, positions and equity and diversity hiring practices occur in the future.

Other related results that were noted in the 2022-23 FYE Monograph survey emphasized programming outside the more traditional on-boarding orientation programming covered above.  A growing trend in Canada over the last 20-30 years is the prominence of first-year transition seminars/courses.  57% of responding institutions identified having such programming.  Of those who do have these types of courses/seminars, 25% offer it for academic credit, whereas of those same respondents, only 19% noted them as being a required course.  This varies from a 2023 survey conducted by the National Resource Centre for Transition and the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition which found that 77% of U.S. institutions offer some form of a seminar/course program (Mowreader, 2024).  It has taken Canada longer to adopt such FYE Seminar programs although it is fair to say that it does seem to be becoming more commonplace.

You can certainly see in comparing the 1994 monograph data to these more recent surveys that diversification of orientation programming has certainly occurred.  The diversity of programming is certainly reflective of the Canadian culture of inclusion but equally in recognition that diverse stakeholders have unique needs and especially for historically marginalized communities, that finding community within community is of significant importance.  As can be seen in other chapters, within this monograph, such communities provide significant elements of safety, inclusion and cultural identity within the PSI environment.  Further, the types of orientation programming have also evolved significantly with pre-semester programming, immediately before the start of the semester, and post-start of the semester programming that lasts weeks into the semester, and up to and including the first full year of studies.  The pandemic of 2020 also significantly enhanced on-line programming for students with a growth in the existence of on-line pre-arrival programming.

Looking Ahead

With the evolution of the last 25 years, it is exciting to think about what the next 25 years could bring, however with so much time and so many variables in play any predictions are unlikely to be accurate.  Nonetheless, I will attempt to predict what future orientation trends are likely within the next ten years.  As previously mentioned in this and other chapters, Federal and Provincial funding cuts to post-secondary education is a well-established trend (e.g., Usher, 2023). With the recent changes to Canadian immigration policy starting in 2023 and ongoing into at least 2026, it is highly likely that the financial situation of PSIs in Canada is going to become increasingly more difficult.  In difficult times in the post-secondary sector, we can expect that many administrative (non-unionized) areas will likely see more budget cuts as a result.  These cuts will likely mean fewer staff being expected to continue the same programming, limitations in spending on programming, increased diversity programming, and a pressure to demonstrate Return On Investment (ROI) for spending on orientation programming.

Another form of orientation and transition programing identified in the 2022-23 FYE Monograph survey is the existence of proactive interventional strategies such as the use of early alert/assist programming and Client Relationship Management (CRM) software.  Early alert/assist systems are defined as, “…formal communication systems institutions put into place to help with timely identification and intervention of students who display attrition risk factors” (Simons, 2011, as cited in Hanover, 2014).   A CRM, “…is a system for managing all of your company’s interactions with current and potential customers. The goal is simple: improve relationships to grow your business. CRM technology helps companies stay connected to customers, streamline processes, and improve profitability” (Salesforce, 2024).  Within a post-secondary system, CRM is software that allows institutions to track integrative data on students to better customize and coordinate responses in support of student success.  Both types of programs/systems are designed to provide more integrated and coordinated responses to students.  CRM software allows for intentional and proactive responses to enhance student engagement.  The 2022-23 FYE Monograph survey showed that 56% of PSIs now use early assist systems and 26% use CRM software.  It is likely that declining demographics will shift the focus more on retention than it has been in the past and it is safe to assume such programs, software and processes are only going to grow in adoption in the years ahead.

In keeping with the above, it is likely that with extra emphasis on retention programming to try to retain the enrolled students in the face of declining to stagnant population growth, that capacity building will also need to be enhanced for faculty and staff working with PSIs.  The 2022-23 FYE Monograph survey did identify that 16% of PSIs offer FYE and Transition Professional Development (PD) for Faculty and staff while 51% offered interactive pedagogy training for FYE and Transition to faculty.

It is likely that the emphasis on the benefits of collaborative learning as identified by research coming out of the National Survey for Student Engagement (NSSE) amongst many others in the field of learning and metacognition has led to an enhanced emphasis on pedagogical practices.  George Kuh’s (2008) research, (among many others) has identified the value of High-Impact Practices (HIPs) which includes categories such as Collaborative Assignments and Projects, Common Intellectual Experiences, First-Year Seminars and Experiences, and Learning Communities amongst several others (American Association of Colleges & Universities, 2024) in supporting student success.  A common element in many of these practices is the interactive and integrative learning strategies which very much differ from lecture-style approach frequently associated with the post-secondary sector. It is reasonable to anticipate that capacity building through the combined efforts of teaching and learning, student services and the registrars’ areas will become more commonplace going forward to increase student engagement in the classroom.

Another growing area of programming that will likely become more prominent in the years ahead is work around academic integrity with a clear emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI).  It is becoming more and more challenging within the educational environment to identify breaches of academic integrity especially as the field of AI becomes more pronounced (Couturier, 2023).  The 2022-23 FYE Monograph survey identified that 71% of PSIs offer orientation programming on the topic of academic integrity and 24% of those who do such programming have it as being mandatory.  Certainly, the trend of trying to address all institutional challenges by imbedding them in orientation programming is likely going to continue related to this topic.  The challenge will be trying to strike the balance of not trying to give too much information before they arrive, or not making course syllabi even longer while at the same time trying to ensure appropriate attention is paid to both providing an understanding of academic integrity and AI. We must consider that we cannot further contribute to the onboarding phenomena of “drinking from firehose” that many new students often identify as experiencing.

Report after report on entering first-year students through the Canadian University Survey Consortium identifies the top five motivations for students attend post-secondary education include to get a job (89%), to prepare for a specific job (86%) and to get a more meaningful job (86%) and “to earn more money than if I didn’t go”. (CUSC, 2022, p18).  Four of the top seven reasons new students cite in attending universities in Canada identify career and employment reasons as being significant motivators.  In my experience, as someone who has spoken to parents and supporters orientations for over 25 years this is very obviously a key motivator for the parents of new students as well.  As federal and provincial governments funding expectations become more connected to labour market trends and outcomes, it is reasonable to anticipate that such programming is going to be more central to orientation programming in the years to come.  The 2022-23 FYE Canadian Monograph identified that 43% of PSIs provide career advising program to new students, although it was clear if this was targeted only to new students or if it was general programming of which new students are able to avail themselves.  How this will unfold, how employers will be engaged, and how career and experiential offices and faculty will be engaged in such dialogues, will be interesting to watch in the years ahead.

A final trend that was highlighted in the 2022-23 Canadian FYE Monograph study is the lack of intentionality in connecting the work of orientation programming to that of retention overall.  Of all the programs identified in this survey, only 14.6% of those who identified offering orientation programming stated that they did assessment to determine if there was a connectivity between their programming and student retention.  The highest cited frequency percentage was for students entering directly from high school at 22% with most of the rest of the programs being the range around 10% and many lower than 5%.  With declining resources, it is likely going to become even more important to try to establish some connectivity between programming and retention.

Connecting orientation programming with retention is challenging for many reasons such as lack of student services staff comfort with statistical analysis and assessment, lack of time to do so with increasing demands and shrinking staff and resources, and the complicating considerations of other influencing variables that may equally have caused positive or negative outcomes, etc.  As such, the attempts to show a causal or correlation impact is not an easy one, but still one that is likely going to become more important going forward.

The landscape of orientation programming will continue to shift and evolve.  Some of the factors influencing these evolutions will be internal in nature (e.g. budget pressures and enrollment changes) or external (such as immigration changes and demographic shifts).  As we continue to understand the evolving nature of the challenges facing new students (e.g. mental health, resilience, food and housing insecurity), these too will shape how we engage and support our students.  One thing is for sure — the need for onboarding supports for new students will continue to be essential programming.  What it will look like, what it will include, when and how it will be offered, by whom and for whom, are all likely to continue to change over time.  The capable professionals, student governments, student staff and volunteers will continue to show they are up for this challenge.  Exciting challenges and opportunities will be met by very capable and hard-working people who are more than up to the task.

Special Acknowledgement

I would like to acknowledge that sections of this chapter reference a National Canadian Orientation Benchmarking Survey that was completed in 2016.  This survey was very much a collaborative effort of several Student Affairs and Services professionals who were at the time engaged in orientation programming and worked at five different institutions in four provinces.  We were kindred spirits in wanting to have a national data benchmark around orientation programming and the desire to add to the pool of knowledge from a Canadian context.  Although we did go on to present the data at a national CACUSS conference we, for whatever reason, did not go on to publish the data.  In writing this chapter, I want to acknowledge the tremendous efforts of Leslie D’Souza, Josh Haas, Liz Hilliard, and Ian Simmie.  I was humbled to work with and learn from them and delighted to share some of the results of our survey in this chapter.  A heartfelt thank you to all of them and I hope I have done some of the summaries of our efforts, justice.

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