New Student Programs

New Student Programs at Dickinson College strive to help first-year and transfer students thrive at adjusting and transitioning to college life by engaging in activities on campus and in the greater Carlisle community and connecting with other students, faculty, and staff. 

The Dickinson first-year experience is designed with the individual students in mind. As first-year students begin their time at Dickinson, we aim to help them strive for academic excellence, find connections to this wonderful place through relationships, develop personally, and prepare for a life of engaged citizenship through Pre-Orientation: Explore More Programs, Orientation, and Extended Orientation. Social programs are designed to help students connect with other new students with shared interests and transition to life at Dickinson.  

Dickinson places new students together based on their first-year seminar and assigns an upper-class student as the Orientation Leader, who helps create lasting relationships, offers academic and social support, and provides advice as a student navigates their transition to college.