We’re excited! Aren’t you?
In less than four months, your classes will be scheduled, your bags will be packed, and you’ll be ready to move in on Aug. 21. So, what comes next?
Orientation, a five-day experience featuring welcome sessions, campus and community traditions, skill-building, and more, will introduce you to life at Gettysburg College. It will lay the foundation for your success during the next four years.
Summer Send-Offs
Our community is passionate about the value of a Gettysburg education. You’ll witness that passion on display at one of our summer Send-Offs.
These informal regional events, which are hosted by alumni, current parents, and parents of alumni across the country, connect past, present, and future Gettysburgians to reflect on our proud history and inspire new possibilities.
Summer send-offs, as well as other pre-Orientation opportunities such as Ascent, a wilderness leadership program, will give you the chance to connect with your classmates and generations of Gettysburgians.
Orientation
Your transformative liberal arts experience begins on day one. Let’s go!
Every year on Move-In Day, the Gettysburg College community comes together to celebrate, welcome, and help the incoming class move into their residence halls. After Opening Convocation, students officially matriculate by walking through Pennsylvania Hall.
Longstanding traditions, such as the First-Year Walk, will connect you to the College’s historic past and inspire a passion for responsible citizenship and thoughtful leadership.
The First-Year Walk recreates the moment in 1863 when members of the College community joined President Abraham Lincoln at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery, where he delivered The Gettysburg Address. During this tradition, students will hear a recitation of Lincoln’s famous words and remarks from a guest speaker.
You can then forge a purposeful path toward positive change through GIV Day, the College’s annual community service day.
Organized by the Center for Public Service (CPS), Gettysburg Is Volunteering (GIV) Day introduces first-year students to new possibilities. They engage in a poverty simulation and a service project to learn about the complexity of social issues and discover opportunities to enact change. You can register in advance for GIV Day on the First-Year Dashboard.
Next Four Years
Get excited to play an integral role in the Gettysburg College community! The extended Orientation program, entitled Charting Your Course (CYC), will empower you to learn about, engage in, and plan your next four years.
First-year students will participate in CYC events ranging from a public presentation about our Common Read book, Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spire, to another tradition known as Twilight Hour.
However, you don’t need to wait. Start owning your Gettysburg experience today.
A myriad of clubs, organizations, and leadership, mentorship and service opportunities—such as intramural sports, distinctive programs like the Garthwait Leadership Center, and career counseling—exist on campus to enhance your quest for academic excellence. You can sign up for many of these opportunities at the Activities Fair on Aug. 29.
There’s no time like the present to immerse yourself in the energy of Gettysburg College. No two students are alike. Be you. Be a Gettysburgian. Be a trailblazer in the Class of 2023.
Learn more online or in your new student orientation guide hitting your mailbox at the end of May.