New Student/Freshmen Orientation Kits: What to Include

As a school administrator or educator, you can set your new students up for success before the first day of school with an orientation kit. An orientation kit informs students of what to expect during orientation and beyond. Providing the essential tools and information can help them adjust to life on campus.

Amid all the busyness, your incoming students need a single point of reference to help them in their initial high school or college days. During their first orientation session, provide them with materials such as campus maps, procedures and essential contact details. Remember to make it fun by adding school T-shirts, stress balls, snacks and more to help ease them into student life.

Benefits of Giving New Students a Kit During Orientation

First impressions count — start on the right foot with your new student orientation and provide them with a meaningful gesture that sets the tone for their first year at your school. Consider every student’s needs to help create beneficial orientation kits.

The kit should include all relevant information and is a tool to help students feel a sense of belonging as they enter the school for the first time. Empower them by offering appropriate school and academic insights and thoughtful additional items and materials.

A comprehensive new student orientation kit helps to:

• Get students excited.
• Provide vital information.
• Give students a point of reference.
• Ensure students are organized.
• Inform students of how to prepare for their first official day.
• Prompt students to register for relevant clubs and sports.
• Integrate students into the school community.
• Offer a conversation starter with other students.
• Improve student confidence.
• Show school generosity and consideration.
• Gift first-day memorabilia.

 

What to Include in New Student and Freshmen Orientation Kits

When compiling your new student and freshman orientation kits, being strategic about what you include is paramount. You want to give the students welcome gifts they will enjoy and use, along with vital information, references and contact details. The packs should serve as a sufficient one-stop beginner guide to the school. But before choosing what to put in the kits, deciding on their packaging is a good idea.

Package all the materials and items in a convenient way that will offer valuable reuse possibilities for students. Something like easy-carry drawstring bags might do the job, but for extra versatility and value, consider using customized laptop backpacks to hold orientation contents.

Informational Material to Include

Offering essential and informative material to your students will contribute to a successful orientation. The type of information you include may differ by school or campus, but the purpose is to give students everything they need for orientation and beyond.

Here are some informational materials you’ll want to include in your welcome packs. You may also want to make these resources available online for easy access.

Welcome Letter

A nice touch is to include a welcome letter for new students as they begin their high school or college orientation. Take the chance to welcome them as new members of the school community and wish them well for the new student orientation period and beyond.

School Brochure

You can offer students a basic overview of the school or college. Often, school brochures are sent in advance, though including one in the kit ensures students are equipped with a brief history of the school, school achievements, study options, scholarships offered, campus culture and values.

New Student and Orientation Checklist

Provide a to-do checklist to help new local and international students organize and prioritize their paperwork and the orientation process. Everything included in the new student orientation kits should be concise — there’s a lot to take in when attending school and college orientation, and you should aim to make it as simple as possible. As they complete tasks and attend events, students check them off the list and gain confidence in their new school environment.

Lanyard With a Student Card

Student cards are especially beneficial for college students who use them to gain access to residence halls and pay for meals. You may also provide student ID cards for high schoolers to pay for lunches or gain access to school events. Provide a vinyl card holder with a customized school lanyard with your school colors along with the ID.

Orientation Name Tag

Blank stickers are a staple for sharing names during orientation, where countless students attempt to get to know one another. Supplying blank stickers for students to customize allows them to showcase their personalities. If you want something more uniform and environmentally friendly — since stickers fall off and get discarded — opt for satin plastic name badges for neat and reusable name tags.

Orientation Schedule and Itinerary

Provide a complete timeline of orientation tasks and activities so students know what to expect and how to prepare. Include precise times and locations and who to contact regarding each orientation session. As students already have a great deal on their minds, clarify if they need to bring or prepare items for the sessions.

Campus or School Map

Give students a comprehensive map that is legible and easy to follow to help them find their way around campus. The best maps are color-coded and accurately scaled. This is an example of something you could digitize and update as needed. You could also include helpful tools like a compass and information on buildings.

Campus Transportation Schedules

Some college students have cars while others require transport. Provide the transport routes, times and any additional details such as fees and rules for commuting students.

Staff Structure and Points of Contact

Offering a breakdown of student resources and department staff with contact details will help new students tremendously. They will know who to contact for what purposes and how to reach them. This also helps to cut down on correspondence with the incorrect departments and staff.

Important Forms

There are times when specific documentation only gets submitted following acceptance and admission. During orientation, provide the students with forms regarding emergency contacts, medical reports, food and other allergies, and any essential information they must submit by the end of orientation.

Vital Event and Emergency Procedures

Unlike current students, incoming students will have to learn the expectations at important events, especially those with a high sense of occasion and formality. To ensure student awareness, you must provide all requirements in advance.

It would also be best to outline precise procedures for all emergency scenarios and, during an orientation session, have a safety official walk them through each framework.

Safety Information and Gear

As an academic institution, you need to inform students of possible dangers and prevention. This may include informational leaflets and seminars where you break down procedures and create awareness about on-campus issues. Apart from information, it is wise to equip students with essential tools such as a flashlight and ear-piercing metal key chain safety whistles for self-protection.

Residence Resources

The decision to live on or off campus is monumental for college students. It is an exciting and immersive experience for students living on campus. As they enter their new home, they must know everything about the residence, including meal times, meal plans, rules, lights out, cleaning services, laundry and staffing.

Meal Plan and Schedule Information

Whether students live on campus or off, you should include any meals you offer throughout the week in a meal plan schedule. Students likely have varying dietary requirements and must know how to request adjustments where necessary for religious, moral or medical reasons.

Textbook Information

This is a potentially expensive part of starting at a new college because the average college textbook costs $105.37. While textbooks will vary depending on the class and professor, you can include information about where students can purchase their textbooks — such as at an on-campus bookstore — or tips for making textbooks more affordable. For example, e-books are often more affordable than physical books, and renting is usually cheaper than buying.

School Calendar

Both a customized school calendar and planner are great inclusions for your school’s orientation kits. Students can easily keep track of college events and school holidays with a desk or wall calendar, and a planner with the school emblem offers a dedicated place to make plans, take quick notes and diarize their school to-dos.

Clubs, Societies and Sports Teams

Schools have a wide range of students with interests ranging from football to art and music. You want students to be active in their passions and try new recreations. Include a list of all clubs, societies and sports teams and encourage students to participate.

Academic Programs and Resources

Start with the various departments and course options. Often, students only select their subjects during or following orientation, and it is best to offer them time to consider their options and schedule meetings with staff to ask for advice. You can include resources like study tips, campus library information and computer lab information, too.

Electronics Gadgets and Accessories to Include

We live in a time when students rely heavily on electronics to discover, learn, study and complete assignments. Technology is an integral part of the modern world, so include inexpensive gadgets to make students’ lives easier.

USB Flash Drives

Students always need convenient USB flash drives to store and transfer projects, essays, papers and media content. USBs are incredibly useful, and you can create a college mascot or badge USB and customize them as you desire.

Power Banks

It is crucial to keep devices charged during orientation. Gift your students a school-branded reliable power bank to power gadgets on the go or when they forget to charge their devices. Current students would likely agree that a backup power source is a prime freshman orientation kit inclusion.

Headphones and Earbuds

Whether in the school library or on campus transportation, students enjoy plugging in and listening to music to relax, block out the surrounding noise and focus on the task at hand. Providing a pair of corded or wireless headphones and earbuds is an excellent gesture students will appreciate.

Apparel and Wearables to Include

There is no better way to embrace a new college than wearing a branded T-shirt, sweatshirt and other apparel items. It cultivates a sense of pride and inclusion that many students will happily embrace.

T-Shirts and Sweatshirts

High school and college students tend to cycle through clothes faster than most, as their lives are busy and active. Have incoming students submit their sizes in advance. When they open their orientation kits, they will discover their branded T-shirts and cozy sweatshirts and sweatpants ready to wear.

Sunglasses

Every student likes to wear a fashionable pair of sunglasses to shade their eyes when heading out. With the right style, color and school crest placement, you can give your incoming students a stylish pair of sunglasses.

Headwear

Providing quality knit hats to students for the fall and winter and baseball hats for sunny days is a fantastic idea, as students will get plenty of use out of them. Whether keeping them warm for evening classes or shading their eyes at sports events, they will be glad to have this headwear.

Practical and Useable Items to Include

Certain items are essential for a student, though it is possible they should have remembered to pack them in their excitement and eagerness to get to the start of new student orientation. Provide these and other necessities to ensure they are covered.

Drinkware

As active students, they need to stay hydrated throughout their days. A designated water bottle with your college emblem or mascot will help them adopt healthy habits and save money on bottled water. For added convenience, supply freshmen with a specially made coffee mug for early mornings and late nights.

Basic Stationery

Customized multifunction pens and handy unique notebooks are the most needed stationery for new students during orientation. Additionally, highlighters and markers make outlining important information that much easier.

Toothbrushes

Good dental hygiene is vital for all, though it is often one of the items a person needs to remember to pack or plan to buy once they arrive. Either way, make your students’ lives easier and supply them with a travel or standard toothbrush to put a smile on their faces and get them through orientation.

Fun Extras to Include

There are plenty of excellent additions to use as fillers for your first-year orientation kits to fuel students, keep them entertained and increase their comfort.

Snacks and Beverages

It is no secret that students thrive on snacks and treats. Starting high school and college are significant steps, and students will welcome tasty comfort food to keep them going. There are snacks and beverages for all seasons, which will surely be a success among your first-year students.

Stress Balls and Games

Help students fend off boredom, manage stress and have icebreaker activities during orientation. Including fun stress balls and games for various age groups is an inexpensive way to give additional value to your new student orientation kit.

Creating Tailored Kits for International Students

Consider your international students and try to tailor some aspects to them. All students will feel slightly out of place and homesick, though it is more likely that your international students will experience a sense of loneliness. Help these students deal with homesickness by providing them with mentors and support and ensuring they have the means to contact loved ones back home. Also, add snacks and tokens to remind them of home while encouraging them to participate in campus life.

Create Your Orientation Kit With ePromos

Design and compile a winning orientation kit for your new students to instill confidence from day one and give them a head start on their school career and experience. Provide all the necessary information, rules and procedures so students start confidently and are excited about joining your academic institute.

Give incoming students all they need to prepare for their schooling career with customized school essentials and swag that allows them to show their school pride. For freshman orientation kit essentials, contact ePromos for quality products, and take your orientation kits to new heights. With our award-winning service, let us help you provide the tools for freshman students to acclimatize and flourish.