Semester 2’s MCASI Undergraduate School Welcome was held on Wednesday, 19 July, from 12pm to 1pm at Curtin’s Research Project Space (202.165).
Undergraduate students studying under the School of Media, Creative Arts and Social Inquiry sector were introduced to what their course and university life will entail over the next few years.
According to MCASI Co-director of Learning and Teaching Dr Denise Woods, the purpose of the MCASI orientation event is to teach first-year students how to enrol in their units and to familiarise themselves with their learning content, lecturers, resources and potential classmates.
Professor Umberto Ansaldo (Head of School)
Image Credit: Cheyenne Valero
MCASI Administrative Officer Mrs Fiona Clarke mentions that the orientation event is a great way to comfortably ease students into campus life.
“Students are coming into a new environment, so we try to give them the opportunity to meet people who are studying within their major and other fields, while also running through all the information they need to know about their course and the Faculty of Humanities,” Fiona says.
The event opened with Head of School Professor Umberto Ansaldo’s Acknowledgement of Country and introduction to MCASI.
Professor Ansaldo’s introduction was then followed by Major Lead in Journalism Dr Glynn Greensmith’s keynote, where he provided words of encouragement to students who are currently dealing with the financial hardships of today’s economy.
Lecturers Ms Carol Igglesden (Academic and Professional Communications) and Dr Sonia Tascon (Culture to Cultures) informed students of their core units and the benefits of learning about the ethics of the art industry.
Nandu Shibu (Senior Leader for Engagement)
Image Credit: Cheyenne Valero
Curtin Film Society, Curtin Writers Club, GoGlobal and Curtin Volunteers! also had stalls set up at the MCASI Orientation event, serving as a great way to introduce first-year students to Curtin University’s campus culture.
“The purpose of the MCASI orientation event has shifted quite a bit over time. Initially, it focused more on ‘how not to get lost’ and ‘how to navigate through Blackboard’ — the general information,” Denise says.
“But it’s no longer just about how to survive [at university], it’s also about how to thrive. Having Curtin clubs and extracurricular organisations attend the event now introduces undergraduate students to another aspect of university life outside of studying.”
“We aim to make the orientation event as relevant as possible to new students,” Fiona adds.
“So we have speakers [from Curtin clubs and other extracurricular organisations] come in to talk about fun and engaging things that students can get involved with, which adds to the value of student experience.”
The MCASI Undergraduate School Welcome will continue to run with the same module for future events, with a bigger turn-out expected next semester in 2024.