Orientation
The orientation program is compulsory for all new students. The program aims to enable new students to get to know other students and staff of the University as well as their new learning environment.
The program is divided into academic orientation program and cultural induction.
Academic orientation program
This program enables new students to have a better understanding of the program which they are going to undertake.
Cultural induction
Cultural induction program is designed for new national and international students. Through this program, the students get to know the local culture and international students will also be given the opportunity to share information about their own culture. Cultural induction is also about learning to adjust to the new culture of the University and the city of Kuching.
As part of the orientation program, new students are taken to places of interest and shown places of importance such as banks and where hospitals are located.
Ice breaking activities
Getting to know new friends is exciting. Once the ice is broken, new students can learn all types of interesting things about those around them. For instance, they might discover that the person next to them enjoys same past times. Ice breaking activities allow new students to relax, become acquainted and build a rapport.
Following are some ice breaking activities for new students:- I'm yours.
This activity is a fun way to make introductions and keep everyone engaged. New students share personal information such as the meaning of their names, favourite hobbies, and personal strengths. The catch is that the students must memorise facts shared by others and say out the facts by the end of the activity. - Look at my team
This activity develops creativity and team work. In small group, new students design team name and team logo to create team poster. By combining all members' personal strengths, other teams would realise the team's uniqueness and strength when the leader sticks the poster on the wall. Not only this activity develops team work, it also develops interpersonal skill among members to explain their uniqueness and strengths to others. - Human knot
This activity develops openness and belongingness among team members. New students cooperate to figure out how to untangle the human knot without letting go held hands. This fun activity may include the students to step over or under arms to try and untangle the knot within a stipulated time. The winning team of this challenge will be rewarded fairly by the end of the orientation program.
Campus tour
New students will take campus tour to learn about Swinburne's facilities, services and campus culture. They tour the campus, which will be led by student helpers or staff members to respective departments. At each department, they will be briefed on the functions and the services offered by the departments. For example, they tour the library to know the right ways to search for referenced materials or they tour the administration building to know who to approach for assistance.
Cultural tour
New students will tour to the Sarawak Cultural Village; located 35km from Swinburne Sarawak campus, accompanied by three accompanying staff members. The Sarawak Cultural Village depicts the heritage of the major racial groups in Sarawak and conveniently portrays their respective lifestyle. New students will also watch a cultural show, performed by the entertainers from the Sarawak Cultural Village. The 45-minute cultural performance of songs, dances and entertainment is something they will not want to miss during their visit to the Sarawak Cultural Village, which is also the venue for the annual Rainforest World Music Festival, an internationally renowned music festival. The cultural tour also includes a city tour to the important places in Kuching such as banks, hospital and shopping malls.
Student Support Services (Counselling and Student Development) Session
Conducted by qualified, licensed and experienced counsellors, this session briefs new students on the support services offered to the students. They include counselling and student development activities. Counselling is a helping process between a counsellor and a student, where the counsellor guides the student to engage in problem-solving skill to deal with personal and academic issues effectively. All information shared between the counsellor and the student in the counselling session is confidential. Student development activities include stress management, time management, effective study skills, Academic Success Program and Academic Support Workshop.
Academic Briefing
At the academic briefing, new students will get to meet respective academic program coordinators. They will be briefed on the details as well as some of the courses that they could take for the academic year. The program coordinators will also help to answer any queries that new students may have pertaining to their academic program.
University Life Cultural Induction Session
The session is designed for new national and international students. Through this session, the students get to know the local culture and international students will also be given the opportunity to share information about their own culture. Besides cultural awareness sharing, the session also hopes to develop entrepreneurial skill and creativity among the students, by designing a 3-minute advertisement about food and culture.