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Cornell University

Student & Campus Life

New Student Orientation

Cornell Bear with students


Fall 2025 
New Student Orientation: August 18-24, 2025 
New Student Move-In: August 18-19, 2025 
Family Orientation: August 18-19, 2025

While we encourage you to take note of these dates and mark your calendars, we suggest that you wait to make any travel arrangements until additional information is shared. Detailed scheduling information, including specific move-in days and orientation schedules, will be released in late spring.

New Student Orientation will kick off with New Student Move-In and Family Orientation. We can't wait to welcome you to campus and help you begin your transition to the Big Red Family! With a mix of required and optional sessions, our orientation program is designed with connection in mind to help you begin to build connections to campus, to resources, and other new students. 

Current students play a major role in planning your orientation experience. Hundreds of students serve as Orientation Leaders (OLs) whose role is to serve as your Cornell GPS as you make your way to campus. You will meet your OL at New Student Orientation and will engage with them in a variety of ways, most notably, in small groups. These sessions bring you and a small group of other new students together to engage in conversations about being a Cornellian.  

 

In addition to your OL, there are several other avenues of support we encourage you to connect and engage with!  

 
  • Your resident advisor (RA) or undergraduate resident fellows (URFs) in your residence hall
  • Your college may offer the chance to connect with a faculty advisor, advising staff, and/or peer mentors/ambassadors
  • Faculty fellows and faculty-in-residence who engage with students and develop programs where they live