Welcome new university students with inclusive events

Starting university is exciting but it can also be overwhelming. A flood of emails, announcements and administrative information greets students at a time when they are trying to make friends, navigate campus and adjust to a new academic environment. Even when the information is important, students can easily miss it or struggle to act on it as a result. 

If you are involved in designing induction or welcome activities, one of the most impactful things you can do is rethink how students encounter information and people during those first critical days. Based on my experience, here are five principles to follow.

Move beyond information-heavy welcome sessions

Traditional induction sessions often rely on lecture-style talks packed with essential information from multiple sources. Although well intentioned, this approach can feel overwhelming and make information difficult to retain. Rather than asking “What do students need to be told?”, try asking, “What do students need help doing in their first week?”

Design activities that allow students to access information easily when they are ready. For example, instead of a lecture-style session, you could create an interactive fair-style event where students move between stations at their own pace. Each station could focus on one area of student life or support, such as well-being, employability or the students’ union. Better still, you could embed essential information within social activities, so learning and community-building happen at the same time. This marks a shift from passive listening to active engagement and makes it easier for students to focus on what feels most relevant to them. 

Create multiple opportunities to access the same information

Students arrive at university with very different levels of preparedness, confidence and capacity to absorb information. This is particularly true for international students, those entering through non-traditional routes or those who might be unfamiliar with UK higher education systems and expectations. Relying on a single delivery method therefore risks excluding those who are already feeling overwhelmed or who may not yet have the cultural, institutional or linguistic knowledge to interpret what is being communicated. 

You can make your welcome activities more inclusive by making key information available in more than one format and at more than one time. Pre-arrival online modules, emails and handbooks are valuable but they work best when complemented by opportunities to revisit and clarify information in person. 

Interactive events allow students to ask follow-up questions, check their understanding or discover support they did not realise was available. This is especially helpful for those who may not know what questions to ask yet or who may feel unsure about engaging through formal channels. Face-to-face conversations, simple visual guides and take-away resources can reinforce messages without adding to the cognitive overload, while also helping to improve accessibility for students navigating university from a range of starting points.

Prioritise connection and belonging

In the first weeks of university, understanding of key information and systems matters but so does a feeling of belonging. Welcome activities should make space for both. 

Rather than relying on high-energy icebreakers, you can offer a range of optional, low-pressure social activities that allow students to connect in ways that feel comfortable. Simple conversation cards or a “Find someone who…” bingo card, along with informal activities, such as creating university bucket lists, can encourage students to get to know one another and find common ground without forcing participation or putting students on the spot. Similarly, collaborative activities such as collaborative mind maps that encourage diversity of responses (for example interests and goals, values they want their community to share or interesting facts about where they come from) can make diversity visible in a way that feels personal and inclusive rather than tokenistic.

• ‘Every faculty member should go on campus tours’
• Laying foundations: how to keep first-year students invested in their learning
• Greeting first-year university students with ‘structured serendipity’

Crucially, involving staff in these interactive welcome activities (for example, meet-and-greets) allows students to put faces to names, whether academic staff, advisers or professional support teams. This helps humanise university systems and reduces barriers to support. When students have already spoken informally to staff in a relaxed setting, they are more likely to feel confident reaching out later, particularly if they are struggling or unsure of where to turn.

Build flexibility and accessibility into the physical space

Inclusivity is shaped not just by content but by environment. When planning welcome activities, consider how the layout and atmosphere will feel for students with different social needs, energy levels and access requirements. Providing a designated quiet or low-stimulation area signals that it is acceptable to engage in different ways. Some students may want to observe before joining in, take breaks from social interaction or process information independently. Making this explicit helps create a culture where all forms of engagement are valid.

You can also invite students to contribute through low-effort activities by writing down their thoughts in their own time or by doing simple activities such as placing a pin on a printed map to celebrate diversity from the outset.

From informative to inclusive

When we give students choices, time and multiple ways to engage, they are less likely to be left behind simply because they missed an email or felt overwhelmed. Instead, they can take ownership of their transition to higher education at a pace and in a style that works for them, laying the foundation for a more positive and connected first-year experience.

Megan Jones is lecturer in psychology at the University of East Anglia. 

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