Brandeis welcoming 126 midyear-entering students

Provost's advice: Take control, take risks, take care and enjoy

Brandeis is welcoming 126 midyear and transfer students to campus.

In addition to people from throughout the United States, the entering students hail from locations far and wide, including India, Israel, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Korea, Georgia and Panama, among other countries.

The students moved into the Village Residence Hall in the morning, and were greeted by midyear orientation leaders who will guide them through an orientation program specifically designed for midyears. Orientation concludes Sunday, Jan. 13 and classes begin Jan. 14.

At a welcoming reception in Levin Ballroom, Provost Steve A.N. Goldstein ’78 said he remembered being in the new students’ shoes back in 1974.

“I was scared, I was excited, I wondered what I was going to do,” Goldstein said, noting that his Brandeis years ultimately informed all of his experiences since.

He offered students four bits of advice: Take control, take risks, be responsible – and enjoy it.

Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren added another piece of advice to the list: Don’t forget to call your mother.

She told students that the interactions they have with fellow students, with professors and with other members of the community are “the interactions that bounce against each other in your head,” influencing the development of all those individuals and of the university itself.

“The Brandeis you graduate from won’t be the same as it is now,” Birren said, “because of what you discover here.”

Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment Andrew Flagel noted that this year Brandeis saw a 30 percent increase in early decision applications and a 7 percent increase in applications overall.

“I know a lot about you. You have exceptional potential,” Flagel said. “It no longer matters what course you took to get here.”

Flagel told the students that the university has confidence in them to feed the hungry, cure the sick and bring peace to the world.

“You are the change we all want to see in the world,” Flagel said. “You are Brandeis.”

Categories: Student Life

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