New format for CLAS Open House/Opportunity for highlighting majors

To: Departmental Executive Officers
From: Nic Arp, CLAS Director of Strategic Communications
RE: New format for CLAS Open House/Opportunity for highlighting majors

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CLAS is moving to a new format for the collegiate Open House that occurs during the On Iowa! orientation programming a few days before the start of the fall semester. Instead of an academic fair-style event, CLAS will be hosting a Welcome Party in front of Schaeffer Hall, with live music and giveaways, from 3:00-4:30 on Thursday, August 16. We will not have departmental tables as in the past.

We think the new format will be a better On Iowa! event for incoming students, as it is clear from student feedback that incoming students are primarily interested in social events during On Iowa!, rather than in academic decision-making.

We do, however, want to help departments “sell” their majors to new and current students. To that end, we will work during the fall semester with interested departments—individually or in groups—to host informal informational events about their majors and programs.  

These departmental events can take whatever form is most appropriate for the major(s) in question, and can be better targeted to interested students. Liz Tjaden, the CLAS Associate Director for Student Recruitment, and the CLAS Office of Strategic Communications will work with departments on logistics, staffing, promotion, and other related support activities. We believe these events can be an effective way to market your majors, programs, student groups, etc., to interested and curious students, at a time when they will be focused on academics.

If you are interested in exploring an event like this for your department of program, please fill out this one-question form and we will be in touch: https://uiowa.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cxbQEv9VBGtL3jT.

We will also be in touch with you all about the Welcome Party as the time approaches—but for now, the important takeaway from this message is that departments will not be hosting tables at a CLAS Open House as in years past.