Great Learning at NTU: Opening Day Ceremony and Orientation Camp

The NTU Opening Day Ceremony followed by an Orientation Camp for the 2018/2019 academic year was held on August 26 and September 2, welcoming new undergraduate and graduate students to embark on a journey of learning at NTU. At the ceremony, Interim President Tei-Wei Kuo (郭大維) delivered an opening address themed around great learning, encouraging the new students to make the most of the resources and opportunities NTU has to offer.

Embark on a New Journey at NTU

The Opening Day Ceremony opened with the new students singing the University Song together. All the participating students, faculty members, and administrators wore the exclusive T-shirt for incoming students in the 2018/2019 academic year, which was a well-wishing gift from NTU. The Office of Student Affairs called for T-shirt logo designs from NTU students and held a campus voting to select the design of the year. The selected logo design places the three letters “NTU” inside a yellow brick, using simple lines and curves to craft the image of the university.

In his address, Interim President Kuo congratulated the students on entering the leading research university in Taiwan, introducing students to NTU’s latest innovations to its learning environment and resources, including Chinese-language MOOCs on Coursera, D-School, and a variety of joint degrees with overseas universities. In addition to academic pursuits, Interim President Kuo brought students’ attention to the cultivation of virtue and the challenge of effective learning and teamwork. He illustrated the University Motto “Integrity, Diligence, Fidelity, and Compassion,” and cited the opening sentence of The Great Learning, “The way of great learning consists in manifesting one's bright virtue (大學之道，在明明德),” to stress NTU’s emphasis on social responsibility and altruism.

After the opening address, the T-shirt design award was presented to the winner, and several student leaders and incoming students were invited to share their learning experiences. Incidentally, participants with hearing loss were provided with real-time transcriptions throughout the ceremony to increase their engagement in the event. Finally, all sang the University Song together to conclude the ceremony.

The opening ceremony of the NTU Orientation Camp was held right after the Opening Day Ceremony, at which Vice President for Student Affairs Cheryl Chia-Hui Chen (陳佳慧) welcomed the students scheduled to attend the camp in a lighthearted and humorous manner, encouraging them to set sail and prepare for the exciting learning adventure and colorful campus life at NTU.

Live and Learn Together

The NTU Orientation Camp, first held in 2008, is designed to help freshmen orient themselves to college life. Different from other freshman camps, the Orientation Camp focuses on learning rather than on play, offering diverse course sessions to help new students navigate the campus and prepare them for a tight learning schedule in the future. Starting from 2012, the camp incorporated accommodation and night sessions, where new students live and learn together to create strong bonds among themselves.

This year, two Orientation Camps were held, one spanning August 26-30, the other September 2-6. During the events, the new students would complete enrollment and physical examination procedures, as well as attend a wide array of course sessions featuring library resources, student exchange programs, cultural assets on campus, and gender diversity.