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Orientation
from 2020 O-Week Report
This year the Student Guild successfully welcomed the new cohort of Gold Coast students with many events and activities achieving record growth and participation. Overall attendance increased from last year despite initially lower predictions due to the reduced 2020 intake and global Covid-19 epidemic impacting many public spaces. Activities were available all week however this year the Guild focused the majority of the orientation effort on the Monday, hosting tours, markets, club signon, and activations. Opening University Drive to host a dedicated club zone proved very successful with many clubs reporting up to triple the number of sign-ups on previous years. This additional space also supported the growing number of corporate stalls which continue to be a draw card for students. To further define the zones, the Guild consolidated many of our own past stalls into one interactive Student Guild Lounge at The Link (G07) deck. This was part of an overarching Guild strategy to convey a clearer Guild level brand and message to students that we are ‘your student life experts’ and ‘your student experience starts here’ (at orientation). The new messaging has also been supported by the launch of a new Guild website which is generating increased traffic and engagement.
KPIs
Official attendance (O-week bags) Campus tours (# of students) Intro to Uni Life seminar Business stalls Griffith stalls Club stalls
2018 2019 2020
6,130 5,346 5,377 150 448 N/A 200 280 25 31 40 14 15 11 38 34 47
Highlights
• 4,500 students received an ice cream for voting on the perfect way to start their university experience (sport, social, clubs, volunteering) in the Guild Lounge
• Student Guild Board members spoke at 6 O-Week faculty lectures to welcome new students
• 91% of volunteers were positive the Guild captured new students’ attention at O-Week and 70% thought Guild messaging was particularly clear
• Uni Bar launched a new Instagram page attracting just under 400 followers in the week
• Uni Bar launched a new student Social Club, attracting 192 sign-ups
