Issue No. 45— Fall 2024
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A Message From Dean Gorman

Dear Rice Parents and Families,

Orientation Week was lovely, full of happy energy and many activities as we welcomed our newest class of Owls to campus. As you know, this was followed by a tragic loss on the first day of classes. My focus, and the focus of many others at Rice, has been on helping our students through this sad time. When talking with your student, please encourage them to reach out and talk to someone — this could include a member of their college core team (magisters, RAs, and coordinators) or our fantastic staff in the Rice Counseling Center and Student Wellbeing Office. We are always here to help, and I hope your student is feeling the support of our culture of care as they are settling into classes and campus activities.

Please remember that in addition to supportive resources related to emotional wellbeing, our professional staff in departments focused on academics and career preparation stand ready to assist students as they move through the school year. Throughout O-Week, new students received extensive academic advising from their peers, including O-Week coordinators, O-Week advisors and Peer Academic Advisors in their residential colleges. The Office of Academic Advising (OAA) trains these students so they can work directly with new students to help them learn about Rice academic rules, general graduation requirements, campus resources, current educational opportunities for students and the online tools for course planning and registration. Students can also schedule an appointment anytime with our professional staff in OAA for an advising appointment.

The Center for Career Development (CCD) is also a valuable campus resource that serves undergraduate and graduate students in their career development and job search efforts. The office supports students through career counseling sessions that are tailor fit to their needs, whether they need help identifying career options and exploring internship and job opportunities, need someone to review their resume and cover letters, or want to practice their interview skills.

In addition to one-on-one support, the CCD also organizes career fairs, networking events and workshops on topics such as job search strategies, professional branding and interviewing, and networking skills. The CCD is ready to help your student explore options beyond Rice’s hedges. Even if your owl just matriculated at Rice this fall, it is never too early to connect with the CCD — so please encourage them to stop by for a visit and learn more about how they can support their future goals.

I look forward to seeing all that your students accomplish this year with the help of our dedicated teams across campus. Thank you for your ongoing support, and I hope to see you on campus during Families Weekend September 27-28.

Sending my best wishes,

Bridget Gorman, Dean of Undergraduates