One Busy Day! A Critical Analysis of New Faculty Orientation Programs

Abstract

New faculty orientation programs can serve as an important introduction to an academic community. They can create expectations, provide exposure to technical assistance, and welcome faculty members to new communities. The current study explored new faculty orientation programs, cataloging their activities to identify the most common practices in research-centered universities. Findings revealed a strong reliance on one-day programs that often host a variety of speakers from different offices, yet they rarely were found to have any sort of outcomes based approach to their design. To be effective, these programs should possibly incorporate longer activities that might last an entire semester or academic year. Further, these programs might include virtual as well as in-person opportunities to learn about the institution, the students they serve, and the offices and other tools that the institution provides to help faculty be successful. Further study on the effectiveness of different models is also recommended.