Dear Parents and Families of Students in the Class of 2025:
It’s wild to believe your student’s senior year is here! Student Affairs has been busy preparing for the new academic year. University housing opens on Friday, Aug 30 and classes start on Monday, Sept 2. Fall Break begins at the end of the day on Friday, Oct 18 and continues through Tuesday, Oct 22. Homecoming & Family Weekend takes place Friday, Nov 1 through Sunday, Nov 3.
This is the big year for the Class of 2025. To graduate on Sun, May 25, seniors must meet Wesleyan’s four degree requirements by the end of their last semester (i.e.: completion of a major, 32 useable credits without oversubscription, minimum GPA of 74.00, minimum number of semesters in residency). While most students are aware of where they are in relation to these requirements, if your student has any questions, urge them to contact me immediately.
Graduation requirements are a must; however, seniors should think beyond simply meeting these requirements as they plan for their senior year. In terms of academics, seniors enroll in some of the most rigorous and intellectually challenging courses of their undergraduate careers. By enrolling in high-level seminars or by undertaking honors thesis tutorials or projects, seniors have far more opportunities to work closely (often one-on-one) with faculty. Seniors should take advantage of these academic opportunities to build deep and meaningful relationships with professors, advisors, and mentors. Not only is there an immediate benefit to doing so (i.e. post-graduation recommendations and referrals for jobs and graduate schools), but in many cases these relationships can become long-term friendships and sources of trusted wisdom, counsel, and career advice for many years to come.
The importance of building meaningful relationships during the senior year also extends beyond the classroom. The friends one makes in college are often one’s friends for life. Indeed, when making an unexpected mid-life career change, often it is a college friend, roommate, teammate or club acquaintance who serves as the source of connection to new opportunities. While Wesleyan does everything it can through the Gordon Career Center and Office of Alumni Relations to make certain that our students are able to maintain these connections, it is equally important that students take their own initiative to ensure that their personal Wesleyan social networks continue to serve as sources of connection and support long after graduation.
I will write to you again before the end of the fall semester. If you plan to attend Homecoming & Family Weekend, I hope to see you and your student at the festivities.
Take care,
Kelly Dunn, Ed.D.
Dean for the Class of 2025