I remember my undergraduate orientation - at least up until the all night movies where it got very, very messy. I remember sitting nervously in the lecture theatre and being told to look to the left and look to the right. Of the three of us only one would graduate. Yeah, what kind of a welcome is that? Starting something as big as a university degree is scary and the last thing you need is to be told you have just over a 30 per cent chance of graduating. The worst of it is that it wasn't even true. I don't know the numbers but I reckon at least of 80 per cent of the group have the piece of paper they give graduates. I get that they want to ensure students take the opportunity seriously but in my mind there are better ways. So I have a very different way of running orientation. My message is that this is day one of a wild, wonderful ride and they should strap themselves in and enjoy it. Work hard but have fun and make friends. There's a whole lot going on in Orientation Week to make the students realise they are part of a big exciting creative community. The thing is that we don't always have students rolling over each other on the street furniture but it wouldn't be unheard of either. You never know exactly what will be going on around the Creative Industries Precinct from one day to the next. That's what makes it so interesting. Let's hope the students make the most of every second of it.
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