Undergraduate Orientation
Programming Details:
Welcome, Class of 2030! We are thrilled that you've chosen to join us this fall and we cannot wait to welcome you to the Corcoran at GW.
On Friday, August 21, 2026, we will host a special Corcoran kick-off session to welcome all new undergraduate students to the school during GW’s Final Orientation. The event will begin at our Corcoran Flagg Building location (500 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20006).
Please visit GW’s New Student Orientation website for information on GW's First-Year Orientation being held this summer.
Corcoran Orientation Overview:
2pm Check-in
Join us for mingling with peers and faculty and don’t forget to grab your Corcoran swag!
2:30pm Welcoming Remarks
Incoming Corcoran Director, Laura Schiavo, will welcome our incoming graduate and undergraduate students.
2:45pm-3:15pm Corcoran Undergraduate Overview Session
All Corcoran undergraduate students will join faculty for a brief overview of the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design in our Hemicycle.
3:15pm-5pm* Program-Specific Welcomes & Overviews
Following the Corcoran Undergraduate Overview Session, faculty and students will break out by program area (see below for program-specific details).
*End times will vary by program area but all sessions will end no later than 5pm.
- Art History
Our Director of Undergraduate Studies, will take students to Smith Hall of Art for a brief orientation that will conclude at 4pm. Students are invited to join us at 4:00 p.m. in Smith Hall of Art, Room 106, for a reception for all new and returning art history students.
- Design (Graphic Design and Interaction Design)
Design (Graphic Design and Interaction Design) and Studio Arts (Fine Arts and Photojournalism) students will gather together to meet their advisors, learn about Foundations, get important studio updates, and have a Q&A.
Following the Foundations session, Design students will break out into program-specific groups with advisors for Flagg Tours and program-specific activities.
- Studio Arts (Fine Arts and Photojournalism)
Studio Arts (Fine Arts and Photojournalism) and Design (Graphic Design and Interaction Design) students will gather together in the Corcoran Flagg Building in Room 222 to meet their advisors, learn about Foundations, get important studio updates, and a Q&A. Following that session, students and faculty will tour Flagg and Smith Hall of Art.
- Interior Architecture
Join Professor Erin Speck for an overview of the interior architecture curriculum as well as important information about the program as you begin your academic career as a Corcoran IA major. I look forward to meeting you!
- Music
The music program orientation will be an opportunity to meet with Program Head (Loren Kajikawa) and Program Administrator (Jill Britton) to discuss course planning, lesson and ensemble registration, and any questions students may have. We also invite continuing students to join us and provide their perspectives and advice about how to best take advantage of your first year in the music program at GW.
- Theatre & Dance
The Theatre & Dance Program faculty and staff will leave from the Flagg Building for a walking tour of our various studio, performance, and teaching spaces on the Foggy Bottom campus. The tour will culminate in a program Q&A session in the Black Box studio. Please wear comfortable walking shoes.
The tour will include:
Start: Flagg Building (Corcoran School administration, non-performance studios and laboratories)
Building J (dance studios)
University Student Center (scenic fabrication lab and Betts Theatre)
Samson Hall (costume fabrication lab, design studio)
Finish: Building XX (black box studio, program administration, faculty office)