Undergraduate Orientation
Programming Details:
Welcome, Class of 2029! 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 22, 2025, we will host a special Corcoran orientation session to welcome all new undergraduate students to the school. Our orientation will begin at our 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.
Orientation Overview:
9:30am-10:00am Orientation Check-in
Join us for donuts, mingling with peers and faculty, and don’t forget to grab your Corcoran swag!
10:00am-10:30am Corcoran Orientation Session
Following a welcome from Corcoran Director, Lauren Onkey, we will cover all you need to know to get your year off to a great start in the Corcoran.
10:30am-12pm Program-Specific Orientations (see below for program-specific details)
- Art History
Professor Dumbadze, Director of Undergraduate Studies, will take students to Smith Hall of Art for a brief orientation. Please join us again in the afternoon at The George Washington University Museum / The Textile Museum, Myers Room, 4-5 pm, 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 orientation, 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 to meet their advisors, learn about Foundations, get important studio updates, and a Q&A.
Following the Foundations orientation, Studio Arts students will break out into program-specific groups with advisors for Flagg/Smith Tours and a program-specific Q&A.
- Interior Architecture
Join Professor Travis and Professor Crawford 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.
- Music
The music program orientation will be an opportunity to meet with Program Head (Loren Kajikawa), Program Administrator (Mara Sherman), and Director of Performance Studies (Robert Baker) 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)