SOGS Orientation (Fall and Winter) is planned by the VP Student Services in partnership with the SOGS Orientation & Social Committee (OSC). SOGS partners with numerous stakeholders on campus, including other SOGS committees, to offer a welcoming atmosphere to incoming and current graduate students. In addition to overseeing Orientation, the OSC also runs monthly socials for graduate students, some of which are listed below.
Winter 2020 Orientation Events
Want to de-stress after a busy first week on campus? Join us and Grad Club Committee for a Craft Night where you learn how to make slime. FREE EVENT. All supplies provided by SOGS. Bring your imagination and sense of play. See our Facebook event listing here.
Drop by your new home away from home – the Grad Club – for FREE coffee and light breakfast fare. Try our Grad Club breakfast special for $5.93 (tax inclu.), which includes 2 eggs your way, bacon or sausage, toast, and a hash brown. See our Facebook event listing here.
A graduate student tradition on campus! Arrive early to get a good seat. Bring your peers, lab mates, and friends for a fun night of trivia, food, and drinks. $5 pints of Steam Whistle beer. Winning team each round winds a gift voucher to the Grad Club. See our Facebook event listing here.
Care about #GradLifeWesternU? Come to the Grad Club to meet your advocates on campus, including, but not limited to the SOGS Executive, the Accessibility Commissioner, the Racial Equity and Inclusivity Commissioner, and the Women’s Concerns Commissioner to learn more about the ways SOGS advocates for you on campus. Trivia and prizes. See our Facebook event listing here.
A monthly event designed to connect grads through play, Board Game Night is casual, fun, and relaxing. Join us after a hard day teaching and studying at the Grad Club and play some of the 60+ board games in our vault. Free event. Snacks provided for participants. See our Facebook event listing here.
Join the staff at the Indigenous Student Centre for a luncheon designed to connect Indigenous graduate students and start the year off on a warm and welcoming note. Please see our Facebook event listing here. The Indigenous Student Centre is located in room 2100 in the Western Student Services Building.
Need a mindful, creative night away from your graduate studies? Join the SOGS Orientation and Social Committee for a fun night of pottery painting at Crock-A-Doodle (London North)! SOGS is subsidizing the cost to make it affordable for members and their guests. $5 off the cost of each guest’s pottery! Bring your friends, family, and children! Let Crock-A-Doodle know you are a SOGS member and show your WesternU ID at the check-out. To learn more about the various pottery designs you can choose from, head over to the Crock-A-Doodle website. See our Facebook event listing here. Register your spot(s) here.
Join us at the Grad Club for a night of social wellness and local music. See our Facebook event listing here.
Sing for yer supper? Kidding! Bring your friends, lab mates, family, and friends for a fun night of singing your favourite songs. FREE event. Sing for vouchers to the Grad Club. See our Facebook event listing here.
Bring the whole family! Kids eat free! Buy your tickets in the SOGS office, Middlesex College, room 8. Bring your own white clothing/fabrics to tie-dye. Meet your orientation and social team for a quick, cheap breakfast at the Grad Club. Try the Value Breakfast for $6 (inclu. two eggs, toast, a hash brown, and your choice of sausage or bacon). FREE COFFEE for those in attendance. Trivia on Tuesdays is an institution at WesternU! Join your fellow grads and some faculty for a evening of fun. Bring your new peers and old friends. Three rounds of general trivia (tailored to nerds!). Each round, the team that wins, earns a prize (gift voucher for the Grad Club). Get your friends together for an afternoon of running around campus! Teams of four will race across campus to 17 different locations (Grad Club included). Teams will be asked to do a short activity that’s related to the service/organization before moving on to the next location. Prizes: The first team to visit all locations and return to the Grad Club is the winner of the $200 Grad Club certificate! 2nd place receives $150 and 3rd place receives $100. All winners will receive FREE entrance to the Bonfire Night later that day (September 12). All participants in the Amazing Race will receive a $5 Grad Club certificate. Sign-up your team: https://tinyurl.com/y698vu6v REGISTRATION WILL END ON SEPTEMBER 11 $5 tickets are still available at the SOGS office! Are you an indigenous graduate student? Come and meet with the people who advocate for indigenous culture on campus! Join SOGS’ VP Advocacy, your Indigenous Commissioner, and the lovely folks at Indigenous Services for a morning of breakfast and networking. Register for the breakfast: https://tinyurl.com/indigenous-breakfast Complimentary drink tickets for each person who sings a song! Max. 3 tickets per person. NOTE: If you sing as a group, only 1 ticket will be issued. Free appetizers and food. FALL 2019 EVENTS
SOGS Socials – #GradLifeWesternU
Oktoberfest (October) ($5)
Halloween Family Night (late-October) ($5)
Cooking Class at Loblaws (November; $ TBD)
Ugly Sweater Party (December) ($5)
Winter Orientation (January)
Beach Party in Winter (February) ($5)
Monthly Karaoke (free)
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New Student?: Welcome to London Ontario and Western University!
London: Your Home Away From Home
- Check out this Self-Guide to London, Ontario!
- There are various discounts in London (e.g. 10% off on Tuesdays at Loblaws, Valu-mart, Food Basics, Metro, etc). Keep an eye on the flyers, too! Familiarize yourself with your Local Food options.
- London is typically cold in the Winter so take advantage of our discount with Columbia Sportswear offered three times a year. Don’t forget winter tires and a snow shovel!
- Take note of the London Hospitals, London Libraries, Garbage/Recycle schedule, London Hydro (Water/Electricity/Heat), and Internet providers.
- Make yourself aware of the Ontario Residential Tenancies Act.
Western University: The Basics
- Your WesternID provides you access to the Grad Student Portal (SOGS bursaries), Western 365 Email, Student Centre (tuition, scholarships, government funding, class schedule, grades, tax, transcripts, apply to graduate, change in degree status), and OWL (course management).
- Your WesternONE (Student card) also functions as your bus pass, your library card, and your Campus Recreation (Gym) Pass. You can also use it for Office and AV Keys, Parking pass (if applicable), Campus and/or Rez Meal Plan card (if applicable), and as your identification card for exams.
- See here for a list of support and equity services available at Western.
Your Friendly Neighbourhood SOGS
- SOGS produces a Graduate Orientation Handbook. If you are a new student, you will receive a hard copy of it at SGPS Orientation.
- Full-time students receive a SOGS bus pass (WesternONE card).
- Full-time students are automatically enrolled in the SOGS Health Plan.
- SOGS offers a Food Bank for Non-TAs (PSAC 610 offers one for TAs).
- SOGS offers a FREE International Student Identity Card through CFS.
- SOGS provides an INTL Grad Student Guide to Western University.
GradMap
Need help navigating your way around Western Campus? This map has been tailor-made just for you!
Thriving in Graduate School: Taking Care of Yourself
SOGS and SGPS (School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies) have worked together to amalgamate all the relevant resources for graduate students in a single place: the GRADUATE STUDENT LIFE & COMMUNITY HUB.
On this hub, you will find information and resources pertaining to the 5 PILLARS of thriving in Graduate School:
- STUDY: Navigating Academic – No graduate student is an island, and no graduate degree is achieved without the advice of your colleagues, supervisor, and support services. Although you alone are responsible for your academic studies, you are strongly encouraged to ask questions as well as for help throughout your program. With the following resources, you will be able to get the academic support you need to navigate your way through graduate school.
- PLAY: Finding Friends and Fun – Having fun in graduate school is often a foreign concept to graduate students. But you can’t have an all work and no play attitude here. Having fun is an integral component to thriving in graduate school.
- ORGANIZE: Finances and Time – Graduate School is often referred to as a “Balancing Act”. On top of studying, researching, and teaching, graduate students have a number of other responsibilities and commitments outside the academe. Managing increasing financial, time, and everyday life challenges—while staying healthy—may often require additional support and resources. The resources listed below can help you stay on track.
- CONNECT with Your Community – Graduate School can sometimes feel alienating given the amount of work you do. It’s important for graduate students to reach out to their friends and colleagues and take advantage of all the resources your student government (SOGS), department, and SGPS has to offer.
- SELF-CARE: Prioritizing Yourself – With all your other responsibilities in graduate school, it often feels as though there is no time left to look after yourself. With studying, teaching, marking, networking, grant writing, and a dissertation already on your plate, staying well in graduate school may not always make your “To Do” list. Although all your responsibilities as a graduate student are certainly important, the key to your success in graduate school involves making your mental health a priority. Regular mental health “tune ups” will ensure you remain motivated and productive. The following are a list of resources for thriving in graduate school.
- If you need help now, go to Crisis Contact Information (Health and Wellness)
Through your student fees and OHIP card (UHIP for international students, provincial equivalent for out-of-province students), you have access to Health Services (e.g. medical care, individual counselling, allergy injections and immunizations, birth control, STI testing, and drop-in crisis support in partnership with CMHA-Middlesex Crisis). Psychological Services offers individual and crisis counselling, including sexual violence, eating disorder, and LGBTQIA+ (gender and sexuality) support. You also have access to the Wellness Education Centre (WEC), Graduate Peer Support (GPS), and Graduate Wellness Week. See here to visualize all integral services to support your overall wellness in graduate school.
Graduate Student Associations/Councils
SOGS aims to keep track of Department Graduate Student Associations/Councils. If your Department Association/Council information is missing from this document, please contact sogs.communications@uwo.ca.