August 2022
Dear Parents and Families of students in the Class of 2025,
The Wesleyan campus is abuzz preparing for the arrival of our new and returning students. University housing opens for returning students at 9:00am on Saturday 9/3 and classes begin Monday 9/5. Fall Break takes place from the end of the day on Friday 10/21 through Tuesday 10/25. Wesleyan will host Homecoming/Family Weekend from Friday, November 4–Sunday, November 6. For more important dates, be sure to consult the academic calendar.
The sophomore year is an interesting time for college students. Though no longer new to the college experience, there is still much for sophomores to learn as they continue to develop their college identity. Students will soon settle into the routines of campus life and make preparations for the major declaration process, which takes place in early Spring. Declaring a major means finding an academic home and exploring more deeply a field of intellectual interest. While some students have known what they want to major in since high school, others seem to change their minds every other month. Later in the semester, Wesleyan will host a series of department open houses for sophomores to meet with faculty to learn about the academic requirements and curricular pathways for each major. If you believe your student could benefit from extra guidance on how to decide upon a major, please encourage them to make an appointment with me. You can take a peek at last year’s major open house schedule here.
If your student is considering study abroad during their junior year, they should begin exploring options and researching program requirements as soon as possible as some study abroad programs for the fall of 2023 have early spring application deadlines. Wesleyan strongly encourages students to participate in study abroad, regardless of major, and believes that immersion in a foreign culture is a transformative personal experience that can resonate in a student’s intellectual work in profound and unexpected ways. While knowledge of a foreign language is required for some programs, there are other programs for which English alone is sufficient. Please encourage your student to visit the Study Abroad Office to learn more.
Reflection on one’s college experience each year can be advantageous; I’ve encouraged members of the Class of 2025 to use these final weeks of summer to reflect on their academic journey so far. If you haven’t had a chance to see this note, please read more here. I encourage you to ask your student these same questions.
I will write to you again later in the semester. In the meantime, please feel free to call or write if you have any questions. If you plan to attend Homecoming/Family Weekend, please know I will host drop-in hours for families on Saturday, November 5, from 10 a.m. to noon in North College (2nd floor), so be sure to drop in if you have the time.
Best wishes,
Kelly Dunn, EdD
Dean for the Class of 2025
T. (860) 685-2757 | kmdunn@wesleyan.edu
Class of 2025 Blog
Academic Advancement
North College
237 High Street
Middletown, CT 06459