14/11/2022
For IE School of Science & Technology master’s students, Orientation Week is one of the most important weeks of the program. It’s an opportunity to get to know their classmates, university staff members and the wider IE Community, to discover both the academic and social activities on offer, and to engage in team building and networking events.
At IE University, we believe that networking is a vital part of the student experience—so we provide our students with every opportunity to build a professional and personal network for life. That’s why, even before their program starts, IE School of Science & Technology master’s students spend a week getting to know each other and working in teams within a challenging yet safe environment.
“This week is about networking, getting to know students’ classmates and staff members, team building activities, and about engaging with everything IE University has to offer,” explains Elisa Ruiz Martinez, program assistant at IE School of Science & Technology. Elisa emphasizes the importance of encouraging students from all over the world to engage with IE University not just as an academic institution, but as a community.
People, places and community: finding your way
Orientation Week kicks off with an opening ceremony at IE Tower, where students are introduced to IE School of Science & Technology’s dean, senior staff from the admissions department and IE University alumni. This event is followed by a cocktail reception, giving students the opportunity to chat with the dean and other staff members, as well as their new classmates.
The academic aspects of the program are covered in meetings where the academic director and members of the management team explain important topics such as the grading system and the attendance policy. Workshops are also held throughout the week: sessions including Digital Playroom, Critical Thinking, and Who Moved My Idea? introduce students to the topics they will later tackle during their programs. There’s also a “workgroup reveal” in which students learn who they will be working with during the first term, including a quiz to get them into the competitive spirit as a team.
In addition, students get a thorough overview of the services IE University provides through a number of informational sessions. These include introductions to the registrar’s office and the library, along with the support services offered by the Center for Health, Well-being & Happiness, and the numerous sporting activities available. And there are career sessions where students get the opportunity to work on their resumes, as well as an introduction to the tools and resources to help them find a job after graduation.
Teamwork makes the dream work: building relationships
Orientation Week includes plenty of team activities, allowing students to get to know the classmates they will be working with during the program. One recent activity involved a band director organizing an orchestra: while each student played a different instrument, they used their team-building skills to work together as a whole.
In another challenge, students were divided into teams, with each team picking a captain and together building a bike for a child: the bikes were later donated to the Red Cross.
Every event was designed for us to get familiar with people in our section as well as our workgroup so that we can start the program with minimal hiccups and hit the ground running. –Master in Business Analytics & Big Data student
The team-building activities proved to be popular, with students commenting that they found working with different groups “most valuable” and that the activities “helped us to get to know each other.” And the networking isn’t confined to the classroom: the week concludes with a night at a restaurant so that students can relax and enjoy a well-earned break after their hard work.
There are students from all over the world who come to our programs: therefore, we want them to have the best first week possible in every aspect – Elisa Ruiz Martinez, Program Assistant, IE School of Science & Technology
A firm foundation for future success
Providing this immersive experience at the start of our programs prepares students for the intensive teamwork they’ll undertake during the year ahead—and equips them to take on challenging and rewarding roles as innovative, purposeful tech leaders. Orientation Week places students in a networking environment right from the start, maximizing opportunities to grow their global professional networks, both during the program and in the workplace.
I loved this week: it is something that almost no universities in Spain do and it really makes a difference. –Master in Business Analytics & Big Data student
A vast majority of the students rated the team-building and networking aspects of the week as either “very good” or “excellent.” As Elisa Ruiz Martinez states, “networking is without a doubt one of the key takeaways of this week,” adding that “we achieve our goal as a program management team when we see students feeling comfortable and engaged within the IE Community.”
