Today, RCSI welcomed its new cohort of students to the College. 484 students will begin their courses in Medicine, Pharmacy and Physiotherapy and get to know their way around the College, while also being introduced to the academic and administrative staff. Orientation Week 2015, which kicks off today, will last until Friday, 11 September and will run in tangent with Fresher's Week.

This year's undergraduate intake of medical, pharmacy and physiotherapy students come from Ireland and a host of other countries across Europe, North America, Australia, the Middle East, Asia and Africa. 

The Heads of RCSI's three undergraduate schools, Professor Arnold Hill (School of Medicine), Professor Paul Gallagher (School of Pharmacy) and Professor Marie Guidon (School of Physiotherapy) will welcome their respective new students to RCSI this morning with an opening address which will kick off Orientation Week.

Further speeches will be delivered by Philip Curtis, Associate Director of Admissions and Student Services and Dr Orna Tighe, Vice-Dean for Student Support and Development. The students will be provided with an overview of the extensive range of academic and non-academic supports that are available to all students in the College. The Students Union will also brief the new incoming students about the range of social activities that they have organised as part of Fresher's Week and introduce the RCSI College's Clubs and Societies which play such an important part of life as an RCSI student.

The 2015 Buddy Programme will also get underway with second and third year pharmacy, physiotherapy and medical students volunteering to act as ‘buddies' for the new students this year. The Buddies provide an invaluable resource in the form of friendly, knowledgeable and experienced students, who welcome the new students to RCSI for the first time and provide them with first-hand knowledge about the College, the courses, extra-curricular activities and student life in Dublin.

Later in the day Mr Declan Magee, President of RCSI will host a reception which is an opportunity for our new student's families to join in the excitement of the beginning of their life as an RCSI student. The President will be joined by Professor Cathal Kelly, CEO/Registrar, RCSI who will provide an overview of the College and its wider activates. This will be followed by a presentation from Professor Clive Lee, Professor of Anatomy, who will provide a unique perspective on RCSI and some of its distinguished graduates. Students and their families will also have the opportunity to meet with academic and non-academic staff at the President's Reception.

On Tuesday, 8 September, the Annual Undergraduate Prize-Giving Ceremony will be held in conjunction with the White Coat Ceremony which is held in the in the Exam Hall. The White Coat Ceremony is a welcome event for new undergraduate students which symbolises the professional nature of the healthcare careers on which they are about to embark.

The evening also comprises of an awards ceremony for students throughout the undergraduate programmes from Foundation Year through to Senior Cycle who achieved excellence to date. A series of short presentations by individual students will also be delivered as part of the event. The ceremony will be live streamed to enable families and friends who are unable to attend the event can watch proceedings from anywhere in the world.

As well as orientation, it is also Fresher's Week for the students. There are a wide variety of social events organised including sign-up day for Clubs & Societies on Wednesday, 9 September; the Fresher's Festival on Thursday, 10 September in the RCSI sports grounds in Dardistown and a ballad session on Friday, 11 September in Dublin's Vicar St venue to close the week.

The week's activities and events are being organised by various departments across the College including Admissions, Student Services, Student Academic and Regulatory Affairs (SARA), and staff from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences as well as the Student's Union.