UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Applications are open until Jan. 24 to become an orientation leader at the University Park campus during summer 2024. Known as the “OTeam,” orientation leaders don the pink polos each year to welcome the next class of Penn State undergraduates during New Student Orientation (NSO).
The application can be found at oteam.psu.edu. The deadline to apply is Jan. 24.
Unlike in previous years, there is no required three-credit course during the spring semester. Training for orientation leaders will begin after spring break, and all orientation leaders will be paid for training time. Also new this year, part-time orientation leader positions will be available in addition to the usual full-time positions. Pay for both positions is $14 per hour, in addition to leadership and professional development training.
Applicants must have earned at least 24 total credits by the end of the spring semester, maintained a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 and be full-time undergraduates who plan to be enrolled in fall 2024. Morning, late evening and weekend hours are required. New Student Orientation in 2024 will run from May 20-July 25 and Aug. 19-22.
Morgan Motycki, a senior print and journalism major in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, was on the summer 2023 OTeam. She said her favorite part about being an orientation leader was the connections she made with other students.
“Being able to be a role model to new Penn Staters but also become friends with many of them was such a special experience,” Motycki said. “To this day, it is still so exciting to see students who I met through NSO on campus and seeing them get involved in our community.”
She added that being an orientation leader helped her develop professional skills and better understand Penn State and its resources for students.
“Being an orientation leader was one of the most influential parts of my Penn State experience and has inspired me to continue my education after undergrad to study higher education and student affairs,” she said. “Seeing the impact I was able to have on so many new Penn Staters was so valuable to me, and I want to continue to work with students and have that impact for as long as I can.”
Brandon Stagner, interim associate director for NSO, works closely with orientation leaders to prepare for the more than 10,000 new first-year and transfer students that will attend Penn State's University Park campus each year.
“Orientation leaders light the way for new Penn Staters,” he said. “New students participating in NSO are in an unfamiliar transition period where it is important to have role models who help them learn new things, build their confidence and ease stress and concern. There is no one better to support students in this transition than current Penn State students.”
By sharing their own wisdom learned from navigating successes, failures and moments of growth and joy, orientation leaders can make a huge difference in the life of a new student and their families, Stagner said. They also get the chance to join a tight-knit team with peers from different backgrounds and experiences.
“Often I see that one of the most rewarding things an Orientation Leader gains from their time on the team is a tight-knit community of peers, even from different class levels than their own,” he said. “There is never a lack of support or shortage of laughs amongst the team as a result. Those connections that form over the summer I have seen last for the rest of their time at Penn State and beyond for many.”
Information and application sessions scheduled
Those who are interested in meeting the staff at Student Orientation and Transition Programs, which organizes New Student Orientation, can attend one or more of the five upcoming information and applications sessions.
- Wednesday, Nov. 29, 4-5 p.m.
- Tuesday, Dec. 5, 6-7 p.m.
- Thursday, Jan. 11, 7-8 p.m.
- Wednesday, Jan. 17, 12:30-1 p.m.
- Wednesday, Jan 17, 3:45-4:15 p.m.
All sessions will be in HUB 131. Attendees don’t need to stay for the entire session and can drop by to have their questions answered. This is also an opportunity to work on the application for orientation leader.
Student Orientation and Transition Programs is part of Penn State Student Affairs and the Office of Undergraduate Education.