About this course

Welcome to New Graduate Student Orientation! 

The modules in the orientation are designed to give you an overview of graduate education at Penn State, provide some advice and tips on being a graduate student, outline the overall expectations of the University for all Penn State students, and share many of the resources that Penn State has to offer. 

How to Navigate the Orientation

Many of your courses will take place in Penn State’s learning management system, known as Canvas. You're already becoming familiar with Canvas since this course is housed there, but if you would like to know more about all that this system has to offer, view the Student Guide Links to an external site..

Another great feature of Canvas is its availability on both the Android and iOS mobile operating systems. You can download the Canvas app from either the App Store or Google Play. This app provides you with easy access to your course dashboard as well as the ability to receive notifications about assignments and exams on your mobile device.  

The Graduate NSO Canvas course materials are organized into modules by topic. Feel free to move through them in the way that fits your needs and interests. You can work through the modules sequentially from start to finish or jump around. Simply click on any module or part of a module to view that section.  

This orientation course will remain in your Canvas dashboard for the remainder of your time at Penn State. Feel free to refer to it throughout the year.

Questions?

For questions about content: Please contact The Fox Graduate School with any questions regarding content in the Orientation at graddeansoffice@psu.edu.

For technical issues: Please click on the Help icon in the left-hand navigation menu and choose "Chat with Support" or "Call Support."