Main content
Emory welcomes new international students to campus
three smiling students

Emory’s International Student and Scholar Services on the Atlanta campus hosted a reception and offered resources to welcome new students to campus for the fall 2025 semester.

— Photo by Jenni Girtman, Atlanta Event Photography

At the start of this semester, Emory’s International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) and Global Oxford welcomed students from around the world at orientations, resource fairs and other events.


Orientations and resources

The ISSS office (a unit of Emory Global Engagement) offered a variety of orientation and welcome activities to assist incoming students as they settled into their new lives in Atlanta. New international students received a wide range of information about Emory’s support resources, U.S. immigration regulations and navigating life in the United States.

The kickoff welcome event was a summer social, where new students connected with each other and got to know ISSS staff through icebreakers, games and casual conversation over snacks.

ISSS staff also enjoyed meeting new students and student leaders at resource fairs and expos across the university, including the Candler Opportunities Fair, the Laney Graduate School Picnic, the School of Medicine Resource Fair, the Emory College of Arts and Sciences Pre-Orientation Fair and Expo, and many more.

Each event allowed the ISSS staff to greet new students and share information about programming and leadership opportunities for both international and domestic students. ISSS also continued its tradition of hosting an on-campus Social Security appointment day in August. 


ISSS Welcome Reception

In celebration of the start of the fall semester, ISSS also hosted its annual ISSS Welcome Reception. This year’s reception, held Sept. 3 in Ackerman Hall of the Carlos Museum, was attended by members of the new student class and returning student leaders from across the university. Students also participated in a trivia game and other fun activities. Attendees had the opportunity to network with Emory Global Engagement staff and enjoyed music performances by the Emory staff.

Aside from simply having fun and learning about ISSS, many students saw the reception as an opportunity to connect with both their classmates and the Emory community.

“Today I felt like I am not alone in this journey,” said Pragya Thapa, a first-year Master of Public Health student from Nepal. “I look forward to being part of such programs in the future.”

To learn about upcoming ISSS events, visit the events calendar or follow @EmoryISSS on Instagram


Oxford College outing 

On the Oxford College campus, student leaders who assist with international student welcome are known as iMentors. They took Oxford’s new international students to Six Flags during Labor Day weekend to give students an opportunity to connect with each other, experience a bit of Georgia and enjoy some fun early in the semester.

“The outing helps to continue building a sense of community and belonging, which is a key part of the Oxford experience,” says Daphne Orr, senior director of Global Oxford, a unit of Oxford Center for Pathways and Purpose


Recent News