New Start Program

Trial, Preparation, Reinforcement and Academic Mentoring and Empowerment

The University has a support program for first year students in several departments:

Biomedical Engineering
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Communication Systems Engineering.
Software Engineering
Industrial Engineering and Management
Chemistry
Life Sciences
Computer Sciences

About the Program

To prepare you for the fascinating journey into the realm of natural sciences and engineering studies and help you realize your abilities and succeed academically, we have designed a special program for you during your first semester at BGU.

This is the fourth year that this program is offered. New Start graduates are particularly satisfied, and their achievements are on average higher than those of students who did not join the program.

The program includes a workshop and pre-academic preparatory courses, acquiring learning skills, social activities and of course assistance in the first semester and in preparing for exams. When joining the program, you will also be assigned a social mentor who will help in various subjects during the semester.

The pre-academic workshop will prepare you for studies in the department and will help you get ready to take on the challenging academic studies and student life.

This workshop is unique to your department and was designed to address the needs of newly admitted students and help them make the most of their abilities and begin their studies on the right foot with a solid foundation.

Starting date

The program will start with a preliminary workshop that will take place before the beginning of the semester during the two-week period from October 2, 2018 to October 12, 2018.

The workshop will include

Introduction to the Head of the Department and staff.
Studying two short courses, including lectures and exercises on main subjects to be covered in the first semester in the department (for example, calculus and logic in a department such as computer sciences).
Pre-academic workshops for acquiring learning skills and techniques for time management, memory retention and other learning strategies.
Assistance from the Dean of Students and explanations on the array of services that are available, such as dormitories, scholarships, dropout prevention programs, psychological services, accommodations for students with special needs, etc. A light meal every day.
Meeting other students in the program and with “We're Here for You" mentors (a student-to student mentoring program for newly admitted students).

The reinforcement and mentoring phase in the first semester includes

“Ezratonim" - tutoring classes in small groups will be offered for each of the most challenging courses in the first semester. Each Ezraton tutoring group is allotted for two to four hours a week (as needed).
The Dean's coordinators will advise on learning strategies (time management, memory retention, attention and concentration difficulties, procrastination, preparing for tests, etc.) and various other subjects. Meetings can be arranged weekly or according to the student's needs. There will also be a follow-up by email.
Student-to-student mentoring ("We're Here for You") - An experienced student from the department in which the new student has enrolled will acts as a sort of “older brother", will be available to help address the student's needs in the first semester, answer questions, etc.

Payment is by credit card

The Dean of Students website > Personal Information > Sign up for Workshops > Pre-academic Workshop - Your Home Department (Computer Sciences, for example) and then send the application (do not sign up for a group that contains the word “continuation") Registration fee - NIS 300 enrollment commitment fee only. Should you have questions or require further details, please contact: newstart@bgu.ac.il