A Welome from the Dean of Undergraduate Studies
Welcome! You are joining the best class ever at UT Austin. I have been teaching here for more than thirty years. I loved it from the start, because the students were great, and they are far better now.
Believe it or not, I like teaching on a huge campus. What does “huge” mean at UT Austin? It means opportunities you’ve never dreamed of, both inside and outside the classroom. Whatever else you do, I hope you explore your options here. You may think you know what you’ll major in, but many students change plans, and the sooner you find what you really want to do, the better. Don’t waste time in the wrong major. All the successful people I know are in careers they enjoy—not in jobs they feel they have to do. So please take a little time now, as you begin your first year, to explore. We can help. The Signature Courses are designed to help students explore both the campus and the world of ideas it represents. And the Bridging Disciplines Programs can let you expand your major in exciting ways.
Do you want to make the campus feel small and friendly? Look at what’s described in this Bulletin. Sign up for a First-Year Interest Group—a small community of students who take courses together and meet for pizza. Do you hope to see the stars of our faculty at their brightest? Come to the University Lectures. Care to read a good book and meet other students to discuss? Wrangle yourself over to the Reading Round-Up.
When in doubt, ask an advisor. Whoever you are, you will find a way to be yourself here. And whatever you want to be, this campus has a path that is open to you and leads eventually to where you want to go.
Paul B. Woodruff
Dean of Undergraduate Studies
Professor Woodruff teaches in the philosophy department. As Dean of Undergraduate Studies, he oversees learning communities for first-year students