Tufts Blogs

For incoming freshmen at Tufts University, you hear a lot about preorientation and orientation and how they can help you transition into college. But did you know there are programs that can help you even before that transition begins? These opportunities give you a head start, a community, and a chance to feel settled long before your first semester begins.

If you are admitted to the School of Arts and Sciences, you have access to the Bridge to Liberal Arts Success at Tufts, known as BLAST. Supported by the FIRST Center, BLAST is a six week summer program that lets incoming freshmen get a true head start at Tufts. You can take two courses for credit while living on campus for free, meet staff from across the university, participate in networking events, and even receive a stipend at the end of the program. For many students, this opportunity has shaped their entire Tufts experience. Take Abi, for example:

“BLAST has given me a strong, supportive community and the confidence to navigate Tufts as a first-generation low-income student. Through the six-week summer program, I became familiar with resources at Tufts and was able to make personal connections with those resources. I was able to experience two distinct classes here at Tufts, which really prepared me for my first semester here. I made great friends who I still am close with to this day. I am beyond grateful for the BLAST program and all it has taught me.

Overall, it provided me with a sense of belonging that has shaped my entire college experience. It has helped me feel prepared and empowered for my journey here at Tufts and connected me with a beautiful supportive community within the FIRST community.”

If you are in the School of Engineering, there is also an amazing program called the Bridge to Engineering Success at Tufts, known as BEST. Supported by the Center for STEM Diversity, BEST offers a similar experience to BLAST. You can take two free courses for credit, live on campus, get paired with an upperclassman peer mentor, and find a home at Tufts before your first semester even starts. Take Flor’s experience:

“Thanks to the BEST summer program I learned how to smoothly integrate myself into a college setting with the summer on campus experience. From providing a group of students who are now my closest friends to giving me early experience with Bray labs that will soon be crucial for my major in mechanical engineering, I am thankful for the BEST program and all its support when it comes to my academic and social life at school.”

Even if you are not able to take advantage of these summer opportunities, rising freshmen still have other ways to stay connected. Redefining the Image of Science and Engineering, also known as RISE, is an advising course that supports students from the BLAST and BEST communities throughout the academic year. RISE gives you a space to check in, meet others with similar backgrounds, build academic skills, and keep receiving support well beyond the summer programs. Additionally, you get to listen to various guest speakers from professors and potentially even join their labs, even if you have no experience!

There is also the FIRST Seminar, a course designed for students who identify as first-generation or high-need. This seminar introduces you to important campus resources, helps you adjust to college level academics, and gives you a small and supportive community inside a larger university. The seminar also explores identity, community, and personal growth to help students reflect on their experiences, share their stories, and learn strategies for academic and personal success. Many students say the FIRST Seminar is where they first formed meaningful relationships with professors and peers.

Together, BLAST, BEST, RISE, and the FIRST Seminar show what makes Tufts so special. These programs give students early access to resources, classes, mentors, and most importantly, community. They help you enter college not as a stranger, but as someone who already has a home, a network, and a support system that is ready to see you succeed.