Dear CNAS Students,

Today marks the beginning of the 2024 academic year for the UC Riverside community, and I have been looking forward to the energy and enthusiasm that our students bring to campus!

For the College of Natural & Agricultural Sciences (CNAS) alone, we welcome 7,325 CNAS students, of which 1,780 are new first-year students, 227 are new transfer students, and 221 are new graduate students. I had the pleasure of meeting many of you and your families at the CNAS New Family Welcome yesterday.

During Welcome Week, you’ll have the opportunity to transition to campus life and explore what UCR and CNAS has to offer. For our CNAS undergraduate students, tomorrow morning are the CNAS New Student Welcome sessions, and immediately following is lunch at the CNAS Community Meet & Greet at the Physics Courtyard at 11:30 a.m. For our graduate students, there are a number of orientations, fall welcomes, open houses, and symposiums that are coming up. 

When classes start in the next few days, don’t hesitate to meet your fellow classmates, get to know your faculty, and reach out to staff—we are all here to support you in your success as you develop your careers here at CNAS!

I’m looking forward to seeing you all on campus!

Peter W. Atkinson, Ph.D.
Professor
Interim Dean, College of Natural & Agricultural Sciences