The 2023.1 academic semester for distance and on-site courses at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) will begin on Monday (06). To mark the opening of this period, a series of 13 face-to-face inaugural classes will be held at the Presential Support Centers in the metropolitan area of Natal/RN and in the interior of the state. The calendar of events starts on March 9th, with classes scheduled for the poles in Guamaré/RN, Macau/RN, Currais Novos/RN and São Gonçalo do Amarante/RN.

More than 1,300 openings for UFRN distance learning bachelor’s and bachelor’s degree courses were offered in selective processes in late 2022 and early 2023. According to the Pedagogical Coordinator of EaD/UFRN, Lilian Giotto Zaros de Medeiros, “the goal of the inaugural class is to welcome the students who are entering the ten distance learning courses at UFRN and to invite them to become part of the institution’s history”. Also according to Lilian Zaros, the intention is to introduce the University to them so that they can get to know the institution and the courses offered, including post-graduate courses.

Professors who coordinate courses and manage distance education at the University will give the inaugural lectures with the central theme: “EaD at UFRN: let’s be part of this story”. Francimeire Cesário, coordinator of the Presential Support Center of Marcelino Vieira/RN, spoke about the expectation for this moment: “we already have a welcoming meeting planned for March 11 and the inaugural class scheduled for March 18.

From the Seridó Region, the coordinator of the Currias Novos/RN Presential Support Center, Edneide Pinheiro, evaluates what this academic period will be: “my expectation is for a productive semester, that we are driven to action and persevering in our purposes, we live a new era in EaD at UFRN, with the entrance of new students who will add to the existing ones, besides the tutors who will integrate our team, making the centers alive and active”, she concluded.

On the SEDIS/UFRN and the hubs’ profiles on the social networks, you can check out the entire schedule for the on-site inaugural classes.

Bruno Cássio – Communication Advisor, SEDIS/UFRN.