First Year Experiences

General Information

National Resource Center for The First-Year Year Experience and Students in Transition, University of South Carolina. Publisher, Journal of the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. http://www.sc.edu/fye/index.html

Past Conferences:

An Archive of past conference summaries on First-Year Experiences from the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition: http://www.sc.edu/fye/events/presentation/index.html

18th International Conference on the First-Year Experience
July 11-14, 2005, Southampton, England, United Kingdom

Summer Institute on First-Year Assessment: Aspring to Excellence
July 24-26, 2005, Asheville, NC
Co-sponsored by the Policy Center on the First Year of College

24th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience
February 4-8, 2005, Phoenix, AZ

International Conference on the First-Year Experience
June 14-17, 2004, Maui, Hawaii

Summer Institute on First-Year Assessment: Discerning Quality in the First Year of College
July 18-20, 2004, Asheville, NC
Sponsored by the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition
Co-sponsored by the Policy Center on the First Year of College

Policy Center on the First Year of College
http://www.fyfoundations.org/
2002 National Survey Findings Now Available

Your First College Year National Survey, Higher Education Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles
http://www.heri.ucla.edu/yfcyoverview.php

Campus Programs

Academic Seminars

Arizona State University, First-Year Seminars
http://clas.asu.edu/firstyearseminars

Case Western Reserve University, First-Year Seminar
http://www.case.edu/sages/sequence.htm#firstsem

Duke University, Interdisciplinary First-Year Seminars
http://trinity.duke.edu/first-year-seminars-program

Harvard University, Freshman Seminars and House Seminars
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~seminars/

Howard University, General Education requirements, including a Freshman Seminar
http://www.coas.howard.edu/requirements.html

Indiana University Bloomington, Intensive Freshman Seminar
http://www.indiana.edu/~college/undergrad/topics/

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Independent Activities Period
http://web.mit.edu/iap/

Northwestern University, College of Arts and Sciences, Freshman Seminars
http://www.wcas.northwestern.edu/advising/freshmen/seminars/

Penn State University, First-Year Seminar Program in the Liberal Arts
http://laus.la.psu.edu/fysprogram.htm

Princeton University, Freshman Seminars in the Residential Colleges
http://www.princeton.edu/pr/pub/fs/

Stanford University, Stanford Introductory Seminars
http://ual.stanford.edu/OO/intro_seminars/IntroSemsOverview.html

Syracuse University, Freshman Forum sample syllabus
http://faculty.maxwell.syr.edu/whorrace/syllabi/CAS101.htm
Freshman Honors Seminar
http://honors.syr.edu/courses/index.htm

Tufts University, First-Year Seminars: Explorations and Perspectives
http://www.excollege.tufts.edu/studentFirstyear.asp

UC Berkeley, Freshman Seminars
http://fss.berkeley.edu/

UC Davis, Freshman Seminars
http://trc.ucdavis.edu/TRC/freshSem/current.html

UC Riverside, Freshman Seminar Discovery Program
http://discoveryseminars.ucr.edu/index.php

UC Santa Cruz, Freshman Discovery Seminars
http://planning.ucsc.edu/vpdue/froshseminars/

University of Hawaii, Freshman Seminars
http://www.fs.hawaii.edu

University of Illinois, First-Year Discovery
http://www.provost.uiuc.edu/students/discovery/index.html

University of Michigan, First Year Seminars
http://www.casl.umd.umich.edu/295001/

University of Minnesota, Freshman Seminars
http://cla.umn.edu/intranet/undergrad/frSeminars.php

University of North Carolina, First-Year Seminar Program
http://www.unc.edu/fys

University of Oklahoma, Freshman Seminars
http://www.ou.edu/univcoll/home/freshman_programs/Courses_for_Freshmen/Freshman_Seminars.html

University of Oregon, Freshman Seminars
http://firstyear.uoregon.edu/

University of Texas at Austin, Freshman Seminars and Forum Seminars
http://www.utexas.edu/student/connexus/freshsem/l

University of Washington, Freshman Seminars
http://depts.washington.edu/seminars/

University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, Freshman Scholar Seminars
http://www.uwm.edu/letsci/edison/fs.html

Course Enhancement

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Edgerton Center
http://web.mit.edu/Edgerton/

University of Colorado - Boulder, Introductory Astronomy
http://www.center.rpi.edu/PCR/R1/UCB/UCB_Home.htm

University of Delaware, Problem-Based Learning
http://www.udel.edu/pbl

University of Notre Dame, College of Engineering First-Year Courses
http://www.nd.edu/~engintro/

First-Year Interest Groups

Brigham Young University, Freshman Academy
http://academy.byu.edu/

Indiana University Bloomington, Freshman Interest Groups
http://www.indiana.edu/~figs/

University of California, Santa Cruz, Oakes Colleges, Values and Change in Diverse Society: A core first-year course that examines historical and contemporary aspects of multiculturalism in the United States, including issues of inequity in the areas of race, class, and gender. http://oakes.ucsc.edu/

University of Houston, The Scholars' Community
http://www.scholars.uh.edu

University of Missouri, Freshman Interest Groups
http://admissions.missouri.edu/housing/whatsAFIG.php

University of Oregon, Freshman Interest Groups (FIGs)
http://firstyear.uoregon.edu/FYP_Pages/FYP_FIGs.html

University of Washington, Freshman Interest Groups (FIGs)
http://depts.washington.edu/figs/

General Education

Boston University, College of Arts and Sciences Core Curriculum
http://www.bu.edu/core/
College of General Studies Core Curriculum
http://www.bu.edu/cgs/academics/core-curriculum/index.html

Bowling Green State University, Springboard Program: A one-credit hour course aimed at assessment and development of skills in oral and written communication, analysis, problem solving, judgment, leadership, and self-assurance. http://www.bgsu.edu/offices/springboard/

New York University, Morse Academic Plan
http://www.nyu.edu/cas/map

Penn State University, First-Year Seminars
http://www.erie.psu.edu/student/fig/Firstyear.htm

SUNY at Albany, Project Renaissance
http://www.albany.edu/projren

UCLA, First-Year Cluster Courses
http://www.college.ucla.edu/ge/

University of Notre Dame, First Year of Studies
http://www.nd.edu/~fys/

University of Utah, Liberal Education Accelerated Program (LEAP)
http://www.leap.utah.edu/

Learning Communities

Arizona State University, Freshman Year Experience
http://www.asu.edu/studentaffairs/freshmen

Georgia Institute of Technology, The Freshman Experience
http://www.freshmanexperience.gatech.edu/

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Concourse: http://web.mit.edu/concourse/www/
Terrascope: http://web.mit.edu/terrascope/www/
Experimental Study Group: http://esg.mit.edu/

Ohio University, The Freshman Experience
http://www.outreach.ohio.edu/earlystart/

University of Delaware, Learning Integrated Freshman Experience (LIFE)
http://fye.udel.edu/

University of Miami, Honors Program, Learning Communities & Freshman Seminars
http://www6.miami.edu/umbulletin/info/hon/learn.htm

Targeted Learning Communities

Origins of ORDER” (On Recent Discoveries by Emory Researchers): A Freshman Seminar at Emory University in which students learn about cutting edge scientific research going on in laboratories at the university: http://www.cse.emory.edu/sciencenet/coll_curr/order/index.html; http://www.news.emory.edu/Releases/lynn1069363205.html; http://www.news.emory.edu/Releases/davidlynn1090849234.html

Stony Brook University, Women in Science and Engineering
http://www.wise.sunysb.edu/
WISE courses:
WISE 187, Introduction to Research
USB 101 for WISE students, Introduction to a Research University

University of Maryland
Civicus, College of Behavioral and Social Sciences
http://www.bsos.umd.edu/civicus
Honors Humanities Living/ Learning Program: http://www.honors.umd.edu/
College Park Scholars: http://www.scholars.umd.edu/

University of Massachusetts, Honors College Learning Communities
http://www.comcol.umass.edu/academics/csl/students/CSPLearningCommunity.html

University of Michigan, UROP in Residence
http://www.umich.edu/~uir/
First Year Seminars: Includes courses in the Arts
http://www.lsa.umich.edu/students/fysem

University of Minnesota, Honors Colloquia
http://cla.umn.edu/honors/

University of Texas at Austin, Texas Interdisciplinary Plan (formerly PENS)
http://www.utexas.edu/tip/

Orientation

Emory University, Freshman Advising and Mentoring (FAME)
http://www.emory.edu/COLLEGE/FAME/

University of Connecticut, First-Year Experience
http://www.fye.uconn.edu

University of Nebraska at Lincoln, University Foundations
http://www.unl.edu/UFP

University of North Carolina, The Carolina Summer Reading Program
http://www.unc.edu/srp

University of Oklahoma, Gateway to College Learning
http://www.ou.edu/pii/newsletters/archive/b6.html

University of South Carolina, University 101
http://www.sc.edu/univ101/

University of Texas, Arlington, Year One at UTA
http://www.uta.edu/yearone

Books and Articles

Chaplin, Susan B. "Introducing Freshmen to Investigative Research - A Course for Biology Majors at Minnesota's University of St. Thomas." Journal of College Science Teaching (27) 5, March-April 1998, 347-350.

Ethier, Marc. "First Reading Assignments for Freshmen Aim to Promote Tolerance and Critical Thinking." The Chronicle of Higher Education, August 8, 1997, A41.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology report “Freshman Pass/No record Grading and Advanced Placement Policy” http://web.mit.edu/committees/cup/subcommittees/pnrap/part1.pdf; The student response: http://web.mit.edu/ua/oldwww/2000-2002/PNRAP.pdf

Tinto, Vincent and Anne Goodsell. "Freshman Interest Groups and the First-Year Experience." Journal of the Freshman Year Experience 6 (1), 1993, 7-28.

Exemplary Programs and Practices

he BGeXperience, Bowling Green State University: An academic program designed to help first year students make a successful transition to college. Students develop relationships with the BGSU community and skills necessary for academic success. http://www.bgsu.edu/students/bgexperience

Discovery Seminar Program, University of Kentucky: First year students take small classes with outstanding professors who engage the students in challenging discussions. http://www.uky.edu/AS/Discovery/index.htm