Student Learning Outcomes
First-Year Seminars (FYS-U 110)
Students who complete a University College First-Year Seminar should:
- Attain beginning levels of competency in all Principles of Undergraduate Learning (PULs) areas: Core Communication; Critical Thinking; Integration and Application of Knowledge; Intellectual Depth, Breadth, and Adaptiveness; Understanding Society and Culture, and Values and Ethics:
- Demonstrate effective writing and speaking (Core Communication).
- Make effective use of information resources and technology (Core Communication).
- Create knowledge, procedures, processes, or products to discern bias, challenge assumptions, identify consequences, arrive at reasoned conclusions, generate and explore new questions, solve challenging and complex problems, and make informed decisions (Critical Thinking).
- Be critical thinkers who demonstrate intellectual curiosity, rational inquiry, problem solving skills, and creativity in framing problems (Critical Thinking).
- Evaluate the quality of information (Critical Thinking).
- Apply their skills learned in first-year seminars (e.g., career exploration, time management, evaluation of information) to other areas or problems (Integration and Application of Knowledge).
- Compare and contrast approaches to knowledge in different disciplines and fields of study (Intellectual Depth, Breadth, and Adaptiveness).
- Describe cultural traditions, appreciate the diversity of the human experience, and make sound decisions with respect to individual conduct and citizenship (Understanding Society and Culture).
- Define and develop an appreciation of social and cultural diversity (Understanding Society and Culture).
- Describe ethical principles within diverse cultural, social, environmental, and personal settings (Values and Ethics).
- Describe University rules regarding academic honesty (Values and Ethics).
- Describe University rules regarding plagiarism (Values and Ethics).
- Complete a Personal Development Plan (PDP).
- Self Assessment: Students will identify success-related competencies that are natural strengths as well as other skills that they need to build.
- Exploration: Students will research and develop a realistic, informed, and detailed vision of related academic and career goals. Students will describe academic majors and career options.
- Evaluation: Students will analyze their academic progress over the semester in terms of academic and career success strategies.
- Goal Setting: Students will connect a larger sense of personal values and life purpose to the motivation and inspiration behind their academic and career goals.
- Planning: Students will locate programs, information, people, and opportunities to support and reality test their goals. They identify specific short term steps to reach their long term goals.
Students who complete a University College Critical Inquiry course should:
- Confront challenging problems arising from text and relevant issues they have a stake in solving.
- Synthesize multiple viewpoints to arrive at reasoned conclusions about challenging texts and issues.
- Analyze, reflect, and develop questions about challenging texts, relevant problems, and issues.
- Collaborate with other students for multiple viewpoints and different approaches to challenging texts and issues.
- Analyze challenging texts, pertinent problems, and issues to make sense of those texts' and issues' complexity.
- Apply new knowledge to situations and problems posed within challenging texts and issues.