First-Year Seminar

First-Year Seminars

To most effectively facilitate student success, First-Year Seminars must share a common set of features. Therefore, faculty and instructional academic staff in the First-Year Seminar program must:

  • Teach discussion-oriented, seminar-style courses, rather than coverage-oriented, lecture-style courses
  • Incorporate elements of UWM’s First-Year Seminar Taxonomy
  • Promote equity for all students to achieve success in the First-Year Seminar
  • Collaborate with a peer mentor assigned by the Student Success Center
  • Require students to present a public demonstration of their learning in class

In order to support First-Year Seminar instructors, CETL facilitates bi-weekly Community of Practice (CoP) meetings and provides optional class observations and feedback.

Please contact the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning with any questions.