First-Year Experience

At Madonna University, we believe that the first year of university study calls for a focused program of study, advisement, and orientation based on the following philosophical perspectives:

• Learning is social and is best promoted and supported by a community of learners. To this end, the University encourages first-year-of-college students to participate in the Collaborative Studies Program, a curriculum that links first-year courses to create a community of learners within your chosen area of study.

• Learning is developmental; that is, first-year students are at individual levels of maturation and intellectual, social, and personal development. As educators, the faculty is committed to understanding where students are when they come to us, accepting and valuing them as persons, and identifying strategies for fostering their development.

• Learning is holistic, and at Madonna we strive to fulfill our mission of intellectual, spiritual, and personal development. We promote interdisciplinary approaches to learning and problem solving so students recognize the interconnectedness of knowledge and human experience.

• Our educational practice should be learner-centered. This implies that students need to be taught to take responsibilities for their learning in order to promote the ideal of life-long learning. One aspect of this goal relates to the component of UNV 1020: Transitions to Higher Education, that familiarizes students with the variety of academic support services available to them as Madonna University students and encourages them to use these services when they experience academic difficulty.

• Education at Madonna University should promote the idea of service to our communities, particularly to those in the global community who are less fortunate. This is a reflection of the University's commitment to Catholic teachings on social justice and the ideals of St. Francis of Assisi. To this end, the University requires all students in UNV 1020 to participate in a service learning experience.

• Students benefit from understanding the history, traditions, and foundational values of the university they attend. Through the continuum of admissions, orientation, pre-enrollment, first semester, and second semester, the University has designed intentional strategies for communicating these ideas to first-year students.

Transitions to Higher Education is a two credit course required of all incoming students who are less than 24 years old and have fewer than 13 college transfer credits (excluding AP, IB, Dual Enrollment, or Middle College credits).

UNV 1020 is designed to:

• Address transition issues that First-Year Students face when entering the University
• Introduce students to thought-provoking, challenging, and interesting ideas to enhance their critical thinking, research, writing, and presentation skills
• Engage students in a community of learners
• Incorporate a service-learning experience that fulfills the University’s mission of service