First years and transfer students: Uncertain about your future? We’ve got a class for that.
URI 101 supports a successful transition to college, setting you up for success.
A one-credit, transition-to-college, and academic planning seminar for first-year and some transfer students, URI 101 sets the foundation for a student’s academic life. The University runs about 150 sections of URI 101 each fall.
Generally, students are grouped by major and taught by faculty and staff who work within that discipline. Undeclared students work with their instructors to help them in their decision-making. URI 101 assists students in finding the right major through a four-step process that considers a student’s personality and skill set. And while the goal is to plan, define, and develop the skills that contribute to each student’s academic success in their major, URI 101 covers a broad range of topics, including self-care, campus life, and technology tools.
Additionally, trained student mentors, sophomores and older, advise students, providing peer-to-peer advising and sharing their own firsthand experiences of campus life.
‘A space of caring’
At its core, URI 101 is about retention and student success. First-year and transfer students can be a vulnerable population. Any number of situations, small and large, can undermine a student’s academic and social success. Roommate conflicts, difficulty making friends, and even filling out a class schedule can be obstacles. The intent is to address students’ needs holistically, says Kimberly Stack, director of URI’s Center for Career and Experiential Education.
“We’re creating a space of caring. Caring that you’re eating, caring that you’re sleeping, caring that you’re happy,” says Stack.
—Marybeth Reilly-McGreen