First-Year Success Initiatives

University Housing at the University of South Carolina is committed to student success and learning. We believe the experience of living on-campus encourages students’ integration of their academic and social lives, and contributes to their successful transition to the University. We see our residence halls as living and learning environments where students benefit greatly from the interaction with their peers and are engaged regularly by faculty and staff who are committed to their growth and development. University Housing strives to make the University of South Carolina’s programs for first-year students truly first-class.

Freshman Centers: We have designated eight halls as freshmen centers where only freshmen are assigned to live. Residence hall staff receive targeted training in first-year student needs. Front-loading of academic support and other services particular to the first-year experience will be facilitated in these centers. We have full-time Residence Life Coordinators living in Bates House, and Patterson Hall. Tutoring services, study groups, computer labs, and University 101 classes are offered in these halls.

Student Success Initiative (SSI): One priority of the University of South Carolina’s Freshmen Center programs is to enhance student success through interpersonal relationship building between resident advisors and students. To aid RAs in this process, a workbook was created to assist RAs in developing intentional relationships with each of their residents. The SSI workbook guides RAs and students through a series of four structured, one-to-one, interactions. RAs discuss with their residents common first-year student issues, such as transitions, campus involvement, connection to the university, and academic success. The workbook also includes perforated resource pages for RAs to discuss and give to students.

Academic Involvement Meetings: During the first few weeks of the semester, University Housing hosts a faculty - student discussion in each of our Freshmen Centers. During these talks, invited faculty share their perspective on the University of South Carolina’s academic expectations of students and strategies for academic success at Carolina.

University 101: Numerous sections of University 101, USC’s nationally acclaimed first-year experience course, are taught in our residence hall classrooms each year.

Related First-Year Experience Sites at the University of South Carolina

National Resource Center for the First Year Experience and Students in Transition http://www.sc.edu/fye

University 101
http://www.sc.edu/univ101/index.html

First-Class First-Year web site
http://www.sc.edu/firstclass