Rensselaer attracts world-class students to its outstanding programs in science and engineering. Yet in today’s global economy leadership, innovation, and satisfying careers requires our students to possess a broad foundation for understanding the social, economic, and political contexts in which they work. Our students must also have the power to think critically and creatively about themselves and the diversity of worldviews and possibilities. The First Year Studies Program, as administered out of our School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences, is committed to developing skills and talents, including those of effective communication and intellectual engagement, necessary for the successful technical professional of the 21st Century.

At the heart of the program is a transdisciplinary approach that allows students to examine social phenomena such as world religions, economic globalization, human identity, and the culture of technology from multiple disciplinary perspectives. Students are given the opportunity to interact closely with their instructors in seminar-style discussion sections limited to twenty-five students, and to participate in forums for dialogue and debate such as the annual FYE/FYS Lecture Series co-sponsored by the Office of the First-Year Experience and the HASS First Year Studies Program. Central to our curriculum is a teaching philosophy that utilizes engaged learning strategies to add depth to a student’s awareness about themselves and the world. Our primary areas of pedagogic focus include the following:

• Critical Thinking
• Writing and Communications
• Personal Instructional Attention
• Teamwork and Group Work
• Community Building and Awareness
• Diversity
• Effective Use of Instructional Technology

All First Year Studies courses foster a student’s ability to examine fundamental issues in a clear, comprehensive, and critical fashion, and to relate their knowledge to their everyday experience and subsequent academic career at Rensselaer.

Courses offerings for Fall 2009 are as follows: (click here for details)

IHSS-1961 Israel and Its ConflictsIHSS-1963 Explorations in Media
IHSS-1964 Minds and Machines
IHSS-1965 Rhetoric, Democracy and the Media
IHSS-1966 Environment and Politics
IHSS-1970 Nature/Society
IHSS-1977 Living in Cyberspace
IHSS-1978 The Culture of Scientific Revolutions
IHSS-1979 Politics of the Global Environment

The first year studies program is implemented and enhanced through activities designed to stimulate and foster curricular renewal. Examples of such activities include:

• A summer pedagogy workshop for all affiliated instructors
• A system for curriculum innovation grants, especially for building new transdisciplinary courses around specific humanities and social science issues or themes
• Brownbag pedagogy sessions during the semester for instructors and their teaching assistants on such subjects as how to begin a semester; how to foster effective teamwork; how to run dynamic discussions; how to use instructional technology in the classroom; how to bring closure to a semester
• A Faculty Advisory Committee comprised of representatives from all of the academic departments in the School of Humanities and Social Science
• Coordination with the Office of the First-Year Experience to ensure that academic content is integral to the student’s adjustments and orientation to Rensselaer

In addition, our program is actively involved in constructing accurate performance measurements and metrics so that we can continually improve the quality of instructional programs offered to our first year students.

Student participation in First Year Studies is voluntary. However, annually, over 700 students, or nearly 3/5th of the entering class choose to participate in the program, demonstrating student interest and engagement in the program. Rensselaer is committed to sustaining and building on this innovative program. We hope you find the opportunity to benefit from it.

For further information: Atsushi Akera, Director .or. Elizabeth Large, Director of Student Services & Core Curriculum Advisor First Year Studies Program School of Humanities and Social Science Sage 5304 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 110 8th St. Troy, NY 12180 518.276.2576 // largee@rpi.edu