University College Marks a Milestone

University College is celebrating its 20th anniversary at American University.

AU's oldest and largest living-learning community welcomed its first cohort in the fall of 2004. Since then, the program has flourished into a community that anchors the new student experience. To date, more than 5,000 Eagles have gone through the program.

"University College is in some ways ahead of its time," said Brad Knight, senior director of AU Core and University College. "So much of the DNA of AU Core and what now really sets apart undergraduate education as a whole can be found in what [has] made University College work. There aren't a lot of places where you can so readily find evidence of a university's commitment to its students with such longevity."

Today, University College is a yearlong experience open to all schools and majors to help first-year students maximize their earliest days on campus. A key element of the program is a Complex Problems Seminar that students take each fall with classmates who live on their residence hall floor. AU offers more than 100 seminars on topics like presidential scandals, conspiracy theories, food waste, world languages, and business.

Throughout the year, students also attend events and cocurriculars to strengthen relationships with peers and the campus community, from trips to New York City to the theater to museums.

"We know that when students transition to college, they experience a lot of upheaval," Knight said. "By putting them on floors with people they're going to be learning with, they have a ready-made community who they can then strike out with."

After the pandemic, University College introduced another element to the experience-a House Cup competition. Throughout the year, teams compete to earn points by attending events and living up to the values of the program.

Each year, the previous cohort picks the mascots for each house. This year, the mythical creatures include merfolk, vampires, dragons, fairies, and werewolves. The theme for 2024-25 is constellations.

Over the years, the nature of the program has led to friendships among Eagles that last long after they leave campus.

"We hear all the time from students that the friends that they met in University College are later the people who are in their weddings, or people who have to connected them to a job," Knight said. "These end up being these lifelong connections from that first semester on campus."