The Office of First-Year Programs designs, implements, and supports programs to help
first-year students achieve academic excellence in the classroom and develop a deeper
understanding of, and commitment to, long-term academic and career goals. We are dedicated
to helping students make a successful transition from the high school classroom to
the academic world of higher education. We are grounded in a strengths-based approach
that helps first-year students and their instructors identify and build upon their
interests, talents, and strengths with the goal of helping students become more engaged
members of our campus community.
First-Year Programs offers:
- GEL 101 (The Student, The University, The Community) - Our award winning GEL 101 Program is a comprehensive college success course that
assists first-year students with developing skills, motivation, and self-understanding
necessary to meet the demands of our rigorous undergraduate curriculum.
- Academic Recovery Curriculum - Our innovative academic recovery courses are designed to provide students in transition
with additional academic support and personal growth opportunities that focus on fostering
campus connections, hope-building, and self-efficacy.
- Professional Development - First-Year Programs offers a range of professional development opportunities for
instructors teaching first-year students.
Our Program Goals
We want first-year students to be eligible to continue their studies at Cal State
San Marcos beyond the first year, and we want them to choose to do so. To that end,
First-Year Programs actively maintains a wide range of campus partnerships and collaborations.
In particular, we have designed a first-year seminar course that helps to ensure
all first-year students accomplish the following:
- Develop the foundational college-level academic skills necessary to thrive in the
Cal State San Marcos undergraduate curriculum
- Understand all graduation requirements and take full advantage of campus resources
to develop an academic plan
- Develop enhanced self-understanding that leads to full commitment to a major and career
path
- Develop greater participation in the campus community and an increased sense of connection
to fellow first-year students and faculty
Office of First-Year Programs Promoting Academic Success for First-Year Students!
Questions? Contact us at: fyp@csusm.edu