During the first week of classes each school hosts a "Meet Your Major" meeting for the first year students. The purpose of these meetings is to introduce first year students to their major department faculty, review department goals and expectations, and inform students about exciting opportunities in their selected program of studies. 

The First-Year Success Series (FYSS) is a series of presentations, informational sessions and interactive workshops that support new students' transition to college life.

The First Year Seminar (FYS) at Lasell University is a theme-based inquiry course that provides the foundational experience of a Lasell education for students. Through studying an academic topic, students develop and apply core intellectual skills and receive an introduction to the core knowledge perspectives. At the same time, students connect to the experiences and people that make up the Lasell University community.

Course outcomes are accomplished through engaging activities including reading, writing, class discussions, presentations, team projects, field trips, service learning, and exploration of campus resources. Past course titles have included: Challenging Hollywood: Thinking Critically about Movies, Exploring Activism-Changing Our World, Let Us Rock, Pets: Our Perfect Companion, The Meaning of Dress, The "Reality" of Relationships, The Witch in History and Pop Culture, Women and Sports, and Zombies, Vampires and Revolutionaries.

• To interpret and analyze the complex interrelationships and inequities in human societies in a global and historical context (Global & Historical Perspective)
• To analyze modes of creative self-expression with an aesthetic perspective (Aesthetics & Creativity)
• To apply the process of scientific inquiry to comprehend the natural world and to solve problems (Scientific Inquiry & Problem Solving)
• To evaluate and understand how individual differences in mental processes and behaviors relate to beliefs, values, and interactions (Individuals and Society)

• To read and respond in an informed and discerning way to written texts of different genres
• To write clear, well-organized, persuasive prose
• To use listening and speaking skills to express ideas and information clearly and confidently in a variety of settings
• To apply quantitative reasoning to solve problems effectively
• To use appropriate technological tools to solve problems efficiently To collect, analyze, and synthesize appropriate data and sources effectively, ethically, and legally To work effectively in collaborative settings

Peer mentors are in integral component of the First Year Seminar (FYS) experience. Peer mentors are upper class students who co-facilitate FYS classes with faculty, and serve as role models for students adjusting to academic and social demands of college life. In addition, to working within the classroom setting, peer mentors meet formally and informally with students outside of class to discuss class assignments and other relevant issues. Peer mentors attempt to establish relationships with their mentees very early on in the first semester and will continue to serve as a student mentor throughout their mentees' first year.

Peer mentors are nominated by faculty and staff based on their academic achievements, level of maturity, trustworthiness, responsibility, and interpersonal skills. Peer mentors complete a leadership training program prior to serving in a FYS class.

Students who have taken FYS report that peer mentors provide a unique benefit to the FYS course. They find peer mentors to be especially helpful in the transition to college, reporting that peer mentors are able to bring the student perspective, first-hand knowledge about the challenges new students face when arriving at college.

Peer mentors role is to:

• Link students to Lasell University services
• Introduce students to Lasell University activities, clubs and organizations
• Teach and model successful student practices such as balancing academic and social demands, engaging with faculty and resources such as academic advising and the Academic Achievement Center

The common reading book for 2021 is Callings by Dave Isay. All new students will receive a free e-book and will be enrolled in the Lasell University Canvas Common Reading site. Guided by faculty and upper-class students during the summer, the Common Reading site offers new students the opportunity to read, post, comment, and "chat" with one another.

The goals for our program are to:

• Encourage reading
• Create a sense of community
• Set an academic expectation of reading and discourse
• Provide a shared intellectual activity for students, faculty, and staff
• Create an academic tradition for first-year students