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VASSAR COLLEGE The 2021/22 First-Year Handbook A HANDBOOK FOR THE CLASS OF 2025 1 To the Class of 2025 In a few short weeks, you will join a college community of other students, faculty, and administrators eager to welcome you to Vassar. The COVID-19 pandemic challenged our nation, community, and our College over the course of the last year. After managing to create a successful college experience during the COVID-19 pandemic, we look forward to returning to some sense for normalcy during the Fall 2021 semester. The large-scale availability of vaccines will inch us closer to this goal even as we will continue to be mindful of important protocols and safety measures to keep our community safe. Planning for your academic and co-curricular success at Vassar in the midst of this is also important to us. No doubt, you have already begun reflecting on your own intellectual and personal goals for the next four years at Vassar. To be prepared to meet them, you will need to think through, plan, and carry out an academic program grounded in the broad tradition of liberal education. The Dean of the College division is committed to helping you prepare and support you in meeting all of your goals. The materials in this book will help you make good use of the time between now and when you arrive on campus in August. As you read and work through them, I encourage you to be in touch with any relevant offices to ask any questions or to ask for additional support. You will also find instructions for pre-registering for your fall semester courses. Please read and consider this material carefully. We encourage you to think about it while pre-registering for classes and preparing the Statement of Academic Interests, which the dean of first-year students has requested you send before you arrive on campus. Your understanding of the materials here, the Vassar College catalogue, and your Statement of Academic Interests will provide the basis for the critical discussions that you will have with your faculty pre-major advisor, your house fellow, and the dean of first-year students when you arrive on campus in August. We look forward to welcoming you to campus and to facilitating your smooth and enjoyable transition into the Vassar community. Please be on the lookout for additional guidance and recommendations from the College in the coming weeks on how to best pack and prepare for your arrival on campus in August. I look forward to meeting each of you during your time at the College as we forge ahead in confronting the challenges of our contemporary moment together in the creation of a collective and beloved community. Carlos Alamo-Pastrana Dean of the College and Associate Professor of Sociology June 2021 2 NOTE - Parts of this document were created before the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, several changes will need to be made to our first-year orientation program. Additionally, all dates listed below are tentative and some office hours of operation may change. We ask for your patience as we change events in response to state, local and college guidelines. Please refer to http://deanoffirstyearstudents.vassar.edu and at http://newstudents.vassar.edu for the most up to date information. CONTENTS TO THE CLASS OF 2025 ...........................................................................................................................2 THE VASSAR FIRST YEAR .......................................................................................................................6 General Education Student Learning Goals ................................................................................................6 New Student Orientation .............................................................................................................................7 How to Use This Handbook ........................................................................................................................8 ACADEMIC, RESIDENTIAL LIFE, AND EXTRACURRICULAR RESOURCES........................................8 The Dean of First-Year Students.................................................................................................................9 Faculty Advisors .........................................................................................................................................9 Libraries ....................................................................................................................................................10 The Learning, Teaching, and Research Center.........................................................................................10 Community-Engaged Learning (Formerly Field Work)..............................................................................11 Career Development .................................................................................................................................11 The Associate Dean of the College for Residential Life and Wellness ....................................................12 The Office of Residential Life ...................................................................................................................12 House Fellows...........................................................................................................................................13 Student Fellows ........................................................................................................................................13 House Advisors..........................................................................................................................................13 House Student Advisors.............................................................................................................................13 House Officers ...........................................................................................................................................14 3 Counseling Service.....................................................................................................................................14 Office of Health Promotion and Education .................................................................................................15 The Sexual Assault Violence Prevention Office/Sexual Assault Response Team .....................................15 Health Service.............................................................................................................................................16 Office for Accessibility and Educational Opportunity...................................................................................17 Office of Religious and Spiritual Life and Contemplative Practices ...........................................................18 Office of Student Growth and Engagement................................................................................................18 Student Employment..................................................................................................................................20 Athletics and Physical Education ..............................................................................................................20 ACADEMIC INFORMATION ....................................................................................................................22 First-Year Writing Seminar Requirement ..................................................................................................22 Quantitative Course Requirement.............................................................................................................22 Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement ............................................................................................23 Distribution Requirements.........................................................................................................................23 Pre-Matriculation Credit............................................................................................................................24 Advanced Course Placement ..................................................................................................................26 Preparation for Teacher Certification........................................................................................................26 Preparation for Law School......................................................................................................................27 Preparation for Medical School ...............................................................................................................27 Preparation for Education Abroad ...........................................................................................................28 REGISTRATION FOR COURSES ..........................................................................................................28 Guidelines for Course Selection ..............................................................................................................30 To Prospective Science Majors ...............................................................................................................32 Yearlong Courses ....................................................................................................................................32 4 About Grades ..........................................................................................................................................33 Statement on Assessment ......................................................................................................................34