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Special Programs

Special Programs in Academics

Through a variety of special academic programs, students can find the challenges, skills and support they need to meet their full potential. Many faculty participate in the Interdisciplinary Writing Program and offer Writing Designated courses that provide writing instruction with various disciplines.

Every first-year student will have a first-year seminar – a course that fulfills a core curriculum requirement, builds essential academic skills and introduces students to the Saint Vincent College learning community.

Additional programs:
Benedictine Leadership | Fred Rogers Scholars | Palmer Scholars | Honors | Summer Institute in Rome

 

  • Interdisciplinary Writing

    Interdisciplinary Writing

    Through the Interdisciplinary Writing Program, college faculty strive to improve students' reading, thinking and writing skills by providing students with additional writing instruction. Faculty from the sciences, business disciplines, social sciences and humanities have collaborated on grading standards and teaching methods and implement them in Writing Designated (WD) courses. Students who enroll in WD courses encounter the following:

    • Instruction from trained faculty.
    • Enrichment in the Six Principles of Good Writing and the Three Stages of Good Writing Practice.
    • Discipline-specific reading assignments
    • Paper assignments that incorporate ideas and information from various sources.
    • Sequenced paper assignments that develop writing and thinking skills.
    • Opportunities to revise papers based upon peer reviews or instructor feedback.
  • First Year Seminar

    First Year Seminar

    All new students take a course designated as a First Year Seminar.

    First Year Seminars at Saint Vincent College are courses designed to make new students feel welcomed and integrated into the SVC learning community on academic, social and cultural levels. First year students have the opportunity to establish a sense of camaraderie with their teachers as well as with one another and to focus on areas essential for success in the Saint Vincent curriculum: academic responsibility, critical thinking and presentation of ideas. First Year Seminars enable students to be effective learners and thinkers both in their major fields of study and in other areas of the curriculum. To complement this experience, students participate in extracurricular events and learn to apply their academic skills both in the classroom and in the world beyond campus. 

Contact Us

Dr. John Smetanka

Phone: 724-805-2062
Email: john.smetanka@stvincent.edu