2019 First-Year Seminar Applications Open

May 29, 2019 — Applications are now open for the three special academic options open to first-year students in Georgetown College.

The Ignatius Seminars, the Liberal Arts Seminar, and the FLL Hager Scholars Program all present exciting opportunities for first-year students to challenge themselves in the classroom, work with highly skilled faculty members, and bond with fellow students in a small class environment.

IGNATIUS SEMINARS

The Ignatius Seminars are a set of one-semester, three-credit courses available in the fall, in which faculty lead weekly discussions on topics they are particularly passionate about.

16 Ignatius Seminars will be held this fall, including classes led by College Dean Chris Celenza, University Provost Robert Groves, and University President John J. DeGioia.

“I’m so grateful for the remarkable setting this course has given me, to grapple with the deepest questions of life and human existence,” said Dalton Nunamaker (C’22), who took Dean Celenza’s seminar, “Thinking Through Writing,” last fall. “I recommend every first-year applies for the Ignatius Seminar that best aligns with their interests!”

LIBERAL ARTS SEMINAR

Another option for students seeking an intensive one-semester program is the Liberal Arts Seminar (LAS), a six-credit course that explores the cultural history of the Mediterranean region through both fiction and nonfiction works. The LAS fulfills the Writing, Theology, and Engaging Global Diversity core requirements.

Professor Emily Francomano of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese and Professor Jonathan Ray of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies will lead this year’s LAS.

“The LAS facilitates deep friendship and respect between students. It connects you to kindred spirits immediately upon arriving to Georgetown, both professors and other first-years,” Ema Bargeron (C’22) said. Two teachers in the classroom means richer and more multifaceted discussions on historical topics that are relevant today.”

FLL HAGER SCHOLARS

The FLL Hager Scholars Program provides an opportunity for first-year languages and linguistics majors to partake in an intensive multidisciplinary program over the course of the entire academic year.

In addition to one course per semester in their declared language or linguistics major, Hager Scholars take a series of courses that fulfill core requirements in other disciplines, taught by faculty who are particularly interested in the ways that language study informs their fields.

“The Hager Scholars arrive at Georgetown with a diversity of language interests and experiences, so in the program they are both students and teachers,” said Sue Lorenson, Vice Dean for Undergraduate Education and a member of the Hager Scholars faculty. “From the get-go, they’re learning to make connections between linguistics and theology, literature and culture, history and philosophy — all through the lens of language.”

APPLY

Further information on the Georgetown College first-year seminar programs, including student testimonials and application instructions, can be found here.