University of Michigan - Michiganensian Yearbook (Ann Arbor, MI)

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each year, in order to keep the number of students small and maintain its interper- sonal reputation. Once a student is in the RC, they must take a freshman seminar, which is equiv- alent to the freshman English require- ment. However, seminars offered by the RC are more diverse and involve teaching students about subjects they might not or- dinarily study. Also, students must successfully com- plete a proficiency test in a foreign lan- guage and take a reading seminar in that language. When RC students arrive for orientation, they take a placement test in either French, Russian, German or Span- ish. Depending on how well the student does, he or she is placed in either Intensive I or Intensive II classes for that language. Some students do place out of both semes- ters altogether, but no student can place out of the reading seminars. All must pass a proficiency test. The only remaining requirement is an arts practicum which can be fulfilled by participation in the RC Singers or RC Players. Other classes can be taken to fulfill this requirement, including pottery and beginning drama. The classes in the RC are much smaller than the average LS A course that a freshman might take their first semester. Classes are taught by professors rather than teaching assistants. Another aspect of the RC of interest to incoming students is the grading system. Students receive either a pass or fail in their RC courses, accompanied by a written evaluation from the instructor. As- signments are often graded with remarks by professors, and students meet with them regularly to go over assignments in- stead of receiving traditional grades. The RC isn ' t just an academic system, however. The impression an incoming stu- dent receives from the RC ' s brochure is that it was really designed to combine aca- demics with a living arrangement. The RC tries to achieve a sense of community around East Quad. Residential College students must live in the dorm for their first two years as a requirement to stay in the program. Stu- dents become well acquainted with others in their classes, since they see them every- day. Classes for the RC are usually held in East Quad, so students don ' t have to travel far. The counselors ' offices are also locat- ed in East Quad, to facilitate students ' access to help. The RC not only offers different classes to its students, but special programs open to all students in East Quad as well. The RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE Special announcements for RC students Ed Winheld RC sponsors a writers-in-residence pro- gram, where students have a chance to meet and talk with writers of novels and poetry in an informal setting. Every year, the RC invites writers to come and talk to students in various writing classes. They also have a reading or discussion at night in the Benzinger Library in East Quad, so that other students ca n be exposed to the writer ' s work. Some of the authors are well known, while others are not as established. In addition, there are the aforemen- tioned extra-curricular activities, the RC Singers and Players. The Singers are a choral group that allows students to re- ceive credit toward their arts practicum requirement. Students rehearse and per- form choral works from the 1 7th Century to the present. They also learn the histori- cal significance of compositions and com- posers. The Players serve relatively the same function, but some plays they stage are written by students. The RC Players group is not a class, however. The Players club is open to all East Quad students, according to the RC brochure, and involves students in acting, directing, set building and ad- vertising. Of course, the true test of a successful program is the response of its students. Most students who are part of the RC view it favorably. As sophomore Amy Brown put it, There ' s nothing like it anywhere else. RC students, she said, find excellent facilities within a big university setting, and find courses unique to the college of special interest to them. Brown expecially liked the flexibility of receiving evalua- tions instead of grades and the fact that it isn ' t necessary to major in an RC concen- tration. Carin Corser, another RC sophomore, agreed with Brown and also said that RC students have a closer relationship with professors. She liked the liberal attitude around the RC, but was quick to point out that the RC is not as liberal as people tend to think it is. Both women liked living in East Quad, and Corser thought that East Quad residents tend to be more open- minded and tolerant of others ' opinions. continued on page 138 Special Programs 137

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University ' s Special Programs Provide Personal Setting, Individual Attention By Sheri Pickover The University of Michigan consists of several large, separate schools, including Literature, Science and the Arts, Natural Resources, Art and Music. Within these larger areas are smaller, specialized pro- grams that give students an alternative to the typical classroom environment. In LS A, three of these special pro- grams cater to students who want a small- er, more personalized situation: the Resi- dential College and the Integrated Pre- Medical Medical Program (Inteflex). The Pilot Program serves students who wish to be treated as individuals. All three were designed to help lighten the loads of the larger schools and students. Residential College The Residential College, or RC as it is affectionately known, began in 1967, and is housed in East Quadrangle. It was cre- ated out of faculty concern that the uni- versity was becoming too big to address all the needs of its students. The faculty also wanted a place to experiment with cur- riculum, according to Razelle Brooks, as- sistant to the director of the Residential College. Brooks has been with the RC since its inception. The curriculum does differ from LS A in that the RC is geared heavily toward the liberal arts, and is designed as a four-year undergraduate program. Brooks said the RC courses deal with interdisciplinary studies, and students can major in differ- ent subjects within the RC. Majors include Arts and Ideas, Social Science, Interna- tional Studies, and Creative Writing. One concept that is unique to the RC is that students may choose individualized concentrations, according to Brooks. In this program, each student creates his or her own major and three faculty members of the RC oversee fulfillment of the major. Requirements for the RC are quite lib- eral. Any student who has been accepted into LS A can enter the RC provided they do so within a set time frame. The RC does restrict how many students they let in The Residential College is housed in East Quad. Ed Winfield 1 36 Special Programs va o RC A pkii onei ei!!i ft COK lor iora ;trs on: i P r n ut :ari: Plai RC LSi

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continued from page 137 Inteflex The Integrated Pre-Medical Medical Program, or Inteflex, is a seven-year medi- cal program offered jointly through LS A and the medical school. It is housed in East Quad, with Residential College students and some Honor stu- dents. The program began in 1972 and had its first graduating class a few years ago. Inteflex originally was designed to edu- cate physicians who are scientifically com- petent, compassionate, socially conscious and can apply insight from humanities and social science into their medical career, according to Helen Olson, an academic counselor at Inteflex. Swamped with chemistry, physics, and biology books, it appears that medical stu- dents have a constant look of fatigue on their faces. But in actuality, Inteflex stu- dents do not immerse themselves in sci- ence to the exclusion of other subjects. Olson said that Inteflex was designed as an effort in integrating medical students with a liberal arts and humanities educa- tion. Inteflex students tend to take more humanities courses than regular pre-med students. Inteflex students do not have to struggle for top grades. They must only maintain a 2.00 average which relieves some pressure with which the average pre-med students must contend. In fact, Olson said that In- teflex students are encouraged to double- major, preferably in a science and in hu- manities. She added that Inteflex students Bob Kalmbach Inteflex students receive instruction on bone structure. can take more academic risks, because they don ' t have to worry about crawling to the top of the heap. Olson said students greatly enjoy the security Inteflex offers them. They are al- ready into medical school and don ' t have to worry about taking entrance exams later. As first year Inteflex student Lisa Reeves said, there is less pressure here than there would be to compete with other pre-med students. Inteflex also offers stu- dents smaller classes and more accessibility to professors. Students live in East Quad, which is an- other advantage to the program. Reeves said, You can just go down the hall and work on assignments together with other Inteflex students, adding that counselors also tend to be a bit more attentive to students. She said that she often receives calls from counselors, and Olson added that they keep in touch with the students fre- quently to make sure they are doing all right. This arrange- ment is convenient for students because Inte- flex offices are also located in East Quad. Inteflex students are housed intentional- ly with Residential College students. Ol- son explained that the Inteflex students need to be exposed to a liberal arts atmo- sphere, just as RC students need to be exposed to science. Olson felt that the two groups tend to balance each other, and certainly make East Quad an interesting place to live. Requirements aren ' t excessively diffi- cult. Students must have a 3.50 grade point average and a minimum score of 1200 on their SAT exams to get in. Ac- cording to brochures the Inteflex Program suggests that prospective students should have a solid background in math and sci- ence and at least two years of a foreign language. All students accepted into LS A and meet the above requirements can apply to Inteflex, but only 44 students are accepted each year. Of those, only 20 percent are from outside Michigan. Once a student has been admitted to Inteflex, their course load begins with a chemistry sequence, a physics sequence, a course in introductory biology, and a freshman seminar. Inteflex students take some courses that are not available to the regular pre-med students, such as an intro- duction to patient care. By the time a stu- dent finishes the first few years of his or her studies, they go through clinical clerk- ships and their classes are almost com- pletely involved in medical training. Bob Kalmbach Labwork gets equal time. 138 Special Programs