Academic Life

CURRICULUM
The summer curriculum includes academically intense, college-level courses in English Composition, World Civilization, Psychology, Mathematics, Statistics, and a combined class emphasizing Critical Inquiry, Library Usage and College Study Skills.  Selected students will be offered courses in biology and engineering.  All classes are taught and students are evaluated by the same academic standards and procedures as first-year UB undergraduate students.| See Course Descriptions

INSTRUCTORS
The Summer Program curriculum is structured around an academic theme by which students begin to see the overlap, the distinctions and the continuity of their courses, thereby enhancing their ability to think critically and function at higher cognitive levels. The theme for the Summer 2008 Institute will be announced shortly. The summer faculty meets during the spring to coordinate their readings, discussions, research, assignments, and course activities so that they are in concert with the summer academic theme. Summer Program instructors are typically University at Buffalo teaching staff, local college instructors or advanced level high school teachers. Many students may find that their instructors will continue with them in their classes in the Fall.

CLASSES
Students are scheduled to attend classes daily (Monday - Friday) from 8:30am to 5:00pm. for the three (3) week duration of the Summer Program. The Center for Academic Development Services will supply all books for classroom activities. (Note: Promptness and regular attendance at classes are directly related to successful academic performance. To ensure success during the summer program, you must attend all classes, tutorial sessions and meetings with your CADS counselor).

TUTORIAL ASSISTANCE
CADS Summer Program tutors attend each class and work directly with course faculty. Tutors are available to assist you with homework assignments and to answer questions you may have regarding the material covered in class. Tutorial sessions are mandatory. Please take advantage of this service, as you will be able to grasp the material more accurately and completely.

STUDY and TUTORING HOURS
At a minimum, students are required to study, get tutored or work in the computer lab from 6:00 to 9:00 pm Sunday – Thursday.  This period should be spent studying, reading and completing assignments or working with tutors. During this time, students should be respectful of others and all noise should be kept to a minimum.

COMPUTER SUPPORT
All CADS Summer Program participants will receive the Microsoft Toolkit - a package of Microsoft's most popular software. You'll use this software for, among other things, writing papers, making databases and spreadsheets, designing your web site, and creating PowerPoint presentations. Additionally, students have free, unlimited high-speed access to the Internet and e-mail accounts. Each residence hall room is wired with Ethernet data ports to give you a super-fast connection to the university's computing facilities, and several public and departmental computing labs will be available during the summer. | Learn more about computing

RECREATION
A wide range of social and recreational events are available during the Pre-Freshman Summer Program. While some events are mandatory (e.g. summer picnic), others are optional. A calendar of special events and activities is included in the CADS Summer Program handbook. Students are asked to sign up in advance for all optional activities. Your Resident Counselor (RC) will provide additional details regarding activities and sign-up procedures.