English Second Language (ESL)
ESL Written English sequence focuses on the special needs of non-native speakers of English, offering additional practice in reading comprehension, vocabulary development, grammatical accuracy, and conversational and compositional “fluency.” The ultimate goal of these sections is to provide ESL students with the tools they need to produce written and spoken work that conforms to the standards applied to their native English-speaking peers. As in regular sections of English 1301 and 1302, a final grade of C- or above is required for successful completion of the ESL sections.
Hilltop Scholars (HSP)
The Hilltop Scholars Program (“HSP”) is a residential community for approximately 175 SMU first-year students. We invite students to join the program based on the strength of their academic credentials and their demonstrated leadership experience in high school. Hilltop Scholars live in Perkins Hall and Smith Hall and take 3 of their classes during their first year with other Hilltop Scholars. Living and learning with other dynamic first-year students makes the Hilltop Scholars community an engaging and exciting place to start your SMU career.
The New Century Scholars Program
The New Century Scholars Program (NCSP) is a residential learning community of approximately 80 first-year SMU students. Similar to the Hilltop Scholars Program (HSP) and the University Honors Program (UHP), students are invited to join based on academic achievement. While the program does have an academic component and recruits high-achieving students across all majors, the program also has a particular focus on community engagement and personal responsibility. Wellness and the Written English series, which the students take together, provides the scholars an academic outlet for exploring the program’s focus on community involvement and the importance of personal responsibility. The group is almost entirely student led with the students investigating, proposing, and selecting community outreach activities that they are interested in participating in. The New Century Scholars Program not only fosters an interest in the community, while creating student leaders, but it also provides an outlet for students to appreciate the value of personal, social, and civic responsibility.