The Archway Seminar: College 101

by Meghan Winchell 

The Archway Seminar (AWS) will prepare your student for new academic challenges. It’s their first-semester course on succeeding in college. 

Every AWS explores an engaging topic from several perspectives. And while the topics they examine are wildly different, each seminar builds the same set of valuable academic skills. Students work together on a project to build collaboration, research, writing and critical thinking skills. Your student might complete a much-needed project for a local nonprofit or write a comic book for a campus audience. No matter what they do, they’ll learn essential communication skills along the way. 

Each AWS is small and tight-knit, with around 18 students who are already familiar with each other. That’s because their Prairie Wolves Welcome group from orientation becomes their AWS class roster. 

Their AWS professor will serve as their academic advisor until they declare a major. That means they’ll always have an advisor who knows them well and understands their goals. This course will introduce them to the Career Center and help them understand potential majors and which courses to take next. They’ll also learn where to go if they need a tutor or want to study abroad. 

Whether your student’s AWS studies ethics in science, Egyptology, or pop culture, the foundation they build will help them make the most of their entire Nebraska Wesleyan experience. 

Meghan Winchell is associate provost of integrative and experiential learning.