Loyola University Maryland offers a several living-learning options for you to bring your classroom experiences together with life in your residence hall. Designed to allow students to get to know each other better and extend thought-provoking classroom discussions, the most popular of these options include:
Alpha Program
The Alpha Program offers interested freshman students an opportunity to weave together the heritage of the liberal arts and the Jesuit tradition in freshman seminars that cultivate four critical habits: careful reading, academic writing, scholastic conversation, and living the examined life. Small in size, these seminars are taught by members of the Alpha faculty in a format designed to expand the intellectual horizons of students through lively discussion, academic reading and writing, extra class meetings, off-campus and interdisciplinary activities, and participation in a campus program of Alpha lectures. The faculty teaching Alpha seminars also serve as core advisors.
Alpha sections are offered in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, mathematics, and business. A limited number of sections are offered in the Spring Semester for students who wish to continue the Alpha experience through the second semester of their freshman year.
Collegium
Collegium enrolls 72 first-year students who are housed together on the eighth floor of Campion Tower. These students are divided into three groups with the members of each group enrolled in two of their five regular freshman courses together. Members of Collegium are also enrolled in First-Year Experience (FE 100), with the class meetings distributed over the Fall and Spring Semesters. As part of this program, students become well-acquainted with a group of people and still have the opportunity to meet others outside of the program. An important goal of Collegium is to create an environment that is conducive to learning, encourages academic discussions, helps students feel a sense of “belonging” at Loyola, and facilitates an enjoyable social and co-curricular life.
First-Year Experience (FE 100)
The First-Year Experience Seminar is designed to help students get the most out of their college experience and make a smooth and successful transition to college. Informal and lively class discussions, group interactions, field trips, and presentations by instructors and guests help to introduce first-year students to the expectations of college instructors and the values inherent in the mission and core of the College; inform the students of the services available to support their academic and cocurricular experiences; and provide opportunities for critical thinking, community service and community building in an enjoyable setting. Many of the class meetings take place outside of the classroom and include excursions into Baltimore.
Each course is team-taught by a faculty member (usually the student's core advisor), a member of the Student Development administration and a student leader- all of whom are committed to helping first-year students get the most out of their Loyola experience.
Members of these three communities are placed in residence hall floors with students with whom they share classes.
Other living-learning options include:
Experience Baltimore – Coming to Loyola also means coming to Baltimore—your new home for the next four years. The Experience Baltimore communities for first-year students help acquaint students with the sights and sounds of Baltimore. Students will have the opportunity to visit a variety of Baltimore’s diverse neighborhoods and will learn about the strengths and challenges facing our city. Through cultural trips, service projects, and meeting the people of the city, students will learn how they can truly experience Baltimore and become good neighbors. Students who sign up for Experience Baltimore will live in a traditional, double-style residence hall.
First-Year Substance-Free Community – The transition to college can be overwhelming and exciting at the same time. Loyola offers substance-free housing to help students make the transition to Loyola in a friendly and welcoming environment. This double-style substance-free living community is for those students who genuinely desire to live in an environment where all residents and their guests agree to keep the area free of all alcohol, drug, and tobacco products. Residents agree to create an environment in which they are respectful of one another and, as a result, foster a living atmosphere that is respectful of healthy lifestyles. Members of the community also have the opportunity to work with their resident assistant to plan activities and outings that promote a positive community and deep relationships. In addition to offering a substance-free community, Loyola also offers a substance-free room option to students who would prefer to have substance-free roommates in another type of residential setting, themed community, or living-learning program.
Honors Themed Community – The Honors themed community is home to students who seek a supportive residential setting in which debate, intellectual inquiry, and learning through diverse experiences are the order of the day. Both students in the Honors Program and students not in the Honors Program join this community to share and discover the life of the mind. The Honors themed community features common spaces that can be used for social activities and group study, trips to Baltimore's great cultural and historical landmarks, and opportunities to meet with faculty members to discuss common interests, academic passions, and current events. Students in the Honors themed community will live in a traditional, double-style residence hall.