Enhanced Academic Experience

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University Scholars have the opportunity participate in a unique four-year co-curricular program that supplements their individual courses of study. This program allows students to pursue long-term projects of their design, and it connects them directly with faculty, policymakers, and innovators outside of campus.  By the time they complete this program, each University Scholar will be able to show potential employers, as well as graduate and professional schools, specific evidence of their capacity to think critically, to work with a team, and to generate innovative solutions to real-world challenges.

Year 1 New University Scholars work together to develop a unifying theme.

Year 2 In the week prior to the fall term, students participate in the University Scholars Institute. Students travel to relevant sites in the National Capital Region, meet with experts and practitioners, and work with Mason faculty to develop a better understanding of this topic.

Year 3 University Scholars design and pursue their Third-Year Projects – ranging from research projects to service projects, entrepreneurial plans to creative exhibits and performances – that relate to the class them.

Year 4 The University Scholars host a symposium based on their theme, sharing their work with the University and featuring a keynote speaker of their choosing.

Highlights from the University Scholars Institute – Fall 2011

The Class of 2014 selected a fascinating topic for their Fall Institute – Failure. The aim of the week:  to better understand why ideas created by even the smartest people and projects started with the best intentions sometimes end in disaster. Along the way, each participating University Scholar developed his or her own working theory of failure.

These students read relevant works across a variety of disciplines and participated in seminars led by an impressive slate of guests. Keynote speakers included:

• The Hon. Deborah A.P. Hersman, Chair, National Transportation Safety Board.
• Adm. Thad Allen, US Coast Guard (ret.).
• Thomas Coleman, Office of Financial Agents / Office of Financial Stability, Department of the Treasury

Chairwoman Hersman also arranged for students to tour the NTSB Academy in Ashburn, Virginia — a visit highlighted by the students first hand experience with the rebuilt fuselage of TWA 800, which the NTSB uses for training purposes.

Mason faculty and staff also contributed: Provost Peter Stearns led an opening seminar, and President Alan Merten joined in mid-week. Other Mason participants included:

• Dr. Len Adelman, Prof., Systems Engineering & Operational Research, Volgenau School of Engineering
• Dr. Daniel Houser, Professor & Chair, Department of Economics & Director, Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science
• Dr. Patricia A. Maulden, Assistant Professor of Conflict Resolution, School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution
• Dr. John O’Connor, Associate Professor of English, Director of Higher Education Program
• Dr. James Olds, Director, Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, Krasnow University Professor of Molecular Neuroscience
• Dr. Tim Sauer, Professor of Mathematics