ACADEMIC EXPECTATIONS Academic integrity, honesty, fairness and responsibility in our scholarship and personal lives form the bedrock on which our UK experience is built. You will significantly enhance your success at UK as a student/scholar by meeting the following academic expectations and accompanying behaviors.
1. Attend and prepare for all classes.
3. Create and respect relationships.
If you are a full-time student, treat your student status like a full-time job, devoting at least 40 hours per week to homework, study and classes.
It is your responsibility to build relationships with people (professors, advisors, students) who will support you in reaching your goals.
Be open to incorporating new study behaviors that will help you reach your goals.
Each semester, introduce yourself to your professors to begin building relationships.
Examine old habits that may inhibit your success as a student and be open to changing them.
Each semester, connect with your academic advisor at least once in addition to your priority registration appointment.
It is up to you to read and understand assigned material; lectures and assignments proceed from the assumption that you have prepared for class.
2. Reflect on and apply what you learn. College is a learning environment in which you take responsibility for thinking through and applying what you learn. Mastery is often seen as the ability to apply what you have learned to new situations or to solve new kind of problems.
4. Expand your education beyond the classroom. Take advantage of opportunities outside the classroom that will enrich your education and college experience. Investigate these possibilities with your academic advisor, professors, student leaders and other professionals on campus.
5. Believe in your ability to succeed. Develop a growth mindset. Stretch and challenge yourself academically and personally, knowing that hard work, grit and effort are the keys to success. Believe in yourself and be persistent in utilizing campus resources and online tools. Maintain positive behaviors and attitudes that will help you reach your goals.
FIRST YEAR:
FOUNDATION The University of Kentucky community cares about your success as a college student and is dedicated to helping you reach your goals. The Blueprint is a series of milestone programs and steps, that once completed, will build a solid foundation for your college experience. Visit the listed websites or call for more information.
BLUEPRINT MILESTONE PROGRAMS
“see blue.” U www.seeblueU.com; 859-257-3256 Making the transition to UK is a two-step process that begins with your “see blue.” U Orientation and continues through K Week in August. As a part of your “see blue.” U Orientation, you will begin the academic transition to UK by completing placement exams, meeting with your academic advisor and registering for your first-term classes. Additionally, you will interact with current UK students; learn how to get involved in activities and organizations; be introduced to academic expectations and strategies for success in the classroom; and have all your questions answered by representatives from across campus. We also invite your parents and guests to be a part of “see blue.” U to learn about your transition to the Wildcat family and how to best assist you in your journey through college.
Awareness & Prevention Programs To support your well-being as a student and to strengthen the overall campus community, UK offers a variety of prevention initiatives including AlcoholEdu and Haven.
AlcoholEdu
Haven
www.uky.edu/substance; 859-257-9687
www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/VIPCenter; 859-257-3574
AlcoholEdu is a confidential, online substance education course. The course uses science-based research to educate you about alcohol and its effects. Whether you drink or not, the course will help you make informed decisions about alcohol and better deal with drinking behavior that may occur around you. The course consists of two parts, both of which must be completed to satisfy this requirement. Campus and AlcoholEdu staff will never see individual student surveys or responses.
Federal law requires that colleges and universities make students aware of policies and resources related to sexual assault and other forms of interpersonal violence. UK has chosen Haven, an online violence prevention curriculum, as a tool to ensure that you receive this information.
You will receive an email in mid-July notifying you that Part I is activated and you may begin the online program. Part I will be available for approximately five weeks, although it usually requires only about two hours to complete. Forty-five days after your successful completion of Part I, you will receive a second email notifying you that Part II is activated and available for you to complete. Students who do not complete this required online program will have a hold placed on their spring semester registration.
The program provides you with useful information and helps shape a safer UK campus community. Prior to the start of the fall semester, you will receive an email prompting you to complete the web-based violence prevention program. About 45 days later, you will receive another prompt to complete a brief follow-up survey. Students who do not complete this mandatory program will have a hold placed on their spring semester registration.
Common Reading Experience (CRE) www.uky.edu/commonreading; 859-257-6597 Each year, a group of faculty, staff and students select a common book for all new UK students to read during the summer months. You receive your CRE book, Picking Cotton, during “see blue.” U. Read it utilizing a reader’s guide and then complete a brief assignment that is submitted and discussed during K Week. In addition, a number of fall semester courses incorporate the book into their curriculum. Reading and reflecting upon the common book helps immerse you into the university’s academic community as you exchange thoughts and ideas with your peers, faculty and upperclass student leaders. You have an opportunity for further academic discourse about the book’s themes during numerous programming events (including a campus lecture by the author) throughout the first year.
K Week www.uky.edu/kweek; 859-257-6597 Kick off the beginning of the school year with K Week, your crash course in life as a UK student! K Week is UK’s official welcome week that begins the weekend before the start of the fall semester. Opportunities abound for you: meet new people, including other new students, upperclass student leaders, faculty and staff; participate in programs and events that help you learn how to make the most of your first year on campus and beyond; attend academic and information sessions, including your college orientation, to receive tips on student success; experience UK traditions; learn how to get involved in a student organization; and enjoy free food, giveaways, music and more. As a part of K Week, new students are placed in K Teams, small groups led by K Crew upperclass student leaders. As a K Team, you will attend K Week events together and be able to get your questions about UK answered.
College Meetings Contact your college if you have questions. Attend scheduled college meetings, the first occurring during K Week.
UK 101 (General and College-Specific Sections Offered)
www.uky.edu/UK101; 859-257-6597 UK 101 is a first-year orientation course that is strongly recommended for students. The course helps you transition to and engage in University life, build a strong foundation of academic success and embrace opportunities that promote intellectual and personal growth. Numerous college-specific, living-learning community and general sections are offered. The course is co-taught by a faculty or professional staff member and an upperclass peer instructor and the small class size allows you to get to know your classmates and instructors. The one-credit-hour UK 101 course meets for the first 11 weeks of the semester and the two-credit-hour option continues for the full semester.
Student Success Workshops www.uky.edu/studentsuccess; 859-218-1561 Workshops on academic success, career exploration, finances and many other topics are offered throughout your first year. Visit the “see success.” website for a schedule.
Academic Majors Fair www.uky.edu/studentsuccess; 859-218-1561 The Academic Majors Fair, hosted each fall semester, provides you the occasion to inquire about academic majors at UK. Information gathered from the fair assists you in making educated decisions on declaring, adding or changing your major and/ or minor and placing you on a successful and timely path toward graduation. You can explore opportunities within UK’s undergraduate colleges; faculty and staff from each of the colleges are available to answer questions from program requirements to related career opportunities. Learn more about enhancing your educational experience through participation in programs such as National Student Exchange, Education Abroad, the Academy for Undergraduate Excellence, and the Career Center.
BLUEPRINT M I L E STONE
Download UK Mobile App and myUK App.
Read your K Book, the student handbook written by students for students.
STEPS
Check your UK email and K Feed frequently to look for messages from your college, academic advisor and the university.
Connect with your academic advisor at least 2 – 3 times per semester.
Complete Common Reading, Picking Cotton and assignment.
Create an OrgSync account and find an involvement opportunity of interest to you.
Complete AlcoholEdu and Haven.
Create a Wildcat CareerLink account. Create a Wildcat CareerLink account at seeblue.com/wildcatcareerlink
OrgSync, offered by the Office of Student Involvement, is an online platform that allows you to check out UK’s over 550 student organizations as well as service and leadership opportunities.
Wildcat CareerLink is an online career management tool that includes many features to help you in your career journey. Use it to learn about Career Center events, career exploration, internships, practice interviews, resumes, job opportunities and more.
Visit www.orgsync.com; click on “Sign Up”; choose your community (University of Kentucky); and log in with your link blue ID and password. You will be prompted to create a profile and then you can look at everything our community has to offer!
Your college may also offer career services; check with your academic advisor.
Develop a four year plan of study with your academic advisor.
Embrace campus academic resources.
Ask a librarian for research help.
UK research shows that students who fully utilize campus resources achieve higher GPA’s than those who do not. Go to www.uky.edu/StudentSuccess to learn about many of UK’s academic resources such as The Study; UK Libraries; Presentation U; Media Depot; The Writing Center; Mathskeller; Disability Resource Center; CARES; Student Support Services; CATS; 1st Gen Initiatives; Financial Ombud; Academic Ombud and Career Center.
Research is a process that you learn little by little, year by year. Librarians can assist you through this process by showing you new places to look for information and providing different ways to think about and refine your topic. Many of you will have library research assignments through UK 101 and CIS/WRD courses. When you need assistance with these or other research assignments, ask a librarian for help!
Check midterm grades through myUK.
Check your student financial account.
You are responsible for your student account and any charges or credits posted. It is important that you check your student account regularly to be sure that all of the financial aid that you expect to receive is processed. Just visit myuk.uky.edu and click on the financials tab. Monthly billing statements will be directly emailed to your official UK email address, so check it often. If you have questions about your financial aid, please set up a meeting with your financial aid counselor at myuk.uky.edu
Complete CATS survey.
Priority register for the next semester through myUK.
Check final grades through myUK.
FIRST YEAR