Cañada College First-Year Experience Program

What is the Cañada College First-Year Experience Program? The Cañada College First-Year Experience Program is designed to help first-year students succeed in college. You will take English, Reading , Math or English as a Second Language courses with a College Success or Career & Major Exploration Class with the same group of students and instructors. This gives you the opportunity to make friends, study together, and receive personalized attention from professors and an academic counselor.

How do I know if I should enroll in the program?

If you answer “yes” to any of the following questions, the program is right for you:

Are you looking for ways to succeed in college?
Do you want to transfer to a four-year university?
Are you undecided about what you want to do and would you like to explore different career options?
Would you like to meet new friends?
Would you like personalized support from your professors?
Would you like to learn about opportunities to get more involved in campus clubs, student government and more?
Would you like to improve your skills in note-taking, test-taking, time management and organization?

We've provided some links below so that you can explore the program in more depth. We encourage you to take some time to read about the experiences of students enrolled in the program and how professors and academic counselors have seen this program help students successfully transition to college. If you decide the program is for you, contact Kathy Sammut at (650) 306-3447 or e-mail sammut@smccd.edu. We hope to see you next semester!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a learning community? Learning communities are two classes with the same group of students in both classes.

Do I have to register for both classes? Yes. You need to register for both classes in order to be a student in the FYE program.

What will FYE do for me….why should I enroll? FYE is fun and informative. It offers the following:

Field trips to 4-year universities
Extra counseling and tutorial support
Information about degrees, majors & transfer
Special events and seminars on topics such as financial aid, careers and majors, etc. These events are only open to students in the FYE program.
An opportunity to be awarded an FYE Scholarship.

How many students are in FYE? Approximately 100 – 125 students participate in FYE each semester. Many of these students have gone on to take leadership roles at Cañada, and have transferred to 4-year universities. There are eight faculty in the program. Four instructional faculty (English, Reading Math and ESL), and four Counselors, all of whom are strongly committed to helping students succeed.

I need to improve my study skills. Will I get help in this area? Yes. One of the goals of the FYE Program is to assist students with study skills and student success strategies such as note-taking, organization and time management.

Testimonials

Noel Chavez, student - “The First-Year Experience helped me meet new friends to study with which helped me succeed in class. I also learned how to get involved in student government and clubs.”	Kate Millington, student - “I liked the fact that my academic counselor was part of my English class. Most students are afraid to see a counselor and this made it much easier. I am from the Czech Republic and my English isn't perfect but now I'm a successful nursing student.”
Gloria Darafshi, counselor - “Fifty percent of all college students drop out after their first semester. This program helps students get through that difficult first semester and ultimately succeed in college. As a counselor, I appreciate the fact that I can monitor students in a classroom setting to see where they might be having trouble.”	David Clay, English professor - “This is one of the best programs I've seen to help students succeed. Because students take courses together they are able to make friends and find people to study with. They also have an academic counselor sitting in class with them. I firmly believe all first-year college courses should be organized in this fashion.”
Michelle McLaughlin, student - The FYE helped me feel at home and comfortable at the school. After the first few classes, I felt like I was part of Cañada. Taking classes with the same people makes a huge difference. I knew a bunch of my classmates and everyone was really focused on school and everybody wanted to transfer to a four-year college or university. It was really encouraging how serious people were about school.”