Overview
Student-Faculty Interactions are a Priority at the University of Denver
The University of Denver offers a dynamic learning environment that prizes innovation, cross-disciplinary exploration, and adventurous learning partnerships between students and faculty. Whatever their major, students are groomed to excel in their life's work and to confront the great issues of the day.
With a student-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, University of Denver students enjoy meaningful -- and sometimes life-changing -- interactions with faculty mentors. That relationship begins in the first quarter of study, when students enroll in a first-year seminar, capped at 15 students and focused on a topic derived from the research interests of the faculty member. Throughout the one-quarter seminar, students are introduced to the rigors and rewards of university-level inquiry. Just as important, faculty mentors help students negotiate everything from time-management challenges to university procedures.
This rewarding relationship with professors continues through the University of Denver undergraduate experience, with students collaborating with faculty members on research projects, fieldwork, and creative endeavors. Natural sciences students, for example, may work alongside scientists from the prestigious Eleanor Roosevelt Institute as they conduct some of the groundbreaking research that promises improved therapies -- and perhaps even cures -- for genetic diseases and disorders. Meanwhile, engineering students can participate in a faculty-led effort to design and develop exercise equipment for people with disabilities.
The University of Denver Provides Excellent Creative, Research, and Study Abroad Opportunities
At the University of Denver School of Art and Art History and the Lamont School of Music, students join world-renowned artists in exploring the transformative possibilities of creative endeavor. Transformative possibilities are also on the agenda at the Josef Korbel School for International Studies, whose alumni include a former secretary of state and a former president of the U.N. Security Council. There, students prepare for problem-solving careers in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors of global society.
To support hands-on learning, the University of Denver sponsors Partners in Scholarship (PINS), a grant program that funds student field studies, research projects, and creative efforts. A PINS project might study the effects of post-election violence on women and children in Nairobi, the plight of juvenile offenders in Colorado, or the impact of French political theater. At year's end, students share their research and findings at a much-anticipated special symposium for their peers.
The University of Denver Undergraduate Research Center sponsors additional research opportunities through summer research grants that underwrite student/faculty collaborations. While most partnerships involve one-to-one work with a faculty member, students can choose to work with professors from more than one discipline.
Once they have completed their first two years of study, University of Denver students are encouraged to participate in one of the university's signature programs: Cherrington Global Scholars. This for-credit program aims to send every eligible junior and senior abroad for at least a quarter of study. The University of Denver believes so strongly in this opportunity to expand understanding, foster connections, and cultivate the habits of global citizenship that it ensures that qualifying students pay no more for the experience than they would for a quarter spent on campus.
Nearly 75 percent of all University of Denver students participate in study abroad programs, studying everything from economics in Budapest to engineering in Australia. Along the way, they immerse themselves in different cultures and perspectives, seeing how the rapidly globalizing world shares challenges and opportunities. The university budgets about $10 million each year in support of this outstanding program, which ranks DU second nationally for the percentage of students who study abroad.
University of Denver Students Take Action for Positive Change
Outside the classroom, University of Denver students have plenty of opportunities to put ideas and ideals into action. For example, through initiatives such as Project Homeless Connect, which works with the city of Denver's pioneering effort to dramatically reduce homelessness, students learn about some of the pressing challenges facing communities. Each spring, Project Homeless Connect enlists hundreds of University of Denver student volunteers in an effort to help homeless individuals access services and necessities, such as health care and counseling.
In addition, various organizations offer leadership opportunities that give students a chance to catalyze and support positive change to campus and community. For example, by participating in the university's Sustainability Council, students helped spearhead a campus-wide recycling initiative and an inventory of campus-generated greenhouse gases.
Action-oriented and eager to contribute, University of Denver students play a vital role in a learning and research community dedicated to improving the human condition.
