Services

TRiO SSS students receive the following services:

• academic support and advising
  • planning coursework
  • choosing and preparing for a major
• resources for career planning
• weekly supplemental study classes attached to challenging college courses
• financial aid counseling
• personal counseling and support
• learning communities (required of all CEHD freshmen where students take two courses with the same classmates and faculty)
• leadership development, social events, and community service opportunities
• some scholarship/grand aid funding is available to current SSS participants who are receiving federal Pell Grants

Admissions

TRiO SSS Admissions

TRiO SSS participants are selected from a pool of students who have applied to the University of Minnesota and who meet the following program eligibility criteria:

• Low to moderate family income
• First-generation college student (neither parent has a bachelor's degree)
• Have a disability (learning, physical, medical, or psychological)
• Show evidence of academic need

Admission decisions are based on an overall assessment of the application by a team of admissions and TRiO SSS staff. If admitted, the Admissions Office will send students a letter of acceptance to the University, the College of Education and Human Development (the college in which the program is housed), and the TRiO SSS program.

CET Admissions

In addition to the criteria listed above, CET students are selected from a pool of American, immigrant/refugee and permanent resident students for whom English is not their first language. Students typically selected for the program meet the following additional criteria:

• Scores less than 18 on the ACT English test or less than 420 on the SAT Verbal, or;
• Is an immigrant who is a permanent resident with less than eight years in U.S. school systems.

Note: Potential CET students who meet admission and eligibility criteria but for whom we need additional information to determine program fit, may be required to take the MN Battery test offered at the University of MN.

The Admissions Office will notify students if they are required to take the test. The cost of the MN Battery test is paid for by the College of Education and Human Development.

CET is not for international students.

Registration and Financial Aid

You will register for classes during your required University orientation session the summer prior to your first term at the University.  Advisers will help you register for courses that are appropriate for your individual needs and goals.

Majors outside of the College of Education and Human Development

Students work with an adviser on developing a plan that will prepare them for their major, whether it’s in CEHD or another University college.  Students usually apply to their major in the second year of college.

Financial Aid

Contact the University Office of Student Finance.  You can also apply for federal financial aid.

Curriculum

Course options for TRiO SSS students are similar to those for all college freshmen in the College of Education and Human Development. All freshmen participate in the First Year Experience program which includes a First Year Inquiry course (PsTL 1525W) during fall semester and a Learning Community in spring semester.  The CET academic experience is enhanced through small class sizes and tutors in writing classes.

Students may also choose from other courses such as biology (PsTL 1131), psychology (PsTL 1281), sociology (PsTL 1211), math (PsTL 1006), and literature (PsTL 1366 or 1368).  Students enrolling in biology or psychology may take supplemental Integrated Learning courses with other TRiO SSS students.

CET students will take a two-semester sequence of freshman composition, WRIT 1201 and 1301, taught by experienced and accomplished instructors of multilingual students. Additionally, they will take an editing for writers course (PsTL 1051) and an oral communication course (PsTL 1461).

First Year Experience Curriculum:

• Fall 2011 FYI descriptions
• Spring 2012 Learning Community descriptions