Foundations

The Foundations phase of the Core Curriculum is where your college journey begins. In this stage, you’ll build the academic skills essential for success in college and beyond.

What You’ll Do

Through these courses, you’ll strengthen your writing, quantitative reasoning, and ability to navigate your academic journey with confidence:

• First Year Seminar (FYS)
• Writing as Thinking (or equivalent English composition competency)
• Decision Making with Data (or equivalent mathematics competency)

First Year Seminar: Cultivating a Meaningful Life

Your Core Curriculum experience begins with First Year Seminar: Cultivating a Meaningful Life, which is a course designed to support your transition to college and help you build a strong foundation for success.

Built around Aurora University’s mission to empower students to achieve lasting personal and professional success, FYS introduces you to the skills, resources, and experiences that will shape your academic journey, personal development, and the roles you’ll play in your community and the world around you.

In FYS, you'll

• Develop habits of inquiry and collaboration.
• Practice critical thinking, reading, and writing.
• Connect with classmates, faculty, and campus resources.
• Reflect on your interests, strengths, and how you relate to the world around you.
• Begin shaping your personal, academic, and professional goals.

Through guided workshops, self-assessments, and campus experiences, you’ll gain the tools and confidence to navigate college successfully with support from dedicated AU faculty and staff. They will be a guide as you explore key questions and issues while applying your developing skills through thematic readings and discussions connected to their areas of expertise. You’ll also be encouraged to engage with the broader Chicagoland community through events and learning opportunities that extend beyond the classroom.

Writing as Thinking

In Writing as Thinking, you’ll learn to approach writing as a way of thinking that can shape writers, audiences, and communities. Through a process-based approach, you’ll build the foundational skills needed to engage in authentic research, writing, and multimodal communication in college, your career, and your community.

Building on the reflective and collaborative work introduced in FYS, this course prepares you to communicate thoughtfully and effectively across a range of academic and real-world contexts.

Decision Making with Data

In Decision Making with Data, you’ll develop the skills to use data and observations to make informed decisions through algebraic thinking and quantitative reasoning.

With a focus on practical application and knowledge, you’ll learn to apply mathematical evidence, methods, and models to real-world questions and challenges in academic, professional, and everyday contexts.