Graduate Cohort Program
What is a cohort?
A 鈥渃ohort鈥 is a small number of students鈥搃n this case, usually 6-10 students鈥搘ho are placed in a group together. These students will participate in the Cohort program together, building the academic, social, leadership and cultural skills necessary to be successful in an American university.
In Graduate CAP, the Cohort curriculum is adapted so that it meets the advanced needs of a student who plans to pursue a master鈥檚 or doctoral degree in the U.S.
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Purpose of Cohort
The purpose of the Cohort is:
- To help students to develop strong bonds of trust among fellow cohort members
- To provide a more seamless transition to full-time university life
- To ensure that the linguistic, academic, and cross-cultural skills that are developed at the ELI will continue to be used by the students throughout their entire academic career.
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Who is part of Cohort?
- Students who have听obtained听a conditional admission听to the 91原创 or to any of our partner universities or colleges at graduate level;
- Students who have听applied听for conditional admission听to the听91原创 or to any of our partner universities or colleges at the graduate level; and
- Students who plan to attend university after completing their ESL coursework (optional).
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Faculty Advisors & University Student Mentors
Each cohort is assigned a faculty advisor and a student mentor. They assist the students with developing the knowledge and characteristics that are necessary for university success鈥揵eyond language skills鈥搒uch as:
- Developing an attitude that values the learning process as much as the learning product (grades, diploma)
- Building meaningful cross-cultural relationships
- Understanding the University鈥檚 institutional culture
- Using the University鈥檚 resources creatively and effectively
- Learning different facets of being a leader
- Developing a passion for volunteerism through service learning activities
Mentors help students with learning beyond the classroom environment. They will lead students through a series of progressively challenging academic, social, and service activities that increasingly immerse the students into all dimensions of university life.
For example, cohort members and their American mentor will join clubs, do community service, and discuss the content of interesting books together. They will develop close relationships that will become an important part of the Graduate CAP students鈥 educational experience.
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Cohort Retreat
Developing strong bonds between members of each cohort is of critical importance for this program.
In order to help the students to begin that process, we organize an initial weekend getaway (i.e.,a retreat) during the students鈥 first session of study. This retreat will focus on team-building activities, helping the members of the cohort to get to know each other and to learn to support and encourage one another.
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CAP Connect Course
Students will spend several hours each week working on a series of progressively challenging academic, social, and service tasks that increasingly immerse the students into all dimensions of university life.
These courses are given in collaboration with other departments at the 91原创 (e.g., Admissions, Residence Life and Housing, the Center for Counseling and Student Development, Office for International Students and Scholars, Academic Enrichment, etc.).
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Focus on personal, academic & team development
Each cohort will focus on activities for self-development, academic development, and team development. The students will undertake tasks that will:
- Require more intensive, extensive, and sustained听reading听with the outcome of greater student ability to听analyze and synthesize information听both in written and oral forms with active discussion involvement;
- Develop their听awareness听of self, abilities, interests, future goals and possible pathways;
- Develop their听leadership and conflict management skills听while experiencing cooperative learning and living with others;
- Create active, purposeful听connections听with the members of the university community, academic services, advisors, and professors;
- Create ELI听partnerships听across the campus and larger community of Newark and Delaware.
The focus of Cohort is to help the students with three different types of development: self-development, academic development, and team development. To that end, the program unfolds in phases:
Phase 1
Students enter Phase 1 when they arrive at the ELI and enter the beginner or intermediate levels of study (Level 1 through Level 4). They will focus on developing the skills such as those below during approximately two hours, three days per week.
Self-Development | Academic Development | Team Development |
|---|---|---|
Fundamentals of effective leadership Learning Styles Journaling/Blogs Time Management Thinking about my major Student services and counseling center workshops Word processing, PowerPoint, workshops | University awareness Mini-fair of Registered Student Organizations (RSOs) Plagiarism workshops from ELI and 91原创 faculty Study skills workshops from Academic Enrichment Center Intensive Reading /Book Clubs (cohort members reading the same fiction and nonfiction books) Course Observation with reflection and follow-on Q/A with faculty | Retreat Campus 鈥淪cavenger Hunts鈥 Service Learning Groups Weekly Team planned events Peer mentoring Clubs and Intramurals Cultural Events Guest Lectures |
Phase 2
Students enter Phase 2 as they enter the advanced levels of study at the ELI (Levels 5 and 6). They will focus on developing the skills such as those below during approximately 1-2 hours, 3 days per week.
Self-Development | Academic Development | Team Development |
|---|---|---|
Practicing effective leadership Strengths 2.0 Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test (MBTI) Journaling/Blogs Networking Choosing my major Roommate etiquette Cultural etiquette Clubs, intramurals Student service and counseling center workshops Workshops with the Office for International Students and Scholars (OISS) Residence Life and Housing Workshops and RA Panel Workshops: Clickers, Canvas | Learning university culture (asking profs questions, class participation, asking questions in class) Minoring/Double Majoring Panel Discussions
Plagiarism workshops from E110 profs Study skills workshops from Academic Enrichment Center Workshops: Reading, Listening, Note-taking Portfolio development Library orientations Course/Lab Observations | Retreat Campus 鈥淪cavenger鈥 Hunts Service Learning Groups Weekly Team planned events Peer mentoring and mentoring of those in lower levels Conferences |