leadership, mentoring & study skills

UNT provides programs that will help you learn how to study, address academic problems and develop your leadership skills. UNT can also connect you with a mentor who can give you advice about college and about your future.

Study skills

The Learning Center is a dynamic network of academic and student support partners with the goal to assist students in achieving academic success. The programs and partnerships include:

• Reading and Study Skills Lab - a non-credit course that develops academic skills such as textbook reading, studying, note taking, test taking, goal setting and time management.
• Speed Reading - training to improve reading rate while maintaining or improving comprehension.
• Supplemental Instruction and Supplemental Tutoring - free peer tutoring in difficult courses. (Students meet in small, directed groups to discuss and clarify class material.)
• Volunteer Tutors - outstanding UNT students helping students with lower-level courses.
• Connecting for Success - a referral service linking students to other academic support and resources throughout the university to help with specific academic problems.
• Online Tutoring - free, interactive tutoring.
• Academic Resource Library - books and computer-assisted instruction, including preparation for graduate school admissions exams, TOEFL, CLEP and THEA.
• Learning Success Workshops - training to enhance skills in studying, note taking, goal setting, and time management.
• Academic Success Programs - workshops and individual meetings designed to help students concerned with their academic performance.

Discovery

The Discovery program is designed to help undergraduate students meet the challenges of college. The program provides free tutoring and academic, career and personal counseling for selected students until they graduate from UNT. To qualify for Discovery, you must:

• have parents or guardians who do not have four-year college degrees
• show economic need as determined by the U.S. Department of Education or have a physical disability or a learning disability
• an academic need for services as defined by federal guidelines
• be a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident

If you qualify for Discovery, you will take a study skills assessment test and will receive information on the financial aid available at UNT. Meeting with tutors or study groups, you will learn how to study effectively and how to overcome test anxiety. Subject areas include business, computers, economics, English, government, history, languages, mathematics, sciences and statistics. You will have access to the program's mathematics and writing labs, a state-of-the-art computer lab, and study rooms in the Discovery office. The office also has many books on careers and study skills.

Many Discovery students say the program offers them a sense of community on campus. Discovery provides several social events each year for its students including a recognition ceremony each spring to honor its students’ achievements.

Leadership

The university offers Eagle Leadership Programs that are open to all students on campus. The Leadership Office provides a variety of services, programs and events to help students develop leadership.

You can also develop your leadership skills through volunteering. The Volunteer Center maintains a database of community groups that are looking for volunteers. After you complete a questionnaire, the center carefully matches your goals and interests to several volunteer opportunities in the community that you can choose from.

Community service and leadership development is a core value of Greek life. You may consider getting involved in any number of Greek organizations on campus for leadership development. The Volunteer Center is located in the University Union, Room 324, or you may contact the center by phone at 940-565-3021.

The buddy system

This program makes the adjustment process for first-year UNT students a little easier. The Buddy System peer mentoring program focuses on academics, leadership, cultural issues, social life and community service. The program pairs new UNT students with upper-class students of the same gender, ethnicity and major to assist the new students in building study skills, understanding scholarship and financial aid information, planning a career, and participating in campus life.

The Buddy System provides entering students with information on UNT academic resources and student services, referrals to appropriate programs, and general encouragement and motivation. The program gets new students involved and helps them establish connections at UNT.

Mentoring

Freshmen looking for a head start on their academic and social experiences can attend Eagle Camp, a two day retreat that introduces new UNT students to UNT traditions and fosters new friendships. After Eagle Camp, students have more friends and feel more comfortable starting the school year.

First Year Experience (FYE) is a program designed to assist new students in their personal, academic, and social transition to UNT. This is accomplished through personal contact and programs provided by the FYE Leaders. FYE provides a valuable link to campus resources to help students find success in their new campus community.

The Student Success Mentoring Program connects faculty, staff, and "seasoned" UNT students with first-year students to help ease the transition into college life.

Deferred scholars

Students not qualifying for admission to UNT can be eligible for deferred admission, provided that they enroll and complete 12 transferable, core courses at another institution with a 2.5 minimum GPA and participated in three student success programs during the course of that semester. For information about this program, contact the Office of New Student Programs at 940-565-4198.