Frequently Asked Questions

How do I participate in Freshman Academy?

How do I select a learning community that best fits me?

How does housing work with Freshman Academy?

How does my AP, transfer, or concurrent enrollment (CE) credit work with Freshman Academy?

Can I drop one course from my community's envelope of classes?

How does BYU's Honors program work with Freshman Academy?

If I have joined Freshman Academy, can I withdraw?

Other Questions?

Freshman Academy/BYU Terms

How do I participate in Freshman Academy?

For your convenience, we have outlined a series of steps that must be completed in order to participate in Freshman Academy; each step has accompanying explanations so you can clearly understand the overall process. Please click the "Joining FA" menu link above to begin the process.

How do I select a learning community that best fits me?

Selecting a learning community is an essential step for Freshman Academy students because it will not only define where they live, what classes they take, and which students they will interact with everyday, but it could potentially define a student’s educational career. Take time to read our Understanding Learning Communities page and thoroughly explore the Learning Community Options before completing the Freshman Academy registration process.

To receive further guidance, we encourage students to call our office 1.801.422.6284 or toll-free 1.877.890.5451 to speak with a Freshman Academy representative. In addition, we encourage students to talk with an academic advisor. Each college on campus has an advisement center. The University Advisement Center is available for consultation as well.

Learning communities are designed to provide students opportunities to explore possible majors and/or take introductory courses specific to some majors. All communities include classes which help students fulfill university core requirements.

How does housing work with Freshman Academy?

Fall and Summer

As a major part of Freshman Academy's living-learning structure, Freshman Academy works closely with BYU's On-Campus Housing office to place students near others in the same learning community. Each living-learning community has been assigned specific rooms or apartments in On-Campus Housing. Once a student has been officially enrolled in classes in a learning community, he or she can use the On-Campus Housing room selection process to choose a bed in their living-learning community area.

If a student decides to switch to a different on-campus community, he or she must also select a new bed within the area of his or her new community. Students should be aware that if they drop their Freshman Academy on-campus learning community, they will lose their housing room placement. In addition, a student’s Freshman Academy application does not constitute an application to On-Campus Housing. Students are encouraged to apply for housing early since there is limited space in the residential areas.

Winter

During winter semester, Freshman Academy learning communities are not living-learning communities with a connection to On-Campus Housing.

How does my AP, transfer, or concurrent enrollment (CE) credit work with Freshman Academy?

Although some prospective Freshman Academy students with college/AP credit might be limited in their community options, Freshman Academy is designed to meet major as well as university core requirements. As such, students with incoming credit will still find that they have many options within the Freshman Academy program.

Before choosing a Freshman Academy learning community and envelope, students with incoming credit should consult the university's AP credit evaluation information and/or the transfer evaluation information so they might know which BYU courses, or General Education requirements they have already fulfilled. It would also be wise for students to look through their Major Academic Plans (MAPs), and University Core options, and speak to an advisement center in order to determine which courses they need. Doing these things will give students valuable information which will act as an important guide to selecting a Freshman Academy community that best matches their needs.

The university strongly recommends that all students take a first-year writing course at the university. If you have AP credit for English, you may want to consider taking an Honors first-year writing course (Engl 150H, Phil 150H, or Honors 150).

Students should be aware that even if they receive AP credit for one of the classes in their learning community and decide they do not need the course, they will still not be able to drop that class unless they drop all the classes within their envelope.

We encourage students to call the Freshman Academy office with further questions (1.801.422.6284 or toll-free: 1.877.890.5451).

Can I drop one course from my community's envelope of classes?

Community is strengthened and the individual student experience is enhanced when a student is fully engaged in all aspects of the learning community. In registering for an envelope of classes within a learning community, students are committing to enroll in all classes within the envelope.

Dropping one course will drop all envelope classes from the student's schedule and remove them from the Freshman Academy program. This condition applies whether a course is fulfilled with transfer or AP credit, a conflict exists with desired courses outside Freshman Academy, or for purely personal reasons: students may NOT drop one course from their envelope and remain in their learning community. The student's housing accommodations will also be affected if they had selected an on-campus learning community.

How does BYU's Honors program work with Freshman Academy?

Although the Honors Program and Freshman Academy are distinct and separate programs at BYU, they collaborate in a variety of ways to enhance the student experience. Many students, anticipating a rigorous university education, prepare themselves in high school by taking AP/IB courses and by embarking on programs of individual reading and study. They are ready for more advanced classes, and they enjoy the challenge of more difficult subject matter. These are the students for whom the Honors program was developed. In the fall semester, Freshman Academy has a strong Honors component, offering several Honors designated learning communities for students who seek a slightly more rigorous first-year experience and have adequately prepared themselves.

In addition, many non-Honors learning communities also contain Honors classes which fulfill University Core and/or Honors first-year writing requirements. By choosing one of these options, students can participate in and benefit from the advantages of both programs.

Students interested in graduating with University Honors should be aware that the program requires an Honors first-year writing course, regardless of AP credit (options are Engl 150H, Phil 150H, and Honors 150).

Like Freshman Academy, Honors is an open enrollment program available to all BYU students. To learn more and see further Honors program requirements, please go to the Honors homepage or contact them via phone at 801.422.5497.

If I have joined Freshman Academy, can I withdraw?

Dropping from Freshman Academy varies in complication depending on the time of withdrawal. Please refer to the steps to joining Freshman Academy if you are unsure as to what you have completed. If you have simply submitted an application to Freshman Academy and desire to withdraw, you must contact our office to remove your application. If you have completed the entire process of joining Freshman Academy (you have been registered for Freshman Academy classes and selected a room in housing), you will need to contact our office, drop your Freshman Academy envelope of classes, and make a new room selection if you were enrolled in an on-campus learning community.

Considering these potential complications, we strongly encourage students to make use of the available resources to make an informed decision as to their participation in Freshman Academy. We encourage students to contact our office with questions or concerns to avoid any misunderstandings. Students may contact our office by email at frac@byu.edu or by calling our office 1.801.422.6284 or our toll-free number: 1.877.890.5451.

Freshman Academy/BYU terms

AIM
Aims of a BYU Education
BYU ID
Credit Hour
Envelope
Freshman Academy Application
Freshman Academy
First-Year Writing
Habits of the Mind
MAP
MyMAP
Net ID
NSO
Learning Community
Peer Mentor
Priority Registration
Route Y
Semesters and Terms
University Core