Complex Problems

The 鶹Ƶ Core First-Year Seminar

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Complex Problems Seminars

Complex Problems Seminars, taken in the fall or spring of your first year at 鶹Ƶ, use real-world problems or enduring questions to cultivate your intellectual flexibility for future work at the university and beyond. Each of these small, 3-credit seminars is taught by a leading, full-time professor at 鶹Ƶ and offers opportunities to consider a variety of perspectives and practice scholarly methods of inquiry. The seminars include unique co-curricular experiences, sending you off campus or bringing area experts to the classroom to foster connections among ideas and experiences. In each seminar, a Program Leader (a sophomore, junior, or senior student) partners with your instructor to provide academic and social support, and to encourage classroom, community, and campus engagement.

Find Your Seminar

Browse thecatalog of seminar descriptionsbefore registering for Complex Problems. The detailed descriptions allow you to find an available seminar that sparks your curiosity, speaks to your passions, or challenges you to consider new ideas.

Complex problems article

Finding Their Voices Through Complex Problems

Part of the 鶹Ƶ Core curriculum along with 鶹Ƶ Experience, Complex Problems facilitates difficult conversations and moves students into an inquiry-based model.

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Complex Problems Seminars

See the for detailed informationabout the upcoming seminars.

CP Communities

Students at UC welcome event

University College (UC)

Take CP with 鶹Ƶ's oldest and largest living-learning community. Course number:CORE-107.

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First-Year Advising Team

The Examined Life

Taught by a faculty cohort, these seminars have a shared syllabus and opportunities for student collaborations. Course numbers: CORE-105, CORE-106.

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鶹Ƶ Honors

First-year 鶹Ƶ Honors students take CP along with a 1-credit experiential learning course. Course number: CORE-106.

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DCIS

DC Community Impact Scholars (DCIS) studentstake a CP seminar and research labfocused on community-based learning.Course number: CORE-106.

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Enrollment Links


Schedule of Classes

First-Year Students
Learning Communities
First-Year Advising

Transfer Students
Transfer Student Homepage
Academic Advisors

Learning Outcomes

You will have the chance to demonstrate all of the following learning outcomes in your Complex Problems seminar. The topical nature of these seminars means that you will engage with the learning outcomes in the context of the course.

A.Complexity.Identify and engage with complexity (or gray areas) within issues or contexts by explaining the factors influencing different positions

B.Multiple Perspectives.Use multiple perspectives to refine your understanding of an issue or context

C.Awareness.Investigate the sources of your own groups’ norms and biases

D.Civility.Demonstrate civility through argumentation or intellectual exchange

A.Audience.Identify the audience to make choices about how to communicate your ideas

B.Sources.Integrate materials or sources to develop and refine your ideas

C.Organization.Use organizational strategies to develop a clear purpose or aim

A.Summary.Summarize an author’s or authors’ message, main points, and supporting ideas

B.Response.Engage with a “text” by responding to it

C.Conversation.Put “texts” into conversation with other “texts”

A.Feedback.Incorporate feedback from faculty, staff, or peers in subsequent work

B.Metacognition.Practice metacognition by reflecting on feedback and your revision processes

A.Connect.Connect experiences and academic learning

Student Experiences

Amelia Rowniewski Photo

Amelia Rowniewski, a first-year public health major at 鶹Ƶ, delivered a presentation titled 'Bite Sized Nutrition Banter' at the Mathias Student Research Conference on April 6th. The research delved into the awareness levels among 鶹Ƶ college students regarding the nutritional public health implications of wasted food. This project stemmed from her final assignment in the Fall 2024 Complex Problems course, 'Food for Thought: Why Waste?'.

鶹Ƶ graduate Abby Kleman

“I thoroughly enjoyed the Complex Problems course because I was able to spend time with my classmates, whether we were volunteering, exploring museums, or having meaningful conversations about a topic we were all interested in.”

– Abby Kleman, Class of 2022