First Year Seminar: Common Text

Each year, Saint Michael’s College chooses a common text to be read and discussed by the incoming class of new students. All first-year students are asked to read the book over the summer prior to arriving on campus. A panel discussion of the book is held during Orientation in late August, and each First-Year Seminar discusses the book at the start of the fall and spring semesters.

The Common Text for Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 will be announced soon!

Summer Assignment

Students will be asked to write a response to the Common Text. Check your SMC email in early August for your writing assignment instructions. They will be sent by your First-Year Seminar instructor and will typically be due the first day or first week of classes, though the assignment details and exact deadline may vary between sections. (Note: All first-year students should read the Common Text over the summer, regardless of whether they will take their required First-Year Seminar in the fall or spring semester. Students in spring seminars will get their assignment over the winter break between semesters, but they should still read the book over the summer.)

Three essays by faculty responding to the book will also be posted on the SMC portal by the end of July. You will receive an email informing you when they are available. Your FYS instructor will expect you to have read the essays and may ask you to incorporate responses to them into your own essay about the book.

For more information, contact:

Kristin Dykstra
Director, First-Year Seminar Program
Distinguished Scholar in Residence
Saint Edmund’s Hall 345
802.654.2801
kdykstra@smcvt.edu

Past First-Year Seminar Common Text Selections