First-Year Interest Groups (FIGs)

Find Your Path
Find Your People

First-Year Interest Groups (FIGs) are for students who only want a fall term experience. FIGs are between 5-9 credits (at most half of a full time schedule). FIGs are intentionally small to maximize the interconnectivity between students, faculty, and the peer mentor, with each FIG being limited to 20 students.

Each FIG is unique and tailored to explore an exciting academic theme while helping students acclimate to campus both academically and socially. There are seven themes to choose from, and with over 55 FIGs offered each fall, there is something for everyone!

FIGs engage students inside and outside of the classroom. Take a trip to the Portland Zoo to get hands-on field experience in the Animal Behavior FIG. Create art that channels and challenges pop culture, then display it at the Annual Critical Art Show in the Remixing Media, Critiquing Culture FIG. Become an apprentice anthropologist by recording the traditional ecological knowledge encoded in hunter-gatherer storytelling – then leave your mark by submitting your project to an online encyclopedia of oral traditions in the Talking Stories FIG.

95%

of FYE students in fall 2021 said they would recommend taking a FIG.

1 in 2

eligible first-year students enroll in a First-Year Experience.

How do FIGs Work?

Fall 2023 FIG Options