Learning Communities
Our learning communities are an excellent way to connect with other students who share similar interests or academic majors with you. You’ll forge new and lasting friendships as you work together toward common goals with members of Rider’s faculty and the staffs of student life and residence life.
Freshman Year Experience (FYE) Program
Conover Hall & Poyda Hall
FYE gives freshmen residents a bridge between the University’s formal academic programs and our rich out-of-classroom learning and development activities. Residence Life, Campus Life, and the members of the FYE Advisory Board collaborate to provide FYE residents with personal attention, programs, and interventions that promote the success of first year students. As a member of the FYE community, each semester residents will be required to participate in four (4) in-hall programs and a one on one meeting with their CA. FYE in Conover Hall and Poyda Hall is open to all first year residents.
The International Community
Gee Hall
Open to all students, including freshmen, Gee Hall brings together international and domestic students to share customs, work on developing cross-cultural communication skills, improve their foreign language skills, and promote respect and friendship among individuals of all nations and backgrounds.
Wellness Community
Olsen Hall (A wing only)
The Wellness Community is for students who desire an environment focusing on health, wellness, fitness and recreation. Programming focuses on developing a wellness lifestyle, and its members agree to maintain a smoke-and alcohol-free environment. It is open to all students, including freshmen.
All-Women's Residence Hall & The Wright Hall Learning Community
Wright Hall
Open to all female students, this community promotes empowerment for women through programming and service directly related to women's issues in health, beauty, safety, media, history, politics, and culture. Special programs focus on the particular needs of women in America and the world.
Academic & Honors Learning Communities
The following learning communities require a specific academic designation. If you are an approved member of BHP/CBA Honors, CBA E.D.G.E, SLC, PLC and FPA, select no LLC. You will automatically be able to select spaces in these learning communities during the room selection phase.
Baccalaureate Honors Program (BHP) Freshman Learning Community and Norm Brodsky College of Business Honors Freshman Learning Community
Ziegler Hall
NOTE: Freshman BHP and Business CBA Honors majors are given pre-selection priority status for selecting rooms in the BHP learning community.
This Freshman learning community fosters intellectual growth and a social community among students who enroll in Rider's BHP-100: Great Ideas I - the gateway course in the Baccalaureate Honors Program (BHP). Students share challenges and opportunities with classmates who are studying with the same texts, doing similar assignments, and participating in some of the same co-curricular events.
Norm Brodsky College of Business’s Learning Community
Ziegler Hall
The Norm Brodsky College of Business’s Learning Community incorporates cohort learning with community living. Open to Freshman business majors, the Business LLC program fosters intellectual and social growth. The learning community incorporates the “Business in Action” program—a hands-on learning experience where students are provided starting capital to develop and execute a business concept. Read more information about the Business LLC.
Communication & Journalism Learning Community
Longstreet House
This community in renovated Longstreet House brings academic and social programs directly to the place where our majors live - it is a hub for students interested in communication, film, TV & radio, graphic design, journalism, public relations and sports media.
Membership: Open to freshman majors in the Department of Communication, Journalism, and Media.
Activities are designed to bring students and faculty together outside of the traditional classroom through interesting films, guest speakers, trips and career-building workshops as well as informal social gatherings.
Events are also coordinated with dynamic and award-winning extracurricular organizations, including The Rider News, the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), The Rider University Network (RUN), the Bronc Radio Station, Lambda Pi Eta communication honor society and the Tapestry, A Blending of Cultures program.
Fine Arts Learning Community
Lake House
Lake House is the creative hub for freshmen enrolled in the School of Fine and Performing Arts. State-of-the-art practice rooms and a keyboard lab also allow music instruction and mentoring to occur where students live and learn. Additional practice rooms are also located in Kroner Hall.
Psychology Learning Community (PLC)
Poyda Hall (2nd floor)
Open to freshman psychology majors, this learning community offers students the chance to interact with faculty and participate in psychology-related programming and activities that focus on student success. The RA is an experienced psychology major and upper-level majors will serve as mentors.
NOTE: First-year psychology majors are given pre-selection priority status for selecting rooms in Poyda Hall