Office of Academic Advising
The Office of Academic Advising is located in the Lower Level of the Adams Libraryand supports all Exploring majors, First-Year Intended Nursing majors, First-Year School of Business majors, First-Year Intended Medical Imaging majors, and First-Year Elementary/Early Childhood Education majors. The office assists students with course registration, adding/dropping courses, short and long-term planning, academic program selection, and academic coaching. They also connect students to the proper resources, including faculty; help students create and assess academic, personal and career orientated goals; and encourage students to get involved on campus. Additionally, the office utilizes Starfish in order to schedule appointments, create engagement within the campus community, and connect students to the appropriate resources.
Academic Success Center
The Academic Success Center provides academic support programs and services that assist and enhance academic excellence and success for all students. The Center offers a multitude of learning and tutoring services, programs and activities that support student learning, academic coaching and development. The Academic Success Center is located in the lower level of Adams Library and comprises of peer subject tutoring, the Math Learning Lab and the Writing Lab. Tutorial services offers peer tutoring in subject areas including but not limited to biology, chemistry, history, psychology, sociology, social work, time management organization, test preparation for course work and for national exams such as GRE, PRAXIS, SAT, and ACT. The Math Learning Lab provides tutoring in mathematics and administers the math placement exam. The Writing Lab provides students the chance to connect with a writing specialist.
Academic Success Center. Services include instruction and tutorial help for reading comprehension, note taking, and test preparation for admission and certification testing for the Feinstein School of Education and Human Development. Assistance with tests required by the School of Nursing is also available. The Academic Success Center works closely with The Disability Center to offer academic counseling and learning strategies to students who learn differently or have disability-specific needs.
Adams Library
The Library (https://library.ric.edu) offers a welcoming environment to support the intellectual and cultural diversity of our campus. Library faculty and staff assist users at the reference and borrowing services desks and by phone, email, text and chat (https://ric.libanswers.com). Library faculty collaborate with college faculty to create library instruction for specific courses focused on the discovery, use and evaluation of library resources and information on the web.
The Library is located at the heart of campus, and is open 80 hours per week during the academic year. Students will find a variety of spaces to meet their needs including collaborative study spaces, individual carrels and tables for independent study. A floor dedicated to silent study is located on level 2. The Curriculum Corner is housed on level 4 and provides instructional material and curriculum development resources for teachers and teacher education programs.
Print collections include more than 203,000 books and 503 journals. The library also has a collection of government publications, a DVD collection of films and documentaries, and a variety of music CDs. Electronic collections include over 439,000 e-books, 117,000 e-journals, and a diversified selection of 111 databases. Remote access is available to all electronic resources. In addition to our collections, students can borrow laptops, iPads, external hard drives, graphing and business calculators.
The College Archives, a rich depository of the history and records of Rhode Island College, as well as faculty and alumni publications and student theses, are located in the Special Collections Department. Special Collections includes a number of subject collections consisting of papers, books, manuscripts and other resources that document the state’s education, ethnic and socio-political history. A growing number of student theses and honors projects, faculty publications and Special Collections materials are also accessible electronically in the RIC Digital Commons.
The Library is a member of the HELIN (Higher Education Library Information Network) consortium, which consists of 7 academic libraries, where the RIC community has on-site access to collections and reciprocal borrowing privileges with their RIC ID. Library users may request items from other libraries via interlibrary loan using our online catalog.
Career Development Center
The Career Development Center serves students and alumni in the career planning and job and internship search process. The Center also offers assistance with applying to graduate school, including help with writing the personal statement.
Individual counseling sessions are offered at the Center, along with TypeFocus, an online system that helps students examine their values, skills and interests to reach informed decisions about a major and career. Workshops and programs are offered to help students develop competitive job search skills and strategies (e.g., résumé and cover letter writing, effective interviewing, LinkedIn accounts and networking).
Many resources are available 24/7 online, such as job and internship postings and information about career fields. Employers seeking full-time, permanent and part-time employees and interns connect with students through the Center’s career management tool, Handshake. Student employment (work-study and non-work-study) jobs available both on- and off-campus are also managed through the Center.
Current students and alumni may post résumés, view jobs/internships and access the center’s online library with RIC's career management tool, Handshake (https://www.ric.edu/alumni-online-job-portal-handshake and https://ric.joinhandshake.com/login). Additional tools available to students include Portfolium, an e-folio platform that translates classroom and experiential learning into workplace skills and highlights them for employers to view and Big Interview, an online system for job interview preparation. Please visit our website at https://www.ric.edu/department-directory/career-development-center for additional details and resources. The Career Development Center is located in Adams Library.
Center for Scholar Development
The Center for Scholar Development encompasses four key programs that are designed to support the academic and personal development of Rhode Island College students: Preparatory Enrollment Program, Student Support Services, McNair Scholars, and Upward Bound. These programs are specifically designed to create educational pathways in an affirming environment for first generation scholars in their pursuit of post-secondary success.
Disability Services Center
Qualified students with disabilities at Rhode Island College are entitled to receive reasonable and appropriate accommodations, auxiliary aids, and services that provide equal educational opportunities and facilitate meaningful access, in accordance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (as amended), the Fair Housing Act, and related federal and state laws. The Disability Services Center (DSC) is the College’s designated agent for determining eligibility, facilitating access, and coordinating accommodations for all undergraduate and graduate students.
The DSC provides accommodations and support services to students with disabilities to facilitate full and meaningful participation in all educational opportunities at the College. Students requesting adjustments, modifications, or services related to a disability should register with the DSC to determine eligibility. Relevant and current documentation from a qualified professional is required to establish a non-obvious disability and disability-related need for accommodations. The DSC is also available to advise any student who needs information about how to obtain proper documentation of a disability. Accommodations are determined on an individualized, case-by-case basis and may include auxiliary aids and services or policy modifications appropriate to address the disability-related barrier experience by the student.
As a unit of the Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the DSC also promotes the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in all aspects of college life, and endeavors to make students aware of the many opportunities and resources available to them at Rhode Island College. The DSC recognizes disability as a form of diversity and is the primary resource to educate, train and guide the college community in understanding disability access, rights and responsibilities. The DSC not only serves as an advocate for students with disabilities, but also encourages students toward self-advocacy and self-determination.
For more information, visit www.ric.edu/disabilityservices or contact the DSC by phone at 401-456-2776, by email at dsc@ric.edu, or in-person in Fogarty Life Science, Room 137.
Persons using TTY/TDD devices may contact the Disabilities Services Center via Rhode Island Relay Services by dialing 711.
Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning
The Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning (FCTL) promotes the professional growth and development of faculty as teachers and as scholars of teaching and learning. It cultivates a public dialogue about teaching and learning across disciplinary lines and strives to build a professional community among teachers at Rhode Island College. The FCTL serves faculty at every stage of their professional lives in order to support a campus-wide culture committed to inclusive excellence in teaching and learning. The FCTL is by faculty, for faculty. We offer opportunities for faculty members to talk about what they are doing, share strategies and stories, and learn about various teaching pedagogies including active/engaged learning, online and hybrid teaching teaching, and culturally responsive teaching. In addition, the FCTL offers support for designing courses, syllabi, class discussions, assignments, and assessments of learning outcomes. For more information about the FCTL and our offerings visit our website at https://www.ric.edu/academics/our-faculty/faculty-center-teaching-and-learning.
Help Center
The Help Center provides comprehensive support for computer and printer problems along with a full complement of IT equipment and support for classroom instruction. The Help Center also assists conference planners with presentation media.
Information Technology Services
The Office of Information Technology Services provides Information Technology resources to assist and educate the Rhode Island College Community. Information Technology Services supports the use of technology to promote communication, learning and access by providing services in the following areas:
• Classroom Technology
• MyRIC Portal (Student Information System)
• Microsoft 365 (Office 365)
• Blackboard Learning Management System
• Campus Telephones and Networking Systems
Information Technology Services maintains the college’s large walk-in computing facility for student use, located in the Adams Library, where Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh desktop computers are available, as well as electronic classrooms in over 15 buildings. In addition, hands-on instructional computing facilities are located in:
• Alger Hall
• Alex and Ani Hall
• Clarke Science Hall (under renovation)
• Craig-Lee Hall
• Gaige Hall
• Guardo Hall (School of Social Work)
• Fogarty Life Sciences
• Henry Barnard School
• Nazarian Center
• Whipple Hall
Our goal is to enhance the student experience. We can assist with all technology services through a single inquiryl to the Information Technology Services Help Center at (401) 456-8803, RIC Service Center System, or in Gaige Hall 150. This one-stop shop for technology will provide support for desktop computers, laptops, phones, networking, wireless, printing, multimedia, MyRIC, Blackboard, and all other college applications, as well as technology training and classroom support.
Learning for Life (L4L)
Learning for Life (L4L) is an office of the Student Success Division that helps retain RIC students by providing them with case management services to overcome obstacles they encounter in their lives while working towards their academic goals.
L4L’s case management support is provided by trained peer mentors and focuses on helping students identify and problem solve barriers to academic and personal success, assess the type of assistance and resources needed, develop or strengthen their support system, navigate and access on- and off-campus resources, stay on track with identified goals, overcome obstacles in accessing help, proactively address problems/stressors to avert more serious difficulties, and explore their personal strengths and self-care strategies. L4L also oversees the college food pantry to help alleviate food insecurity among our students. Contact Learning for Life at https://www.ric.edu/department-directory/learning-life or l4linfo@ric.edu.
Adult Education and Workforce Development
Professional Studies and Continuing Education offers adult education and workforce development programs that provide academic enrichment, professional training and employment opportunities for adult students.
Programs are developed with campus, government, community and industry partners to address workforce development needs and to train individuals seeking to enter employment or to increase their employment options. Non-credit and credit based courses are combined in many programs to provide students with expanded opportunities for continuing college study.
PSCE programs include a variety of content and experiential learning components that prepare students for successful employment. Subject content for industry-specific training is combined with applied clinical and laboratory experiences and an internship in an industry setting. .Allied training is provided in job readiness and job search skills, and students prepare a full portfolio of targeted résumés. Industry-specific remedial adult basic education study and English as a Second Language are provided as needed.
New Student Programs
The Office of New Student Programsassists students and families during their transition to RIC through New Student Orientation and educational programming during their first year. Mandatory for all incoming first-year and transfer students, New Student Orientation is offered during the summer and winter break. In addition to New Student Orientation, the Office of New Student Programs hosts the Anchors First Program, a programming model designed to engage first-year students in the co-curricular life of campus and to support academic success through topics such as community building, health & wellness, goal setting, career readiness, money management, and academic success.New Student Programs also provides leadership and employment opportunities for current students having completed at least one semester at RIC.Through the Orientation Leader and RIC-100 Peer Mentor positions, students gain valuable experience in leadership, communication, and teambuilding.
Contact New Student Programs at orientation@ric.edu or 401-456-8439.
Partnerships and Placements, Office of
In cooperation with academic departments within the Feinstein School of Education and Human Development, the Office of Partnerships and Placements is responsible for securing field placements and maintaining partnerships with school districts.