First-Year Development

First-year students are assigned one of many supportive University community members including an academic advisor, student success coach, resident assistant, orientation team leader, faculty advisor and a resident director, just to name a few.

Our First-year Mentor Program provides a unique opportunity for new students to have someone to talk to, to hang out with or to just vent. Mentors in this program are qualified University employees who are genuinely interested in your wellbeing and are particularly accessible. Mentors coordinate study breaks, informal outings and other social events for their mentor group. Most importantly, however, they are available simply to help you with the variety of things that could come up in your first year of college.

Interested in having a mentor? First-year Development will be happy to assign you a mentor. Look for more direction during First-year Advising Summer Transition (FAST) and First-year Orientation or please feel free to reach out to us at Freshman Development and we will assign a mentor to you.

Our First Year Advisory Council is a group of freshmen who meet with the Director of Freshman Development biweekly throughout their first year. Students provide feedback to the Director concerning current freshmen needs.

Members of the executive board plan service projects for the First Year Students. Examples of these projects are:

• Volunteer at Night of Lights
• Family Weekend
• Heritage Week
• Founders Week

Member of the executive board plan social events for the First Year Students. Examples of these events are:

• Class Ski Trips
• Zoo Trips
• End of the Year cookout
• Pirate Games
• Kennywood
• Movie Nights
• Painting Nights

Join your fellow first year students on these weekend trips to discover cultural, entertainment and recreational attractions in the Pittsburgh region. The fun includes:

• Pittsburgh Pirates games
• Kennywood Park
• Pittsburgh Zoo
• Tours of Pittsburgh
• Fright Night at Kennywood
• Discounted Movie Tickets

If anyone has any suggestions for next year programs, please contact Freshman Development.

Phi Eta Sigma is a national honor society whose goal is to encourage and reward academic excellence among freshmen in institutions of higher learning.

Phi Eta Sigma was founded at the University of Illinois on March 22, 1923 at the University of Illinois.  Today the national honor society has than 375 chapters throughout the United States and more than 1,100,000 members.

Phi Eta Sigma obtained membership into the Association of College Honor Societies in 1973. Only two societies have had longer continuous memberships. As a national college and scholastic honor society for freshmen, Phi Eta Sigma encourages and rewards high scholastic achievement in institutions of higher learning.

The Duquesne University chapter was established on November 15, 1983. The students who are honored at this ceremony earned a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5 at the end of their first semester at Duquesne University.

Michael P. Weber Learning Skills Center 

The tutoring request process is now easier than ever! Students can request tutoring via Starfish.

Our Learning Skills Center offers both in-person and online, tutoring. In-person tutoring will be held in our reserved classrooms, and online tutoring is conducted via Zoom. We also present an Exam Review Workshops via Zoom.

Students are able request for tutoring in three different ways:

1. Students can come into the Center and request for tutoring in person. (Bottom Floor of Old Main/Administration Building)
2. Students can request for tutoring through Starfish. Once they complete the Starfish request, they will be directed to the Learning Skills Center - Tutor Request Form link via email, which they would need to complete and submit.
3. Students can bypass the Starfish request and complete the Learning Skills Center - Tutor Request Form if you share the link with them directly.

Learning Skills Center - Tutoring Request Form

Upon submission of the Learning Skills Center - Tutor Request Form, a tutor will contact the student within 3-5 business days with details on how to schedule an appointment. At that time students can specify whether they want in-person or online.

Supplemental Science Instruction 

Additional tutoring or test preparation can be found in Mellon Hall for the following classes: Biology 111, Anatomy & Physiology, Biology: Intro To Life Processes, General Chemistry, Advanced General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Physics.

Please consult the schedule for times and locations. Appointments or referrals are not need for these sessions.

Writing Center 

Our University Writing Center is here to help with your final projects and papers.

ESL Program Tutoring

If you are taking ESL courses (Basic A through UCOR 101E and UCOR 102E) we have tutors who can help you. Our ESL Program has trained tutors who can help you understand and improve your English skills. Many excellent students have worked with ESL tutors. These students developed their language skills, and they felt more confident in using English. ESL Program tutoring is free.

You can make a tutoring appointment once a week. If you are a student currently taking ESL Program courses, please make an appointment with an ESL Program tutor.

Other sources of tutoring:

Palumbo-Donahue School of Business 
704 Rockwell Hall
(412) 396-6276

Athletic Academic Coordinators
1st floor, Mendel Hall
(412) 396-6565

Mathematics and Computer Science
440 College Hall
(412) 396-6467

Modern Languages Department
202 Fisher Hall
(412) 396-6415

Music School Advisement Office
303 School of Music
(412) 396-5744

NAP Coaching
(For students in nursing courses)
544 Fisher Hall
(412) 396-6347

Spiritan Brother Gerald Keating served the Duquesne community from 1924 until 1980. In that time, he developed the Our Lady of Victories Shrine and garden and served a campus chef for many decades. During the Great Depression, Brother Keating quietly supported students who felt the crippling impact of the economic collapse, thus enabling them to successfully complete their academic studies.

The Keating Initiative seeks to assist food insecure students, faculty, and staff. The initiative includes comprehensive "wrap-around" services that include health and wellness, meal vouchers, and a campus food pantry.

Individuals wishing to utilize the Keating Initiative are asked to complete an intake document which will enable them full access to the pantry and other services.

Donations are accepted through the United Way (#16569303: Brother Keating Initiative Food Pantry)

For more information, please reach out to us:

Tamara Trembulak
Assistant Director for Center for Student Involvement
and Union Operations

Jeanie Kocinski
Administrative Assistant for First Year Development
and Disability Services

Our DULA program was crafted to highlight the University's current community-engagement efforts in target neighborhoods, introduce students to key community leaders and agencies, encourage the personal development of participants, and foster spiritual growth of participants looking to live out their faith by serving others.

Objective & Goals

To provide a six-day program for Catholic high school students to engage in challenging dialogue, motivating workshops and trainings, as well as community-engaged and social activities designed to enhance academic learning, personal development, faith development, leadership skills, and civic identity development.

Duquesne University Leadership Academy (DULA) seeks each day to foster the following:

• Engaging with our Local Community
• Growing in our Faith
• Building Servant Leaders
• Building Community with One Another

By participating in this program, students will:

• Understand contemporary and historical issues that affect Duquesne's key communities;
• Learn about how Duquesne University faculty, staff, and students reciprocally partner with communities and service agencies to address challenges and opportunities with the goal of building a more just and verdant world;
• Begin to develop the skill set necessary to constructively engage with diverse stakeholders in order to collaboratively achieve realistic resolutions to community problems;
• Assess their leadership style and craft a plan to recognize themselves as future change agents within their communities and the world;
• Nurture the fullest expression of the Gospel call to justice in a way that goes beyond charity or single charitable actions using the see, judge, act model to promote a holistic and systematic approach to peace and justice in our world