Each year, Brown offers over 70 special seminars just for first-year students. These first-year seminars are taught by Brown faculty in all areas of the curriculum, from anthropology to physics to literary arts. First-year seminars enroll a maximum of twenty students each, and students receive regular feedback on the work they produce for the class. Seminar faculty often serve as informal mentors for their students long after the class has ended.

Students enroll in first-year seminars by lottery the summer before they arrive at Brown. During shopping period in the fall and spring semesters, a list of first-year seminars with openings is posted on this page. First-year students may add these seminars to their course registration on a first-come, first-served basis.