Extended Studies Quarterly Newsletter
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Volume 4, Issue 1 | September 2025
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 Extended Studies Support Services: School of Architecture Feature
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Each issue of our newsletter will highlight the support services that Extended Studies provides to assist UMD’s 13 colleges and schools in offering a diverse selection of revenue-generating learning opportunities. In this issue, we focus on the School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation (ARCH) and how its partnership with Extended Studies is helping to create economic opportunity through excellence in architectural design, urban planning, historic preservation, and real estate development.
The next 12 issues of the EXST newsletter will highlight the support services that EXST provides to help each of UMD’s 13 colleges and schools offer a myriad of revenue-generating learning opportunities that contribute to the unit’s mission. In this issue, we focus on the College of Arts and Humanities (ARHU) and how its partnership with EXST is helping to produce global visionaries who are prepared to serve local and global communities in a wide range of careers.
The next 12 issues of our newsletter will highlight the support services that Extended Studies provides to UMD’s 13 colleges and schools to offer a myriad of revenue-generating learning opportunities that contribute to the unit’s mission. In this issue, we focus on the College of Arts and Humanities (ARHU) and how its partnership with Extended Studies is helping to produce global visionaries who are prepared to serve local and global communities in a wide range of careers.
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Extended Studies provides a range of administrative support services for ARCH programs that include scheduling, registration, and admission assistance, tuition and fee management, instructor contracting and payment, revenue collection and distribution, and marketing and communications support, while also serving as a resource for compliance with university regulations, policies, and procedures.
The next 12 issues of the EXST newsletter will highlight the support services that EXST provides to help each of UMD’s 13 colleges and schools offer a myriad of revenue-generating learning opportunities that contribute to the unit’s mission. In this issue, we focus on the College of Arts and Humanities (ARHU) and how its partnership with EXST is helping to produce global visionaries who are prepared to serve local and global communities in a wide range of careers.
The next 12 issues of our newsletter will highlight the support services that Extended Studies provides to UMD’s 13 colleges and schools to offer a myriad of revenue-generating learning opportunities that contribute to the unit’s mission. In this issue, we focus on the College of Arts and Humanities (ARHU) and how its partnership with Extended Studies is helping to produce global visionaries who are prepared to serve local and global communities in a wide range of careers.
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Summer Session
Summer Language Institute and Project Go
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Each summer, Extended Studies provides administrative support for more than 650 undergraduate and graduate courses offered over six sessions (two 6-week sessions and four 3-week sessions). Since 2010, more than 1,700 architecture students have taken advantage of Summer Session.
Offered through the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures in the College of Arts and Humanities, the Summer Language Institute (SLI) provides immersive language-learning experiences in Korean, Arabic, and Persian at the beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels. Throughout the 2-week, 5-week, or 6-week program, SLI students engage in rigorous language instruction augmented by various cultural activities and events that increase their knowledge of the target language.
Project Global Officer (Project GO), which is embedded within SLI, promotes critical language education, study abroad, and intercultural dialogue opportunities through language study for Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) students. Extended Studies supports SLI and Project Go by providing scheduling, registration, and admission assistance; tuition and fee management; instructor contracting and payment; revenue collection and distribution; and marketing and communication support.
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Terp Young Scholars
Summer Language Institute and Project Go
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Housed within Extended Studies, Terp Young Scholars (TYS) is the university’s premier credit-bearing pre-college program. Extended Studies and ARCH have partnered since TYS’s inception to offer architecture courses that have enrolled nearly 1,000 high school students. Architecture courses continue to be popular among TYS students and typically fill early.
Since 2010, more than 10,000 ARHU students have taken advantage of Summer Session and enrolled in 36,000+ ARHU seats, the third most seats of any UMD college or school. Extended Studies oversees the undergraduate admissions process for the Summer Session and provides scheduling assistance, tuition and fee management, revenue collection and distribution, instructor contracting and payment, marketing campaigns that target current and visiting students, and also acts as a resource for compliance with university regulations, policies, and procedures. Since the program's inception, Extended Studies and ARHU have partnered to offer more than 100 sections of ARHU courses in Terp Young Scholars, enrolling more than 1,100 high school students. Extended Studies provides comprehensive administrative support for TYS, including program management, student and program services, financial management, and marketing and communications.
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Freshmen Connection
Summer Language Institute and Project Go
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Extended Studies created Freshmen Connection to provide an opportunity for spring-admitted undergraduate students to start their University of Maryland education in the fall semester. The School of Architecture offered a Freshmen Connection section in 2006, the program’s inaugural year, and enrollment in ARCH seats has remained steady. Since 2010, Freshmen Connection students representing all majors have filled over 300 ARCH seats and Freshmen Connection has enrolled 162 architecture students.
Since 2010, more than 10,000 ARHU students have taken advantage of Summer Session and enrolled in 36,000+ ARHU seats, the third most seats of any UMD college or school. Extended Studies oversees the undergraduate admissions process for the Summer Session and provides scheduling assistance, tuition and fee management, revenue collection and distribution, instructor contracting and payment, marketing campaigns that target current and visiting students, and also acts as a resource for compliance with university regulations, policies, and procedures. Since the program's inception, Extended Studies and ARHU have partnered to offer more than 100 sections of ARHU courses in Terp Young Scholars, enrolling more than 1,100 high school students. Extended Studies provides comprehensive administrative support for TYS, including program management, student and program services, financial management, and marketing and communications. Since 2010, approximately 7,000 ARHU students have taken advantage of Winter Session offerings and enrolled in over 15,000 ARHU seats, the second most of any UMD college or school. In Winter Session 2024, ARHU had 1,252 enrollments in its 111 sections, just shy of its highest Winter Session enrollment ever. Like Summer Session, EXST oversees the undergraduate admission process and provides scheduling assistance, tuition and fee management, revenue collection and distribution, instructor contracting and payment, marketing campaigns that target current and visiting students, and acts as a resource for compliance with university regulations, policies, and procedures. Since 2010, ARHU has offered 1,218 Freshmen Connection (FC) sections that have garnered more than 24,000 enrollments, accounting for 27% of all FC seats – the most of any UMD college or school. Extended Studies acts as a resource for overall program-related issues; manages instructor contracting and payment; oversees UNIV100 instructor selection; provides marketing and communications support; advises approximately 40% of FC students; manages revenue collection and distribution; and oversees admissions, scheduling, and registration.
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Winter Session
Summer Language Institute and Project Go
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Extended Studies partners with UMD's colleges and schools to provide undergraduate and graduate courses to current and visiting students in a 3-week Winter Session between the fall and spring semesters. Since 2010, nearly 1,000 architecture students have taken advantage of Winter Session offerings.
Since 2010, more than 10,000 ARHU students have taken advantage of Summer Session and enrolled in 36,000+ ARHU seats, the third most seats of any UMD college or school. Extended Studies oversees the undergraduate admissions process for the Summer Session and provides scheduling assistance, tuition and fee management, revenue collection and distribution, instructor contracting and payment, marketing campaigns that target current and visiting students, and also acts as a resource for compliance with university regulations, policies, and procedures. Since the program's inception, Extended Studies and ARHU have partnered to offer more than 100 sections of ARHU courses in Terp Young Scholars, enrolling more than 1,100 high school students. Extended Studies provides comprehensive administrative support for TYS, including program management, student and program services, financial management, and marketing and communications. Since 2010, approximately 7,000 ARHU students have taken advantage of Winter Session offerings and enrolled in over 15,000 ARHU seats, the second most of any UMD college or school. In Winter Session 2024, ARHU had 1,252 enrollments in its 111 sections, just shy of its highest Winter Session enrollment ever. Like Summer Session, EXST oversees the undergraduate admission process and provides scheduling assistance, tuition and fee management, revenue collection and distribution, instructor contracting and payment, marketing campaigns that target current and visiting students, and acts as a resource for compliance with university regulations, policies, and procedures.
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Team Member Spotlight
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Alexa Marcos | Business Manager, Finance
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Alexa joined Extended Studies in August 2022 after 4 years in Bioengineering at UMD. She has a B.A. in Conflict Resolution from Salisbury University and is currently pursuing her MBA from UMD's Flex MBA program. Her current portfolio includes ARCH, BSOS, JOUR, and SPHL. Alexa's professional background encompasses work in purchasing, travel, and budget systems.
Jamie joined Extended Studies in 2014. She focuses on programs that serve pre-college students, first-year freshmen, and transfer students at the University of Maryland. Her professional background includes working as a career counselor, academic advisor, and service learning coordinator. Her experiences have allowed her to gain an appreciation for students' growth both in and outside of the classroom. Jamie earned her B.A. in Psychology at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania. Her M.A. in College Student Development and Administration was completed at Shepherd University in West Virginia.
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Program Updates
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Winter Session enrollment opens October 21. The Winter Schedule of Classes posted to Testudo on September 12. Many students often view this schedule only once. All course information must appear on Testudo before the Schedule of Classes goes live. For information on scheduling a Winter Session course, contact winter-sched@umd.edu.
Winter Session enrollment opens in mid-October. This three-week session typically sees over 5,000 enrollments, most of which are current University of Maryland students. Academic units can begin scheduling sections of popular major and General Education courses for Winter 2026 in early July through the start of August. Over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are online. Please contact winter-sched@umd.edu if you need assistance.
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Over 95% of Winter Session registrants are current University of Maryland students, and over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are offered online. Winter Session enrollments are evenly split between General Education and major/elective courses.
Winter Session enrollment opens in mid-October. This three-week session typically sees over 5,000 enrollments, most of which are current University of Maryland students. Academic units can begin scheduling sections of popular major and General Education courses for Winter 2026 in early July through the start of August. Over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are online. Please contact winter-sched@umd.edu if you need assistance.
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Summer Session scheduling instructions are available on the Extended Studies administrative website. Online scheduling opened in SIS on September 8. The deadline to complete online course scheduling is October 20. After this date, all scheduling updates must be submitted via email to summer-sched@umd.edu.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link.
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Summer Session 2025 enrollment saw a 4% increase from 2024. Demand remains high for courses that fulfill both major requirements and multiple general education requirements.
Winter Session enrollment opens in mid-October. This three-week session typically sees over 5,000 enrollments, most of which are current University of Maryland students. Academic units can begin scheduling sections of popular major and General Education courses for Winter 2026 in early July through the start of August. Over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are online. Please contact winter-sched@umd.edu if you need assistance.
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Terp Young Scholars (TYS), University of Maryland’s credit-bearing pre-college program for academically talented high school students, saw an 80% increase in enrollments in Summer 2025. 415 high school students participated in 14 courses. 220 students attended their courses on campus with access to campus amenities such as the dining halls, recreation facilities and pools, TerpZone in the Stamp Student Union, and the libraries, and 195 enrolled online. Student feedback was overwhelmingly positive:
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link.
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“Loved it all. The lessons were never too fast to understand, and all the assignments were fair. All content was relative to the course and the professor and TA were super helpful.”
Winter Session enrollment opens in mid-October. This three-week session typically sees over 5,000 enrollments, most of which are current University of Maryland students. Academic units can begin scheduling sections of popular major and General Education courses for Winter 2026 in early July through the start of August. Over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are online. Please contact winter-sched@umd.edu if you need assistance.
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“I had a great time! The assignments were very manageable, the teachers and TAs were a great help and overall I count this as an incredibly valuable experience.”
Winter Session enrollment opens in mid-October. This three-week session typically sees over 5,000 enrollments, most of which are current University of Maryland students. Academic units can begin scheduling sections of popular major and General Education courses for Winter 2026 in early July through the start of August. Over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are online. Please contact winter-sched@umd.edu if you need assistance.
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If your academic unit is interested in participating in Terp Young Scholars and has questions, please reach out to tys@umd.edu. We would be happy to meet with you!
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Courses in Freshmen Connection typically roll over from year to year. Academic units interested in proposing new courses or adjusting existing courses for Fall 2026 should reach out to fc@umd.edu before the end of October.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link.
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Bulk Enrollment, a new functionality on Open Learning, will permit UMD to take advantage of marketplace trends to better serve clients who wish to enroll multiple learners at once. A pilot is currently underway, with any additional testing and rollout to follow shortly.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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Professional Graduate Programs
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Enrollments: Summer enrollment was flat compared to last year (1,178 seats in Summer 2025 versus 1,081 seats in Summer 2024). Fall 2025 applications are up approximately 80% across all EXST-administered graduate programs compared to Fall 2024. The increase is largely driven by applications for the MS in Computer Science program, which received more than 1,400 applications.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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Distributions: Spring 2025 distribution was sent August 8. Summer distribution will be sent by December 1.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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Resources:
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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- The Graduate School has all of its upcoming admissions deadlines in one place! The information can also be found on the TerpEngage home page, which links to the document when you log in.
- Semester and 12-week term calendars are published several years in advance. You can view current and future academic calendars on the Office of the Provost’s website.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
- Semester and 12-week term calendars are published several years in advance. You can view current and future academic calendars on the Office of the Provost’s website.
- Semester and 12-week term calendars are published several years in advance. You can view current and future academic calendars on the Office of the Provost’s website.
- Semester and 12-week term calendars are published several years in advance. You can view current and future academic calendars on the Office of the Provost’s website.
- Semester and 12-week term calendars are published several years in advance. You can view current and future academic calendars on the Office of the Provost’s website.
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Post-Baccalaureate Programs
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Summer enrollment in Science in the Evening and Hearing and Speech in the Evening is up 171% compared to last year (84 seats in Summer 2025 versus 31 seats in Summer 2024).
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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Extended Studies will provide administrative support for the recently approved post-baccalaureate program in Latin and Greek. Offered by the Department of Classics, the new program will launch in Fall 2026.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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New Business Model: Coursera is changing to a “freemium” business model. Only some courses will continue to be offered fully for free. Previously, learners could take an entire course for free or choose to pay a small fee to receive a professional certificate. Going forward, only the first module of most courses will be available for free. Learners will be required to pay a fee to take the full course. Upon completion of the full course, learners will be issued a certificate. Simultaneously, Coursera is introducing geopricing to ensure courses are priced appropriately based on different global economies.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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New AI Features: Coursera has introduced new AI innovations intended to help learners complete courses at higher rates than in the past. Among the innovations is Coursera’s Coach, which will help to point learners in the right direction, keeping them on the path to learning while also helping with context on topics covered in the course.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
- Cybersecurity for Everyone exceeded 500,000 enrollees this summer, and remains a top Coursera Cybersecurity offering.
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Top Offering: Cybersecurity for Everyone exceeded 500,000 enrollees this summer, and remains a top Coursera Cybersecurity offering.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
- Cybersecurity for Everyone exceeded 500,000 enrollees this summer, and remains a top Coursera Cybersecurity offering.
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Open Learning courses can now be restricted to UMD populations only. Previously, Open Learning courses could note that the course was restricted to UMD populations; however, external users with an associate account could still enroll. UMD now has the ability to add coding to Open Learning courses that will restrict courses to UMD students, faculty, and staff. The Open Learning application has been updated to include a question about course restrictions.
Is your academic unit interested in proposing a course for Terp Young Scholars 2026? Attend an informational session where staff will review the program and answer questions about the course proposal process. September 17 at 12:00 pm. Register here to receive the Zoom link. Extended Studies has added filters to the graduate program webpage to enhance the user experience. Prospective students can now filter by area of interest, program type, and program delivery method to better identify graduate programs that meet their needs.
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Meet with Extended Studies
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Let us know if you would like to discuss opportunities for self-support programs. Submit an EXST Meeting Request if you are interested in speaking with us.
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Finance Updates
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Extended Studies continues to address and prepare all Fall Semester and Term jobs within the new Workday HCM system. The Finance Team will contact each department's business office directly regarding jobs that require immediate action.
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Winter 2025-26 and Spring 2026 Budgets
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Extended Studies has opened the Winter 2025-26 and Spring 2026 budget system early. We encourage all department budget creators to begin entering course budgets as soon as their course schedules are verified, so that the budget approval process can be completed sooner. The Finance Team staff will provide formal deadlines for budget entry and contract generation in a direct email to all Department Budget Creators, Department Approvers, and College Approvers.
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The Finance Team will soon be contacting all College Approvers to request updated contacts for their colleges and departments. We appreciate your support in providing those updated contacts to our office in a timely manner. Please contact the EXST Finance Team directly if you have any questions or concerns.
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Student and Program Services Updates
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Summer and Fall Scheduling
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- Summer/Term IV 2026 scheduling opened September 9
- Fall/Term I 2026 is scheduled to open September 30
Winter Session enrollment opens in mid-October. This three-week session typically sees over 5,000 enrollments, most of which are current University of Maryland students. Academic units can begin scheduling sections of popular major and General Education courses for Winter 2026 in early July through the start of August. Over 90% of courses offered during Winter Session are online. Please contact winter-sched@umd.edu if you need assistance.
- Fall/Term I 2026 is scheduled to open September 30
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Marketing and Communications Resources
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Visit the Extended Studies administrative website for 2026 marketing toolkits for Winter Session (coming October 21), Professional Graduate Programs, Summer Session (available February 2026), Shady Grove programs, and MOOCs resources.
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