Summer reading lists are the norm for high school students, so if you are college bound, you might have been surprised to get a letter or email from your new school with a list of required reading.

In fact, there are actually hundreds of colleges and universities across the country that have some type of required reading for freshmen. Unlike in high school, where an exam or a paper might accompany the reading, colleges like to assign reading material so that students can jump into discussion with classmates and professors right away.

I’m an avid reader myself, so I’m an advocate of assigning summer reading for college. For those who don’t love the printed word, it could be a good time to turn over a new leaf, since there is a LOT of reading to do in college, regardless of your major. The good news is that many schools that assign reading usually keep in mind that it is the summer, after all, and have chosen books that are as readable as they are thought provoking.

Check out what some of your fellow freshmen are reading this summer:

Texas Christian University—Fort Worth, TX

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. This non-fiction best seller about fostering peace through the creation of schools in Pakistan is a must-read in general, but TCU students now have an added incentive—co-author Greg Mortensen will be giving a lecture on campus in January.

Gustavus Adolphus College—Saint Peter, MN

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jaime Ford. Now in its 11^th year of the Reading in Common Program, Gustavus Adolphus chose Ford’s historical novel about the power of forgiveness to fuel discussion among freshmen, faculty, and upperclassmen this fall.

Roanoke College—Salem, VA

When the Emperor Was Divine: a Novel by Julie Otsuka. Roanoke is celebrating the sixth anniversary of its reading program, for which a panel of students, faculty, and staff choose books that are not only engaging, but relevant to incoming freshmen.

Western New England College—Springfield, MA

Outcasts United by Warren St. John. This book tells the story of a youth soccer team–comprised of refugees from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East—playing in a town in Georgia. Faculty opted for St. John’s book because the theme of feeling out of sorts in a new place just might apply to college freshmen.

Susquehanna University—Selingsgrove, PA

This year, SU has chosen a group of readings that correspond to the theme “A Sustainable Future.” Titles on the list include Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan, and The Future of Life by Edward O. Wilson.

Has your college assigned freshmen reading? Do tell…

–Barbara Bellesi