Interdisciplinary Studies (IS)

The program in Interdisciplinary Studies offers qualified undergraduates the opportunity to shape an interdisciplinary plan of course work centered in, but not necessarily restricted to, study in the humanities. The program is meant to accommodate a course of study that could not otherwise be carried out easily within the structures of a single disciplinary major.

One of the notable features of the program is the requirement that all Interdisciplinary Studies majors complete a formal paper at the end of their term of study that integrates the disparate fields of each student’s study in a truly interdisciplinary manner. An original research paper will normally consist of an analytical research paper. An alternative option is a creative project, which would be accompanied by an analytical write-up of the project’s background, conceptual problem(s), and methodology.

Program of Study (Proposed Degree Requirements)

Each student’s program of study must meet the following six distribution requirements:

1. Six courses in a primary field or in closely integrated subject areas in more than one field.
2. Three courses in a first supporting field or in closely integrated subject areas in more than one field.
3. Three courses in a second supporting field or in closely integrated subject areas in more than one field.

A “field” is defined in one of three ways:

• A selection of courses from a traditional department,
• A traditional discipline spread over more than one department, or
• An interdisciplinary set of courses under a certain rubric (such as an “American studies” field containing courses from English, History, other departments).

Students are encouraged to create their six-course field from a single, traditional discipline, so that, however broad their program, they can also have some depth of learning in a single discipline.

Any one of the fields listed under 1, 2, and 3 may be drawn from outside the humanities.

1. Two courses or one sequence of two courses (drawn from offerings in the humanities) that emphasizes intellectual approaches or critical methods germane to a student’s particular interdisciplinary course program.
2. IS 90 (The BA Colloquium) in the Spring semester of the third year, which meets three times over the semester and is taught by the IS BA preceptor. The purpose of this course is for each student to begin working on the structure and argument of the BA paper that he or she will complete the following year. At the end of the course, each student will have written a proposal for the BA paper, which will generally be a précis of the argument that the student anticipates making. Grading for this course is Pass/Fail (P/F) for all students.
3. IS 91 (Preparation of the BA Project). This course is structured as an independent study. The instructor will be the student’s faculty BA adviser. It should be taken in the Fall semester of fourth year, but in special circumstances may be taken in Spring semester of fourth year. The faculty adviser will devise a plan of reading and writing for the student and will critique drafts of the student’s BA paper as they develop.

IS 80	Independent Studies Research
IS 81	Independent Reading
IS 82	Senior Thesis Research
IS 90	Oral Presentation
IS 91	Independent Studies Writing