Degree Overview

The Interdisciplinary Studies degree program provides for a uniquely designed major.  Whether pursuing a bachelor of science or of art, students work with faculty advisors to develop a plan of study that responds to personal, educational and professional goals. The program is particularly well suited to adult learners. It provides the opportunity for part-time, individually paced education, which allows students to build their academic confidence and integrate their studies into their lives.

Additional objectives are:

• To enable students to explore multidisciplinary areas and to integrate them in a coherent and meaningful way through the creation of a senior Capstone project.
• To provide the opportunity for majors that combine the broadly-based Liberal Arts and Sciences courses with professional courses that are specifically chosen to create a minor and two areas of concentration.
• To provide the opportunity for a part-time, individually paced education, which allows students to build their academic confidence and integrate their studies more easily into their lives.

Requirements

The Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies requirements include:

• Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) requirements (48 semester hours); and
• a minimum of 36 semester hours of course work for the major in at least three different fields of study, with a university-approved minor within one of the three fields, and a minimum of nine semester hours in each of the other two fields of study (defined by disciplines, not departments);and
• a common core of three Liberal Arts and Sciences interdisciplinary courses (9 semester hours):
• IDIS 1800 Global Issues; and
• MUSC 2000 Commonwealth of the Arts or MUSC 2100 Commonwealth of the Ancient Arts; and
• PHIL 1100 Logic or PHIL 2600 Philosophy of Human Nature or PHIL 3340 Contemporary Philosophy or PHIL 4430 Marxism; and
• a senior-year “Capstone” that will integrate the three clusters of the student’s major curriculum.  This may take the form of an independent study or an internship (3-15 semester hours); and
• electives (24 semester hours)—may be fewer, depending on number of credits taken in above categories.
  
  Total for degree 120 credits

Career Opportunities

The career opportunities are endless since the students are choosing subjects that they are interested in or are already involved in with a current career. Combining a university-approved minor with any two other disciplines provides a large number of possible combinations, which can provide a foundation for personal and career goals.

A few of the possibilities are public and private school teacher, project manager, payroll manager, and health services director; IDIS majors also have careers in the fields of marketing, computer science, accounting and business administration.

HOW TO APPLY

Apply online

WHAT NEXT?

Contact Admissions Office: (978)665-3144, gceadmissions@fitchburgstate.edu