In Short
Success in today’s rapidly changing workplace requires individual initiative, flexible thinking, and an ability to define one’s own professional goals; the individualized Interdisciplinary Studies degree challenges you to do exactly that while in college.
- Take command of your own educational goals and design your own program.
- Learn to use different disciplinary methods strategically to address real world issues in innovative ways.
- Combine your fields to design a project that relates directly to the kind of work you want to do when you graduate, and serves as a springboard for your success.
Customize your bachelor's degree with our program in Interdisciplinary Studies. Learn more today.
Program Overview
This program gives you the conceptual tools to integrate different disciplines in order to address the complex problems and changing frontiers of knowledge in an increasingly global society. Interdisciplinary Studies is designed to help fully realize the academic, professional, and personal potential of students whose interests range across the boundaries of traditional disciplines.
The interdisciplinary studies degree is typically awarded as a bachelor of science. A bachelor of arts is awarded if the student includes foreign language study through the second year of college-level work and concentrates their fields of study in the liberal arts and sciences fields. Other requirements include:
- A rationale/thematic organizing principle for the program
- A required series of IDIS seminar courses (6 credits)
- A core of three interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary courses, one required, two elective (9 credits)
As a senior, you will have the chance to do an individual Interdisciplinary Studies Capstone project that reflects your personal vision and professional goals, applying insights from a range of disciplines to crucial contemporary issues and challenges in an original way.
Online Option Offered through the School of Graduate, Online and Continuing Education
This flexible degree program, also offered online through the School of Graduate, Online and Continuing Education, works well for adult learners who are balancing work, family and education, while also trying to customize their plan of study to achieve personal goals.
Experiential Opportunities
Internships
Study Abroad
ARTeries
Curriculum and Other Information
Day School, On Campus Programs
- BA, Interdisciplinary Studies - Program information from the University Catalog.
- BS, Interdisciplinary Studies - Program information from the University Catalog.
- We also offer an IDIS Major that is designed for Pre-Law students.
- Four-Year Plans of Study - Required and elective courses for program completion.
School of Graduate, Online and Continuing Education, Online Programs
- BA, Interdisciplinary Studies - Program information from the University Catalog.
- BS, Interdisciplinary Studies - Program information from the University Catalog.
- Students will have the opportunity to pursue individually designed interdisciplinary programs, or thematically organized Interdisciplinary concentrations, with a course of study reflective of their individual educational and professional goals.
- Students will be able to identify and define a problem or issue which can be addressed from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, by doing the following:
- Students will be able to conduct primary and secondary research in order to construct original interdisciplinary research questions/problems, and develop well documented, supported, reasoned, and informed conclusions to problems and issues, by doing the following:
- Students will be able to apply and integrate methods, materials, and/or insights from different disciplines to the solution of a problem, the analysis of an issue, and ultimately the completion of an interdisciplinary capstone thesis or project informed by their previous work in different disciplines, by doing the following:
- Students will be able to communicate ideas clearly, as demonstrated by the following:
- Students will strengthen interdisciplinary habits of mind, such as the ability to recognize perspective and bias, think critically, tolerate ambiguity, discover common ground, and appreciate ethical concerns.
Interdisciplinary Studies provides the flexibility to design your own major in collaboration with a faculty advisor, and build a curriculum that meets your own specific interests and career goals. 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
- Health services director
- Interdisciplinary Studies majors also have careers in the fields of marketing, computer science, accounting and business administration
- Graduate studies in line with individualized curriculum (law school, master of arts in education, master of fine arts in art & graphic design and more)