The directed studies course is intended to help fill a conceptual void in the student’s program of study. The student will work with a faculty instructor to define a field of inquiry, develop a reading list related to the field of inquiry, and produce course deliverables that demonstrate an understanding of and engagement with the chosen reading list. This helps the student to explore areas that are not sufficiently covered in the current curricular offerings of the programs the student has combined in the MA in Interdisciplinary Studies. It is the student’s responsibility to select the topic, generate a draft reading list, and negotiate with the instructor an agreed upon literature list. The role of the instructor is to facilitate the student’s self-exploration. This course requires the student to work mainly independently, with the level of instructor involvement negotiated with the instructor.
Constitutes a substantial written examination of a topic relevant to an interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary program of study. May include studies of application of knowledge to the field, development of instructional or organizational practices or resources, evaluations of practices or resources, critical analyses of problems or issues, policy analysis or development, performative writing, documentary work, systematic literature reviews or data analyses as negotiated with the instructor and based on publicly available data. Optimum length for a research paper is 6,000 words and should involve approximately 200 hours of effort by the student resulting in the awarding of 6 credit hours.
A thesis is a written product of a systematic study of a significant problem. The thesis demonstrates the ability of a student to analyze existing research, collate or collect data, and apply it in the context of an existing problem. The result is a de novo synthesis of theoretical and empirical information. The thesis identifies a problem, provides a rationale for the study, and states the hypothesis or research question. It identifies major theoretical assumptions, explains the methods chosen to study the problem, analyzes the data, and offers a conclusion or recommendation based on the data and theoretical framing. The finished thesis evidences originality, critical and independent thinking, appropriate organization and format, and thorough documentation. The thesis should constitute approximately 400 hours of effort by the learner.