Individually Designed Interdisciplinary Majors
Overview | Requirements | Process | Proposal
Overview
The individually designed interdisciplinary major is an option for students whose interests are truly interdisciplinary and who wish to pursue areas of inquiry not currently addressed by existing majors that are offered. Students wanting to design their own majors must submit a proposal to the A&S Office of Academic Services for review and approval.
Requirements
Individually designed interdisciplinary majors must consist of at least 48 credit hours of approved work. The program is constructed around a coherent academic purpose and may draw together the academic resources of a number of departments and schools. The program’s purpose may include topical, period, or area studies, and must include study across at least two of the divisions in the college: the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. The program should not be designed with a focus on pre-professional training (e.g., pre-business, pre-law, or pre-medicine). The student may be required to achieve a standard of proficiency in appropriately related areas such as foreign languages or mathematics in addition to the 48 credit hours constituting the program of concentration.
The student’s course plan for the program is a statement of required courses. Furthermore, because of the nature of interdisciplinary majors, all courses that have previously been included in the student’s course plan are considered to be part of the major discipline. The student must achieve at least a 2.000 grade point average in all courses that are (or have been) part of the contract.
Each student must identify a faculty adviser in the College of Arts and Science who will offer advice and guidance. The adviser must be a professor or full-time principal senior lecturer or senior lecturer. Ideally, you should choose an adviser with whom you have worked in the past and who has expertise in one of the fields related to your interests.
Process
- Study the course listings in the Undergraduate Catalog.
- Prepare a proposed list of courses for inclusion in the Interdisciplinary Major Course Plan.
- Draft a preliminary version of your rationale.
- Identify and meet with your College of Arts and Science faculty adviser to review your proposed courses and rationale.
- Obtain your faculty adviser’s signature on the final version of your Interdisciplinary Major Course Plan and on your Major/Minor Declaration form.
- Submit your proposal materials to the A&S Office of Academic Services (arts-sci-forms@vanderbilt.edu).
Students whose proposals do not meet the standards for acceptable individually designed interdisciplinary majors may be required to meet with a member of the Office of Academic Services.
Students will be notified of the decision (approval, approval with changes, resubmission with revisions, or rejection) by email. If you are asked to resubmit, you may need to meet with a member of the Office of Academic Services to discuss strategies for revising and strengthening your proposal.
Proposal
A complete proposal consists of:
- The Interdisciplinary Major Course Plan (a list of proposed courses totaling 48 hours);
- A written rationale for the major; and
- A signed copy of the Major/Minor Declaration form.
Interdisciplinary Major Course Plan
Make every effort to be clear and accurate when compiling the course plan, as it will serve as a statement of required courses for the major. Individually designed interdisciplinary majors consist of 48 hours (usually 16 courses) and may include only three introductory-level courses. However, some departments and programs, such as History and Music Literature, offer a considerable number of introductory-level courses, so courses from these programs are not counted against the three introductory-level course limit.
Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate credit may not count towards the 48 hours required for the major. Independent study or research courses may be included, but your proposal must contain a specific description of their subject matter.
If your proposed major is approved, you will be required to complete the courses listed in your course plan to fulfill the major requirements.
If you wish to make changes to your interdisciplinary major, you must complete the Request for Change in Contract for Interdisciplinary Major, secure your adviser’s signature, and submit the changes to the A&S Office of Academic Services at arts-sci-forms@vanderbilt.edu.
Written rationale
The rationale should be at least two pages (double-spaced) in length and include the following:
- A statement explaining why existing majors do not meet your needs;
- A description of the area you wish to pursue and why it is a valid or relevant subject for study within the context of the arts and sciences;
- An explanation of the relevance of particular courses;
- A discussion of how the proposed courses cohere; and
- A discussion of how this major prepares you for your post-graduate study or long-term goals.
Title
The title of the major must be short and illustrative of the true content of the major. Below are examples of titles from recent individually designed interdisciplinary majors:
- International Political Economy
- Urban Economics and Policy
- French and the Creative Arts
- Human Biology and Public Health
- Studies in Human Ecology
- Middle Eastern Studies
- Health and Literature