Interdisciplinary Studies

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Dedicated students with the talent and interest for working independently, and for whom a traditional major may not serve their intellectual goals, may petition to complete an Interdisciplinary Studies major of carefully planned work from two or more departments. Each student will be supervised by a three-person faculty adviser committee to assure that the program embodies a disciplined cumulative study that moves from elementary through more advanced levels of work. Students should be aware that this option would not always be available to those within a prescribed program leading to professional certification and/or licensure.

Procedures

Students must declare their intention to pursue the Interdisciplinary Studies major prior to the beginning of their fifth semester of study by petitioning a three-person faculty advisory committee. Transfer students with 64 credits or less (including those with a two-year degree from institutions affiliated with Adelphi University) will be eligible to petition for the Interdisciplinary major as well, but not later than their first semester in attendance.

The student’s interdisciplinary advisory committee will consist of his/her academic adviser (normally from the discipline most central to the inquiry) as well as two other faculty members selected by the adviser and faculty head/department chair. The three-person committee should be representative of at least two of the areas intended for study. The adviser will notify the dean when new advisory committees and programs of study have been formed.

The student’s approved program must have 18 to 24 credits of in-depth work in a single disciplinary area. In addition, the major should total no less than 36 credits, and might be more based upon the decision of the student’s advisory committee. Student eligibility for and good standing within the Interdisciplinary major will reflect the standards of the particular unit as well as criteria established by the student’s faculty adviser, advisory committee, the faculty head/department chair and dean’s office.

The three-person advisory committee must meet with the declared students once each semester until graduation to discuss their work, progress, and plans for subsequent studies. A brief report of each meeting will be submitted to the related faculty head and dean’s office.

Students pursuing the Interdisciplinary Studies major will be expected to complete a senior culminating project reflecting their interdisciplinary study. Projects should be approved by the advisory committee, and notification of successful completion forwarded to the faculty head and dean.

Programs

• Interdisciplinary Studies, B.A.
• Interdisciplinary Studies, B.S.

Return to: College of Arts and Sciences