Assessment for Prospective Interdisciplinary Studies Students

Please read the entire packet of information concerning the interdisciplinary studies major carefully.

An interdisciplinary studies major requires considerably more independent work than most regular departmental majors. In addition to a large investment of your time, it demands a considerable time commitment from department chairs and/or faculty. Take a moment to read and reflect upon these questions. You should have a very good reason for creating your own major and should do so only after considering existing majors and proposing a strong justification. Are you genuinely interested in three fields of study which have some common ground and relate to each other?
 

  1. Have you reviewed the requirements for regular departmental majors in these three areas or fields of study?
  2. Have you talked with the department chair or faculty advisor in your main area of study?
  3. Have you already done work or extensive reading in these fields?
  4. Are you having difficulty in deciding on a major because you find two or more fields equally attractive?
  5. Are you at least three semesters away from graduation?
  6. Is your grade point average very close to or above 3.0?
  7. Have you checked out at least two graduate schools to see if an interdisciplinary studies major would meet entrance requirements?
  8. Have you explored possible employment opportunities through the Career Center?
  9. Do you view this major as a means of obtaining your degree more quickly?
  10. Do you view this major as a means of taking only courses you are interested in taking or as a means of avoiding difficult courses?
  11. Do you find it difficult to choose a major because nothing HSU offers you is sufficiently interesting or appealing to warrant a heavy investment of your resources?
If you answered questions 1-8 with a "yes" and questions 9-11 with a "no", you may want to consider the interdisciplinary studies major. Start by submitting a draft of an essay which outlines your proposal to the interdisciplinary studies advisor. You will not be an interdisciplinary studies major until your major is approved.

Experience indicates that students who are in scholastic difficulty, those with no well-defined interests or goals, or those who have taken courses and now want to put them in a major are likely to have trouble with an interdisciplinary studies major.

Avoidance of difficult or uninteresting courses or wanting to graduate early are not good reasons for attempting an interdisciplinary studies major.