Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies
Chair, Department of Continuing Studies: Mark L. Parker
The Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS) is an upper-division bachelor’s degree-completion program. Intended for students with prior professional and academic experience who are interested in completing the bachelor’s degree, but whose professional and personal situations do not require a degree in a specific discipline, the BIS provides students with a solid academic foundation in the major disciplinary areas of the academy and the interrelationships among those areas. Students learn how knowledge is created and validated, in both scientific and non-scientific areas of inquiry, and how such knowledge may be applied toward the improvement of the human condition. Throughout the program emphasis is placed on ‘learning to learn’ and on applying what has been learned in personal, local, and global contexts. By also completing a required concentration in a specialized area of inquiry, graduates of the program will have demonstrated the ability to evaluate knowledge both broadly across disciplines and in-depth within a specific field.
Curriculum Requirements
The Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS) is designed for students with at least 30 credit hours of prior college coursework or its equivalent in eligible military or professional training. The program consists of three curriculum areas:
- Core Courses
- Concentration
- Capstone
The six core courses are taken by all BIS students. All degree students must also complete an 18-credit concentration in a specialized area or discipline. The capstone is the culminating activity for the program and is required for completion of the degree. Free electives are taken by students who enter the program with fewer than 60 credits.
| Core Courses | ||
| Students complete all of the following: | ||
| INTD 310 | Epistemology& CriticalThinking | 6 |
| INTD 320 | The Scientific Method: Understanding the Results of Quantitative Research | 6 |
| *INTD 321 Qualitative Research in the Social & Behavioral Sciences | 6 | |
| *INTD 330 Critical Theory in Literature & The Humanities | 6 | |
| *INTD 340 Human Communication & Technology | 6 | |
| *INTD 350 Political, Social, & Economic History | 6 | |
| Total Cr. | 36 | |
Courses with an asterisk (*) are under development.
Concentrations
Students in the BIS program are required to complete one of the following concentrations:
| Leadership Studies | ||
| MNGT 401 | Sem in Leadership I:Fundamntls | 6 |
| MNGT 402 | Sem in Leadership II Styles EQ | 6 |
| MNGT 403 | Leadership of Change | 3 |
| MNGT 404 | Leadershp in Tech-Driven World | 3 |
| Total Cr. | 18 | |
| Justice Studies | ||
| CRMJ 303 | The Study of Crime | 3 |
| *JUST 400 - Seminar in Justice Studies | 6 | |
| PHLS 324 | Criminal Justice Ethics | 3 |
| POLS 316 | Domestic Terrorism | 3 |
| POLS 325 | Immigration Law and Policy | 3 |
| Total Cr. | 18 | |
| Strategic Studies | ||
| POLS 302 | National Security Policy | 3 |
| POLS 306 | Comparative Politics | 3 |
| POLS 318 | International Terrorism | 3 |
| SSDA 315 | Insurgency and Conflict | 6 |
| *STRA 400 - Seminar in Strategic Studies | 6 | |
| Total Cr. | 21 | |
Courses with an asterisk (*) are under development.
Capstone
The capstone course, *INTD 400 (6), is the culminating academic activity for BIS students. In it, students propose, develop, and deliver a final substantive research project that combines the general knowledge acquired in the core courses with the specific knowledge of the concentration. The final project requires students to draw upon at least two different academic disciplines for research methodology, seminal literature and sources, and intellectual frameworks in order to bring an interdisciplinary perspective to the subject. The capstone course may not be fulfilled through transfer credit.
General Education
Students are required to meet general education competencies in writing, literature, history, arts and humanities, science, social science, and math and may do so by transfer credit or enrollment in courses offered through the College of Graduate and Continuing Studies.
Transfer Credit and Student Progress in the Program
CLEP and DSST exams may be accepted for transfer credit by the academic program manager, depending on the requirements of the Norwich course for which credit is sought. CLEP and DSST transcripts must be applied to a student’s record by the time they have earned 100 credits in their program. No credit derived from CLEP or DSST exams will be applied to the student’s record after this point.
Students must complete all core and elective coursework before being enrolled in a field study course, including any courses necessary to fulfill required general education competencies, unless given prior written approval from the academic program manager.
Students must complete all required coursework including any required field study courses before being enrolled in a Capstone course, unless given prior written approval from the academic program manager.
All transfer credit must be applied to the student’s record before being enrolled in a Capstone course.