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Guidelines for the
Bachelor of Arts
&
Bachelor of Sciences
in the Special Major
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Description
of the Special Major guidelines
Application
for BA/BS in the Special Major
Checklist
for Applcation for BA/BS in the Special Major
Description
The Special Major is designed for
undergraduate students whose particular
interests, background, or professional
objectives are not served by a traditional BA or
BS degree program. The purpose of the Special
Major is to make available to students who
satisfy the prerequisites for the program the
opportunity to design, with faculty approval, a
flexible interdisciplinary undergraduate
curriculum. Admission to the Special Major is
limited to students whose individualized
programs can be organized around a special topic
or a cross-disciplinary inquiry that is original
and involves work in more than one department.
Interested students should contact the
Coordinator of the Institute of
Interdisciplinary Studies (ITDS), who initiates
the screening and application process.
The Special Major is not intended to bypass
normal graduation requirements and may not be
used to duplicate formally structured
undergraduate programs at SSU or other service
area institutions. The reason for this
restriction is that the Special Major program
should be reserved for students whose special
interests cross disciplinary lines and find
appropriate faculty expertise at Sonoma State
University and who cannot find similar programs
that are established parts of the curriculum at
other institutions in the area.
ATTENTION CREDENTIAL STUDENTS. At the
present time, a Special Major cannot be used to
satisfy the requirements for a teaching
credential program unless the student passes the
National Teachers Examination (NTE). For
additional information the student should
contact the Education Department. As a second
major, a Special Major could be a distinct
advantage to those with an approved teaching
major. By itself, however, it might be too
specialized unless it meets the criteria for
approved majors commonly taught in the public
schools.
CAUTION: This is a unique major that suits
individual goals and is personally valuable, but
may pose professional obstacles. Career goals
and prerequisites for higher degrees should be
considered carefully before proceeding with this
major.
PREREQUISITES TO APPLICATION
1. A grade point average of at least
3.0
2 Completion of at least half of your GE
requirements
3. Junior status. Ideally, you should have
completed at least 60 units but not more than 90
units toward graduation
CRITERIA FOR ITDS PROGRAMS
For a course of study to be considered
appropriate for a Special Major, it must meet
the following criteria:
1. It must consist of a minimum of 45 units
of course work in two or more disciplines.
2. It must consist of at least 31 units of
work that are still to be completed at the time
the program is approved. The remaining units may
include course work that has already been
completed, provided it is relevant to your
Special Major program. (For exceptions to the
31-unit requirement, see p. 6 below, under
Application Requirements)
3. A Special Major must be truly
interdisciplinary. It may not be an individually
fashioned degree in any single existing
discipline.
4. It must be integrated: the course work
must be coherent with respect to the program's
topic.
5. The course work should consist of an
adequate and appropriate distribution of courses
in the disciplines involved in the program.
The guidelines that appear below have been
developed to assure that these criteria are met
and to assist you through the regulations and
procedures that pertain to the ITDS Program.
REGULATIONS AND PROCEDURES IN BRIEF
In order to be accepted as a Special
Major, you must do the following:
Step 1. Consult with the ITDS
Coordinator.
Step 2. Form an Academic Advisory
Committee.
Step 3. Complete an application to the
ITDS Program.
Step 4. Submit the application for review.
Step 5. If the application is approved,
you may register as a Special Major.
REGULATIONS AND PROCEDURES IN FULL
STEP 1. CONSULT WITH THE ITDS
COORDINATOR
1. Before developing an application, you must
consult with the Coordinator of
Inter-disciplinary Studies, to explore your
ideas for a course of study. At this meeting,
the Coordinator will discuss with you the
feasibility of carrying out your program and
explain the procedure for applying to the ITDS
Program. The Coordinator will also help you
identify a faculty advisor from each of two
departments in your program to serve as your
Academic Advisory Committee.
2. Very early in the advising process, it
must be determined if SSU has the courses
necessary to constitute a program in the subject
you wish to pursue. By your second meeting with
the Coordinator, therefore, you should have
familiarized yourself with the current SSU
Catalog and compiled a list of courses from
which a coherent course of study might be
fashioned.
If the ITDS Coordinator has determined that
your idea for a Special Major is ap-propriate
for the Program and that you meet the Program's
academic criteria, you are in a position to take
the next steps:
STEP 2. FORM AN ACADEMIC ADVISORY
COMMITTEE
3. Two faculty members, each from a different
Department or program in which you wish to take
courses, must agree to constitute your Academic
Advisory Committee (hereafter: your Committee)
and act as advisors for your program of study.
The members of your Committee must be from
disciplines found on your course list. Your
Committee has three main functions:
A. To recommend courses appropriate to your
program;
B. To advise you on any other matters
pertaining to your program, such as University
regulations or the career or academic potential
for such a program;
C. To evaluate your Senior Project.
Once you have formed your committee, it is
your responsibility to plan with its members a
coherent, original, and feasible course of
study.
4. CHAIRPERSON OF THE ACADEMIC ADVISORY
COMMITTEE. One of the members of your committee
must agree to be the Chair of your Committee and
to advise you on your major course of study, GE,
WEPT, and all other graduation requirements. In
addition to the responsibilities mentioned
above, the Chair has several special duties:
A. To advise you on your course of study as a
whole;
B. To advise you in the writing of your
proposal and application;
C. Once your proposal is accepted, to act as
your regular advisor concerning your course of
study and all other graduation requirements.
D. To oversee and assist you with your Senior
Project.
5. The Chair of your committee must be a
full-time, tenured or tenure-track member of the
SSU faculty. Ascertain from a potential Chair
whether he or she will be available during the
period in which you will be working on your
degree. If your Chair plans to be away for part
of this time, as for instance on a Sabbatical,
plan with your Chair well in advance for someone
to take his or her place, or consider another
faculty member to fill this important role.
6. CONSULTATION OF THE ITDS COORDINATOR WITH
THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON. Early in the
student's application process, the ITDS
Coordinator will contact the Chair of the
student's Advisory Committee to discuss the
latter's responsibilities and answer any
questions he or she might have concerning ITDS
procedures.
STEP 3. COMPLETE AN APPLICATION
7. In consultation with the ITDS Coordinator
and your committee, you must complete an
application. (The requirements for the
application appear below in these guidelines.)
When the application is completed, submit it in
duplicate to the ITDS Coordinator by an
application deadline.
STEP 4. SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION FOR
REVIEW
8. APPLICATION DEADLINES. There are
three deadlines each semester for filing an
application for a Special Major. Each semester's
deadlines are posted outside the door to the
ITDS Office. You are urged to submit your
application by the first or second deadlines, so
that if revision is required, the application
can still be acted on during the semester it was
submitted.
9. THE STUDENT'S FILE. Upon receipt of
your completed application by the ITDS
Coordinator, a file is established in the
Coordinator's office. The file will contain, in
addition to the application, a copy of all
documents, such as memos, petitions, letters,
and grade reports, that are related to your
program.
10. THE REVIEW PROCESS. Filing an
application with the ITDS Coordinator does not
constitute or assure acceptance in the Special
Major program. Each proposal must be reviewed by
the ITDS Committee. After a program is reviewed,
the Committee conveys its recommendation to the
student through the ITDS Coordinator. The
Committee may recommend approval or conditional
approval of the application, may request that
the application be reworked and resubmitted, or
may reject the application. Applications
approved by the Committee must then be approved
by the Associate Vice President of Academic
Affairs. If the application is approved at both
levels of review, you may register as a Special
Major.
11. ATTENDING THE REVIEW. The Chair of
your faculty committee may attend to the ITDS
Committee meeting at which your application is
reviewed. Information re-garding the date, time
and place of the ITDS Committee meetings can be
obtained from the ITDS Office.
STEP 5. REGISTER AS A SPECIAL
MAJOR
12. Immediately upon approval of your
program, file a Change of Major petition with
the Registrar's Office. The petition must be
signed by the Chair of your Committee and by the
ITDS Coordinator.
13. DISTRIBUTION OF THE APPROVED PROGRAM.
Upon approval of your proposal for a Special
Major, the ITDS Coordinator provides you, your
advisors, and the AVPAP with a copy of your
approved program of study. A copy is also kept
in your file in the Coordinator's office.
OTHER REGULATIONS
14. CHANGES IN THE MAJOR. Once your proposal
is approved, any changes in the cur-riculum must
be approved by the ITDS Coordinator and the
Chair of your Advisory Committee. All changes
are made through a letter of explanation that is
signed by the Chair and the ITDS Coordinator and
is placed in your file in the ITDS Office. If
the changes substantially alter the focus of
your program, they must also be approved by the
ITDS Committee.
15. ACADEMIC ADVISING. At the end of each
semester, you should be advised by the Chair of
your Committee concerning your schedule for the
next semester and your progress on GE and other
graduation requirements. The ITDS Coordinator is
also available for advising.
* * * *
EXPECTATIONS OF THE ITDS COMMITTEE
In its consideration of your
application for the Special Major, the ITDS
Committee will look for evidence of your ability
to pursue a self-designed program to completion
and of your awareness to your major and other
graduation requirements. The Committee will look
for such evidence, not only in your rationale,
but in the following areas:
1. GPA. The GPA required for
admission to the Special Major is 3.0.
Exceptions to this requirement may be made at
the discretion of the ITDS Coordinator and ITDS
Committee. You may be asked to submit a letter
of recommendation and other supporting material,
such as mid-semester evaluations, to support
your proposal.
2. GE. At the time you apply for a
Special Major, you should have completed at
least half of your GE requirements.
3. TOTAL NUMBER OF UNITS COMPLETED TOWARD
GRADUATION. Ideally, you should begin your
Special Major early enough in your university
career that you can graduate without an excess
of units, i.e., without more than the 124 units
required for graduation. Although a high number
of units completed&emdash;c. 90 units or
more&emdash;at the time you apply will not
disqualify you from the Special Major, the
inclusion into your proposal of courses already
completed will be examined closely to insure the
relevance of such courses to the focus of your
Special Major.
4. NUMBER OF UD UNITS IN YOUR
PROPOSAL. The courses for your major are
divided into Core Courses and Supporting
Courses. All of the 24-26 units in the Core
Courses are to be Upper Division units (300 and
above). The number of Upper Division units in
the Supporting Courses must be sufficient to
fulfill the goals of your proposal.
5. UNIQUENESS OF YOUR MAJOR. You must
make clear in your proposal why you require a
Special Major, and why a Bachelor's degree in an
existing major, a double major, or a major and a
minor would not fulfill your academic goals.
THE IDEAL TIME TO BEGIN A SPECIAL
MAJOR. Given the factors discussed above,
the ideal time for you to start a Special Major
is at the beginning of your junior year. By your
junior year, you will have had the opportunity
to complete much of your GE, but will not have
accumulated an excess of units toward
graduation. You will also have had the
opportunity to prove yourself academically and
to develop the study habits that will help you
succeed with your Special Major.
* * * *
SKILLS AND PERFORMANCE COURSES IN THE SPECIAL
MAJOR
The Departments of Art, Communication
Studies, Dance, Drama, and Music have a large
number of courses devoted to the development of
skills. These skills include painting,
film-making, writing, directing, dancing,
singing, playing an instrument, and many more.
Although such skills are an important part of a
major in the creative arts, and although they
are not to be excluded from the Special Major,
the focus of your program must be on ideas
appropriate to the academic tradition. Proposals
that emphasize performance at the expense of
intellectual content are not considered suitable
for the Special Major.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
The Special Major consists of a minimum
of 45 units of course work in two or more
disciplines. 24-26 units shall be in Core
courses, with the remaining units in Supporting
courses.
In order to be considered for the Special
Major, you must have more than one full year
(i.e., 31 units or more) of course work in the
major still to be completed after approval by
the ITDS Committee and your filing of the Change
of Major form. Work in progress during the
semester of the proposal's approval will count
toward the 31 units. The application proposal
includes your acknowledgment of this
requirement. Exemption from the 31-unit
requirement will be granted only in exceptional
cases.
Your application consists of the information
specified on the Check List to the application
form and described in items I-VI below. Items
I-III appear in the application form itself;
Items IV-VI are to be submitted with the
application form.
THE APPLICATION
Your application form must contain
the following information:
I. Your name and the title of your major (see
the application cover sheet). (Note: Only 65
characters, including spaces and punctuation
marks, are allocated to the title of a major on
a diploma. In developing a title for your major,
therefore, you will want to choose one that does
not exceed this limit.)
II. A list of the Core courses (24 -26 units)
and Supporting courses (the remaining units)
that constitute your major
A. The courses must total no fewer
than 45 units.
Restrictions:
1. No more than two courses that you use to
satisfy General Education requirements may also
be included in the course list for your Special
Major.
2. No professional courses in the Education
Department, with exceptions specified by the
Department, may be included in the program of
study.
3. Only courses graded A-F may be applied
toward major requirements.
B. Core courses must consist of upper
division courses (300/400 level) only.
No student-instructed courses may be included
in the Core courses.
The Senior Paper or Senior Project [ITDS
499 (3 units)] must be included in the Core
courses. (See IVD, below, for a
description.)
C. Supporting courses. Supporting
courses may include lower division courses when
appropriate.
III. Your signature, the signature of the
ITDS Coordinator and the names and signatures of
the faculty advisors for your major.
THE RATIONALE
IV. A written essay must accompany the
application form. This essay is the rationale
for your program and is the most important part
of your proposal; it is here that you
demonstrate that the program you have developed
is both interdisciplinary and of a content
comparable to that of traditional academic
programs of study. The rationale should be of no
more than three double-spaced, typewritten pages
in length.
It may be helpful to you and your committee
to view the rationale as consisting of five
components: A) a description of the basic idea
of the program, B) a description of your
objectives and uses for the course of study, C)
a description and justification of the courses
on the course list, D) an overview of the Senior
Project, and E) a justification of your program
as a Special Major.
A. The Basic Idea. Your program must
have a focus that goes beyond that of a single
discipline. The title of your program must
express this interdisciplinary focus. Begin this
essay by stating the subject of your program,
showing how the proposed subject is appropriate
as an interdisciplinary course of study and
providing any information that would be helpful
in understanding both the subject itself and
your reasons for pursuing this study. The latter
may include a description of the interests,
experience, and training that provide you with a
background for the proposed program.
B. Objectives and Uses. The rationale
must contain a statement of your objectives and
uses for the course of study, i.e., the
knowledge and skills you seek from your program
and how you intend to apply them. If you are
undertaking this study to enhance your academic
or career opportunities, state this clearly.
C. Courses. An interdisciplinary
course of study requires the same substance and
breadth found in an established Bachelor's
Degree program in a single subject in a Liberal
Arts Institution. In addition, an
interdisciplinary course of study has a
coherence that a double major or a major and
minor in different subjects does not have. In a
double major, there is no necessity to integrate
the areas of study. In the Special Major, the
necessity to integrate the disciplines from
which you have selected courses is at the very
heart of the program.
Describe the courses in your course list from
the standpoints of how they meet the standards
described above and of what they contribute to
the study of the subject of your program. Be
sure to describe the relationship between the
courses selected for your program of study. The
ITDS Committee attaches great importance to your
ability to demonstrate this relationship and to
show how each course supports the purpose of the
program. List and explain supplementary courses
that are not included in the List of Courses
(Core and Supporting).
D. Senior Project [ITDS 499 (3
units)]. Your Special Major program must
include a Senior Project. The topic of the
Senior Project must be an obvious outcome of
your stated goals and course work; it must bring
together the various aspects of your course of
study. It may be a research paper or a creative
project. It must be limited enough to accomplish
within the given time and unit constraints. It
must be included among the Core courses.
The Senior Project is to be prepared under
the supervision of your faculty committee. It
will be graded by your faculty Committee and
will be described orally to the ITDS Committee
at the completion of your senior year.
Collecting Data from Human Subjects. If your
Senior Project involves the collecting of data
from human subjects, you must familiarize
yourself with the regulations concerning human
subjects and submit a form indicating details
concerning venue, method of collection, etc.
Approval for the collecting of such data must be
given in writing before you begin collection.
Data collected before written authorization is
obtained may not be used. For more information,
contact the Graduate Studies Office.
E. The justification for a Special
Major. Your Special Major must be unique;
you must show that it does not duplicate a
program of study that can be pursued through a
traditional department or program at SSU or at
another university in the service area. It is
your responsibility to consult the catalogs of
SSU and other service area universities and to
confirm that such programs do not exist.
ADDITIONAL MATERIALS
In addition to your application form
and rationale, your application must include the
following:
V. Appropriate forms for all Special
Studies and Internships included in the
Core/Sup-porting List of Courses. The
description of each such course must include the
name and signature of the faculty sponsor and a
statement concerning the purpose, mode of study
and method of evaluation of the special study or
internship. (NB. Special Studies are limited to
a maximum of 4 units per course; a student may
have in all areas for graduation no more than 12
units of Special Studies; a student may not
pursue in Special Studies a course that is
listed in the catalog and that is normally
offered within a two-year period.)
VI. Copies of transcripts of all college
work completed. It is your responsibility to
make available the transcripts, including those
concerning SSU course work.
FORMAT OF THE PROPOSAL
A. The title of your program should not
exceed 65 characters, including spaces and
punctuation marks. (The reason for this
limitation is that 65 is the number of
characters that will fit on a diploma.)
B. Your proposal should not exceed three
double-spaced, typewritten pages.
C. The pages of your proposal must be
numbered.
rev. Sept., 1997
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