Interdisciplinary & Independent Studies

A Bridgewater education is marked not just by expertise in a particular subject area, but by the ability to engage multiple areas of interest, integrate new ideas into existing understandings, and draw connections between diverse fields of knowledge. Because they include courses from multiple departments, interdisciplinary programs provide curricular structures for exploring subjects that do not fit well within traditional academic boundaries, and allow students to practice managing complex perspectives, ideas, and theoretical frameworks. Independent studies courses provide opportunities for students to work with a faculty member to create flexible classes tailored to precise interests and talents.

Internships, Independent Studies/Research and Honors Projects

480X Internship

Provides an opportunity for a student to gain field experience in an area related to the student's program of study or career goals. The learning objectives for internships include connecting academic knowledge and problem-solving processes to experiences and problems in professional settings. Supervision of an intern is provided by an appropriate faculty member and by a site supervisor of the agency or business in which the student is an intern. A student who wishes to engage in an internship must consult with the appropriate faculty member at least eight weeks in advance of the start of the term in which the internship is to be completed. A description of the internship, signed by the student and the faculty sponsor, must be filed with the director of internships by the first day of the semester prior to the start of the internship. Approval of each application for an internship is made by the director of internships based upon approved policies and guidelines. Internships are graded on an S or U basis. Students must complete 120 hours of internship-related work as well as weekly journal entries and a final reflective paper completed in accordance with approved requirements. A student may enroll in an internship program for 3 credits per semester, and internship credit may be earned in subsequent semesters subject to the limitations that no more than two internships may be pursued in any one agency or business and a maximum of 9 credits in internships may be applied toward graduation.

490, 491 Independent Study/Research

Upon approval of the department and the division head, a student with a cumulative grade point average of 2.20 or better may engage in an independent study or research project. One desiring to pursue independent study or research must submit a written description of the proposed work to the chair of the appropriate department and to the appropriate division head prior to the last day of the drop and add period for the semester in which the study is to be conducted. At the end of the semester, the supervising professor files with the registrar a grade for the student and a description of the work accomplished. Credit may be received for not more than three independent studies or research projects.

499 Honors Project

An honors project is one in which a student researches a subject, by examination of relevant literature or by experimentation or both; the student reports the results in an accurately documented and well-written paper or appropriate representation of the work. Whenever the study deals with the subject of an established course, the student is expected to go well beyond the usual work of the course in research and in assimilation of the results as revealed in the report. Juniors and seniors with a cumulative grade point average of 3.40 or above may register for an honors project. One desiring to pursue an honors project must submit a written description of his or her proposed work to the chair of the appropriate department and to the appropriate division head prior to the last day of the drop and add period for the semester in which the study is to be conducted. Upon the completion of the Honors Project, the student must present an oral defense of his or her project. The final grade must include a satisfactory performance on the oral defense, assessed by a three-faculty member team. The Project Advisor will authorize the make-up of the oral defense team and will assign the final grade on the project. The honors project title will be noted on the student?s transcript. It is the student?s responsibility to provide a copy of the written paper or appropriate representation of the work to the library in compliance with specifications approved by the Council on Education. The library director arranges for binding and storage.

The Flory Honors Program is for students who:

• have outstanding academic records and find excitement and stimulation in the learning process
• want to develop the skills for independent inquiry and research necessary for excelling in graduate and professional schools
• crave the opportunity to be creative and to develop the capacity to meet new challenges
• want to push the boundaries of knowledge and explore uncharted intellectual territory
• want to be part of a social and academic community of motivated learners

The Flory Honors Program is an honors program consisting of stimulating and interesting opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. In the curricular element of the program, students who matriculate as first-year students take a minimum of five honors designated courses, plus an honors project and the capstone seminar (IDS-470H: Senior Capstone Seminar), for seven courses total. First year students begin the program with an honors section of FILA-150 (Critical Inquiry in the Liberal Arts), the College’s first-year seminar.

Students who matriculate as transfer students complete the following requirements based on the number of credits transferred.

• Students who matriculate with at least 30 transfer credits must complete 6 honors designated 3 credit courses (including capstone and honors project) prior to graduation.
• Students who matriculate with at least 60 transfer credits must complete 4 honors designated 3 credit courses (including capstone and honors project) prior to graduation.

A student may become a member of the Flory Fellows in the following ways:

• Bridgewater applicants who have a minimum 3.8 high school grade point average (GPA) with strong SAT scores and transfer students with a high GPA in college courses receive an invitation from the provost and vice president for academic affairs.
• Enrolled students in either the second semester of their first year or the first semester of their sophomore year with a Bridgewater College GPA of 3.5 or higher may be nominated by a faculty member.

Flory Honors Program Course Options

A variety of options are offered for completing the honors course requirements. The most common path is taking an honors section of an existing course offered for the general education, major or elective credit. Honors courses are different in that they provide greater opportunity for students to develop their capacities for creativity, independent learning and leadership.

In addition to honors designated courses, another possibility is completing an honors upgrade to a non-honors course. In an honors upgrade, students work closely with faculty to build an additional honors component to the course that expands upon the course material in creative and challenging ways.