Integrated Science

Shannon Jones, Coordinator (Biology)

The Integrated Science minor is designed for the student interested in an interdisciplinary approach to science. The over-arching theme is exploring the richness of types of problems that may be approached using a combination of sciences rather than one alone. Research experience is the cornerstone of the minor.

Coursework for the minor falls chronologically into three categories. In their first two years, students will typically take the Science, Math, and Research Training (SMART) courses, plus PHYS 131. The SMART classes are structured around common themes that allow students to study topics in depth and from the perspectives of several scientific disciplines. The follow-up for each set of introductory science courses is the Research Training Seminar (IDST 284). Students not enrolled in SMART during the freshman year may qualify for the minor by taking the first course in the major in each of the five core disciplines as listed below and then enrolling in the Research Training Seminar (IDST 284). This seminar focuses on how interdisciplinary research programs are constructed and the types of problems that can be addressed using this approach.

During their junior and senior years, students will take two interdisciplinary courses that focus on a topic from at least 2 different disciplinary perspectives. Students are encouraged to check with the coordinator regarding a list of approved courses. The third component of the minor is the Senior Research Seminar (IDST 484). This is a literature-based course, for seniors only, that allows students to knit together their own research experiences with an in depth study of scientific papers on current interdisciplinary research or an independent project of their design that integrates a study of primary literature with some aspect of interdisciplinary research.