Interdisciplinary Studies (INTR)

All summer research students living on campus will register for this course before starting their projects on campus. Personal schedules will be determined by their individual faculty mentors. No grade will be assigned for this course.

An exploration of significant questions and integrative concepts in Interdisciplinary Studies, their grounding in the process of scientific discovery and application, and their broader relevance to society. Designed for first-year students. Although topics vary, the courses also seek to improve students’ communication skills beyond the written word.

Wellness Applications are one-credit, pass/fail courses that provide students with sustained and engaged wellness experiences, as well as perspective on associated history, philosophical, and health considerations. There will be several Applications each semester on topics such as creative arts, yoga, bicycling, outdoor experiences, and mindfulness. Students may only register for one Wellness Application course in each semester, however the course may be repeated in future semesters if the topic varies.

This course will explore visual art and how it connects to our well-being. Students will experiment with various art mediums such as drawing, painting, and sculpture with a focus on their applications to promote wellness with different populations and settings. The course will combine academic and experiential content. Students may register for only ONE INTR 110 course per semester. Course may not be repeated.

This class will focus on learning mindfulness meditation techniques, the benefits to the body as it cultivates resilience, and the neuroscience that surrounds the meditation with enhancing well-being. Students will be guided in the development of several meditation techniques. Class sessions will include practicing techniques, discussion, and identifying ways to use mindfulness meditation in everyday life. Students may register for only ONE INTR 110 course per semester. Course may not be repeated.

This course will integrate academic content with an opportunity to practice yoga. Students will examine the practice, philosophy, and study of yoga through development of a basic yoga practice that will be personalized to students' unique abilities. Students may register for only ONE INTR 110 course per semester. Course may not be repeated.

An exploration of interdisciplinary topics in a seminar format. A grade of C- or better fulfills the COLL 150 requirement. Although topics vary, the courses emphasize academic writing skills, reading and analysis of texts, and discussion.

This course’s academic content will introduce students to some Scottish history and literature: Arthur Herman’s How the Scots Invented the Modern World, some literature by Walter Scott, Robert Burns, James Hogg, and R.L. Stevenson. It will also fulfill the DIL requirement through assignments that require students to do research online, construct a digital project, and offer a PowerPoint presentation to the class (all students also complete the College Studies course in the summer)

This course is part informational and part academic, and is designed for first year Joint Degree Programme students to prepare them for their second year abroad. The course’s theme is “Transitions” and looks at people and characters who are experiencing two (or more) different cultures. Along with academic content and assignments, there will be guest speakers on topics relevant to the students' transition and to help answer their questions and address concerns.

The Sharpe Community Scholars Program strives to support the development of select students through the integration of academic studies, research and community engagement. INTR190 (1 credit; Pass/Fail) is required of Sharpe Scholars in both Fall and Spring semesters. Sharpe: Intro to Action Research is a course designed to prepare scholars to explore civic and community engagement interests at W&M and in greater Williamsburg, and engage action research experiences to build knowledge and skills development for community-based research.  (This is a co-curricular course with an assigned Sharpe COLL100/150 in the program.)

This class examines how, during the past two hundred years, science has both promoted and debunked the idea of race and racial hierarchy. We will read primary scientific texts in order to, first, see how what counts as “scientific knowledge” has changed during the past two centuries. Second, see how scientists have dealt with the problem of explicit or implicit value judgments in scientific research regarding race. Third, to discover how different scientific methdologies have developed over time. Last, to learn some basics of evolutionary biology from Darwin through the Modern Evolutionary Synthesis of the 20th century.

This course will provide an introduction to the fundamentals of geospatial technologies, including using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Global Positioning Systems (GPS), basics of cartography, remote sensing and spatial analysis. Emphasis will be on hands-on application of these technologies to create maps, to organize and visualize spatial data, and to utilize spatial data to analyze and address social, economic, political and environmental issues.

This seminar, held in the Muscarelle Museum of Art, emphasizes the role of the curator in the museum field, especially in the areas of exhibition, preparation, cataloguing, and public speaking. Through exploration of the Muscarelle permanent collection, seminar students will also gain practical curatorial training in primary source research that will provide a foundation in the knowledge and skills expected of museum professionals. Lectures by the Museum’s permanent staff will broaden the students’ knowledge of the inner-workings of a museum and the variety of skillsets required in a productive and attractive museum. Students may take this course two times for credit, making it possible for them to work with additional materials for exhibition and to learn more about connoisseurship curation.

Students completing summer research projects that are funded through the Charles Center will enroll in this 0-credit course as a record of their participation. Summer research will be noted on the transcript. Course may be repeated.

This course guides students in reflecting on the academic and professional value of their undergraduate research experience. Through structured reflection, faculty mentoring, and guided activities, students identify and describe the transferable skills developed through their work and consider how their research informs their academic goals and potential career paths. Students synthesize these insights in preparation for sharing their research with the broader audiences—on campus and beyond. Note: course is graded on a Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory basis.

Students completing summer research projects that are funded through the Charles Center will enroll in this 0-credit course as a record of their participation. Summer research will be noted on the transcript. Course may be repeated.

Pre-Req: Completion of a career/internship prep program through Career Development is required. Students completing a summer internship for which they will receive a scholarship through the Charles Center, the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement, FUSE, or Strategic Cultural Partnerships may enroll in this 0-credit course. The internship will be noted on the transcript. Students must complete designated a internship preparation program through the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement prior to enrollment, which is by instructor permission. Students may not register for both INTR 290 and INTR 297.

This course integrates students’ summer internship experiences with their academic and professional development. Through faculty mentorship, reflective assignments, and asynchronous modules, students will connect their academic interests, personal values, and professional goals while assessing how their internship informs future academic and  career pathways. The course culminates in preparing for the Internship & Applied Learning Showcase, where students communicate key insights from their experience to the campus community. Students must complete designated asynchronous internship preparation modules through the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement prior to enrollment, which is by instructor permission. Note: Course is graded on a Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory basis.

Pre-Req: Completion of a career/internship prep program through Career Development is required. Students completing a summer internship for which they will receive a scholarship through the Charles Center, the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement, FUSE, or Strategic Cultural Partnerships may enroll in this 0-credit course. The internship will be noted on the transcript. Students must complete designated a internship preparation program through the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement prior to enrollment, which is by instructor permission. Students may not register for both INTR 290S and INTR 297.

Students completing an internship during the fall or spring semester for which they will receive a scholarship through the Charles Center, the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement, FUSE, or Strategic Cultural Partnerships may enroll in this 0-credit course. The internship will be noted on the transcript. Students must complete a designated internship preparation program through the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement prior to enrollment, which is by instructor permission.  

Students completing an internship during the fall or spring semester for which they will receive a scholarship through the Charles Center, the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement, FUSE, or Strategic Cultural Partnerships may enroll in this 0-credit course. The internship will be noted on the transcript. Students must complete a designated internship preparation program through the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement prior to enrollment, which is by instructor permission.  

This course is directly affiliated with the W&M Sharpe Participatory Mapping Project (hereinafter referred to as the Sharpe Mapping project), led by Dr. Monica D. Griffin and Dr. Shannon White. Students will have the opportunity to use GIS mapping tools (such as ArcGIS and StoryMaps) to make sense of qualitative and quantitative data about WJCC and surrounding areas, organizations, and communities. They will identify and document the particular ways that W&M is situated within a broader system of relationships in Williamsburg-James City County; and they will interact with others (e.g. residents, scholars, leaders, etc.) in local settings to imagine and invite new ways of engaging the region’s past, present, and future for addressing social issues.

This course combines an internship experience with academic reflection and is intended for students who have not yet declared a major, who are doing an internship outside of their major, or who do not have an internship course option in their major. Students will develop academic tools to contextualize their summer internship experiences. In a mentored cohort setting, students will engage in readings, discussions, and reflection exercises that analyze their internship experiences, organizations, and host communities. Coursework will illuminate intersections among students’ values, experiences, and academic training to help them assess their internship and its degree of alignment with their personal identities, cultural values, and intellectual and professional aspirations. Students must complete a designated career preparation program through the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement prior to enrollment, which is by instructor permission. Students cannot register for both INTR 290 and INTR 297.

This course is designed specifically for students going on one of the W&M Study Abroad experiences and is intended to enhance a student's cross-cultural understanding and experience, and to cover a variety of pre-departure questions. This course will include substantive academic content. May be repeated for credit.

Emerging Research in Action will challenge students to engage, evaluate, and produce social knowledge in active experiential learning contexts such as educational, corporate, non-profit, and governmental organizations, or also community, grassroots, or neighborhood organizing with defined parameters for action and learning. As an online, asynchronous course, Emerging Research is especially suitable for students who will be involved in community-based research, summer internships or sustained activism or volunteerism within communities throughout the third summer school session at William and Mary. Students are NOT required to be located in Williamsburg, VA or the U.S. continent for enrollment; asynchronous accommodations will be made for students’ whose experiences are outliers to U.S. time zones. However, consistent Internet access is required.

Course Objectives: to gain an understanding of the role of libraries and information in American culture and society today; to acquire a theoretical and logical approach to information gathering; to learn the practical skills of identifying, locating, evaluating, and effectively using print and electronic information sources.

Three-week intensive course straddling art and science. Motivated by the science of complex systems thinking, students will create sculptures interacting with the landscape of Matoaka Woods. This course will foster a creative, interdisciplinary, and reciprocal dialogue between artists and scientists.

This topics course allows students to study interdisciplinary material at an intermediate level.

Intensive seminar on pilgrimage studies in Santiago, Spain, a major goal of Christian quests in a medieval and modern times. Interdisciplinary approaches to travel for transformation in diverse traditions through an examination of history, monuments, and current religious and touristic practices.

Intensive guided field research on pilgrimage studies and practices In Santiago, Spain, or on the pilgrimage trails leading to its shrine. Interdisciplinary approaches to travel for transformation through mentored data collection and analysis on history, monuments, and current religious and touristic practices.

This course is the first part of the two-semester Sharp Seminar in Journalism, a collaboration between W&M’s Charles Center and the Pulitzer Center. Students learn how to translate their academic interests into journalistic work and to communicate with audiences beyond the academic world. The course meets as an all-day intensive seminar on two Sundays, with other required check-in meetings scheduled around student schedules. During the fall semester, students learn the basics of journalism, develop a topic of interest, and begin the groundwork of their reporting under the guidance and mentorship of professional journalists through the Pulitzer Center. Students will also apply to the Charles Center for support for a reporting trip over the winter break. Admission to the Sharp Seminar is by application to the Charles Center during the spring semester prior to the academic year of enrollment in the program.

This course is the second part of the two-semester Sharp Seminar in Journalism, a collaboration between W&M’s Charles Center and the Pulitzer Center. The course meets as an all-day intensive seminar on one Sunday, with other required check-in meetings and a showcase presentation scheduled around student schedules. The spring semester focuses on developing, writing, and editing students’ journalistic stories for a public audience. At the end of the spring, student stories are eligible to be published on the Pulitzer Center's website. Admission to the Sharp Seminar is by application to the Charles Center during the spring semester prior to the academic year of enrollment in the program.

For majors who have completed most of their major requirements and who have secured approval of the Committee on Honors and Interdisciplinary Studies and that of the instructor(s) concerned. An interdisciplinary major may include no more than six hours of Independent Study.

The Civic Agency Project (CAP) is an undergraduate think tank that focuses on problems of civic engagement and democratic leadership. Based at the Roy R. Charles Center for Academic Excellence at the College of William & Mary, CAP is designed to bridge the gap between academic learning and civic engagement. The project educates students in multi-disciplinary approaches to democratic engagement that are centered in the liberal arts, while emphasizing the leadership virtues of compassion, intellectual openness, self-awareness, public-mindedness, and personal integrity. It combines both experiential and curricular opportunities designed to facilitate the creation of projects that will uncover, explore, and act on the problems of contemporary democratic life. Finally, it offers students opportunities to connect with civically engaged scholars, expert mentors, and a strong, supportive community of their peers. CAP fellows will identify key issues related to civic engagement and will develop projects designed with the goal of reinvigorating our democratic virtues, practices, and institutions. Undergraduate fellows will have the opportunity to present their projects to the William & Mary community at an end-of-the-year symposium.

Students admitted to Interdisciplinary Honors will be enrolled in this course during both semesters of their senior year. Each candidate will be responsible for: (a) formulating a program of study in consultation with a faculty advisor; (b) submission of an Honors essay two weeks before the last day of classes of the semester in which the essay is being completed; (c) satisfactory performance in an oral examination on the subject matter of the Honors essay. The procedures and standards for Interdisciplinary Honors will be those in force in the department of the students primary faculty advisor. The primary faculty advisor, with the approval of CHIS, may make appropriate changes to those procedures and standards. Requests for these exceptions must accompany the student’s proposal to do Honors.

Students admitted to Interdisciplinary Honors will be enrolled in this course during both semesters of their senior year. Each candidate will be responsible for: (a) formulating a program of study in consultation with a faculty advisor; (b) submission of an Honors essay two weeks before the last day of classes of the semester in which the essay is being completed; (c) satisfactory performance in an oral examination on the subject matter of the Honors essay. The procedures and standards for Interdisciplinary Honors will be those in force in the department of the students primary faculty advisor. The primary faculty advisor, with the approval of CHIS, may make appropriate changes to those procedures and standards. Requests for these exceptions must accompany the student’s proposal to do Honors.

This course provides students with an opportunity to earn credit for an internship in the D.C. Semester Program. It is designed to help students synthesize their experiences and be able to clearly articulate what they learn with, and from, others. Students in this course should be interning 30-35 hours per week for the duration of the semester in order to complete the class assignments. Assignments include two supervisor evaluations with response papers and a culminating project.

This course provides students with an opportunity to intentionally reflect upon and apply knowledge gained from DC Semester Program internship experiences to make connections for lives and careers beyond W&M. Students in this course should be interning 30-35 per week for the duration of the semester in order to complete the class assignments. Using NACE core competencies as a framework, students will explore professional skills, organizational cultures, and personal values. Online asynchronous modules paired with in-person discussion sessions and weekly journals will allow students to reflect on their internship experiences.

This course is designed for students participating in the D.C. Summer Institutes. The aim of this course is further students’ understanding of professional competencies and to help students think critically about the skills gained in their summer internship. In this course, students will be responsible for observing, analyzing, and reflecting on their professional experiences.