Undergraduate Degree Program
The School of Interdisciplinary Studies provides an interdisciplinary environment that allows students to understand and integrate the liberal arts and sciences. The school administers interdisciplinary degree programs that afford students the opportunity to design their degree plans on an individualized basis. To assist the student in pursuing a course of study leading to successful completion of a degree, the school provides a unique support structure. Included in this structure is the school’s Internship program that arranges professional work experience in diverse career settings. The educational environment of Interdisciplinary Studies is especially congenial to students eager to pursue unconventional or innovative combinations of course work.
The program in American Studies focuses on the cultures, institutions, arts, structure and social processes of the United States. It emphasizes interdisciplinary work which integrates disciplinary perspectives. Students choose two broad areas within which to work.
Each student designs his or her own program, within specific guidelines, in consultation with a faculty advisor. The courses a student takes as part of the American Studies program may be given in any school within the university, but will include American Studies courses and appropriate Interdisciplinary Studies courses. A list of courses which apply to the American Studies degree and updated lists may be obtained in the Academic Advising offices. Double majors including American Studies are available.
Undergraduate degrees in Interdisciplinary Studies emphasize a broader learning experience and wider perspective than that provided by traditional undergraduate majors. They are designed to offer the student the opportunity to participate in an interdisciplinary, coherent, academically sound, and goal-oriented education directly relevant to the student’s intellectual development and career aspirations. They are appropriate for those students who seek a thorough grounding in the traditional arts and sciences from an interdisciplinary perspective.
The Bachelor of Science degree in Healthcare Studies is a well-rounded degree that prepares students for future training as well as employment in the health care industry. The program provides the academic foundation for pre-health students to prepare for advanced study as well as the essential knowledge components in health care studies.
Science coursework includes biology, chemistry and physics. Health care studies include pre-health professional development, a healthcare internship, medical terminology, psychological aspects of health and illness, understanding of the U.S. health care system, patient education, and prevention.
The American Studies minor focuses on the cultures, institutions, arts, structures and social processes within the United States. This 18-hour interdisciplinary minor requires upper-level courses from American studies, gender studies and interdisciplinary studies. It will help prepare students for careers ranging from business and non-profit organizations to the media and cultural industries, as well as for continued study in graduate and professional programs.
The Healthcare Studies minor is designed for students of any major who are interested in pursuing a career in a healthcare-related field. Students will learn important aspects of the health profession, including proper terminology and fundamentals of professionalism, gain understanding of essential biological and medical principles related to human health and disease, and primary aspects of the history and philosophy of healthcare in America. This minor is appropriate for pre-health students, as well as those interested in the allied health fields such as physical therapy and clinical nutrition, public health and counseling.
This 18 hour minor in Exercise Sciences is ideal for students who are interested in broadening their experience and knowledge base in the study and analysis of principles related to human movement, exercise and athletics. Students will acquire new information on key domains of the field including exercise physiology, psychological approach to health, nutrition principles and injury prevention and treatment strategies. Specifically, the minor provides students with an introductory grounding in physiologic principles that help us understand not only how human systems respond to exercise stress, but also how the body changes with chronic exercise stress.
This minor will provide students from all majors with a better understanding of environmental issues and the skills to analyze future environmental problems. The name “Environmental Studies” reflects the goal of this interdisciplinary minor to encourage students to learn to view environmental issues from scientific, political, and social standpoints. The 18-hour Environmental Studies minor enables UT Dallas students to develop expertise in this important area. The framework provides all students with a policy and science perspective and allows students to tailor the minor, through choice of electives, to their individual goals. Students will be strongly encouraged to include an Environmental Studies Internship in their minor though it may not be possible for all students.
The Environmental Studies minor will be housed within the School of Interdisciplinary Studies with a Supervisory Committee consisting of Dr. Elizabeth Salter and the professors of the two required courses, Dr. Lloyd Dumas and Dr. Lynn Melton.
The minor in Gender Studies is designed to examine the ways in that gender as a complex social construction intersects with class, race, age, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, and sexual identity; to examine the lives and experiences of groups that have been underrepresented in traditional academic work; and to acquaint students with the fundamental methodologies of women’s and gender studies.