After the completion of the freshman year, students with a cumulative 3.25 or above academic average may devise a course in an area of study in which they are interested, but which is not fully available in the existing curriculum. The development of the course must be done in concert with the faculty member who will supervise the work, and the proposed course of study must be approved by the Curriculum Committee prior to its initiation. An independent study proposal should be developed and submitted collaboratively by the student and faculty mentor.
When submitting the proposal to the Curriculum Committee the documentation must contain:
- the names of the student and the faculty mentor;
- the semester the course is to be offered;
- a brief description of the topic of the course;
- a reading list and/or other material to be covered;
- a summary of assignments the student will be expected to produce – this should include a description of the culminating experience;
- a statement on the kind of supervision the mentor will provide the student during the semester;
- the criteria of evaluation; and, if applicable
- the general education requirements with appropriate documentation;
- the major or minor requirements the course will fulfill with appropriate documentation.
- the signatures of the student, faculty mentor, the department or program chair;
- a well-written 1-2 paragraph rationale for the course prepared by the student.
Students may enroll in no more than two independent study courses per academic year up to a maximum of six such courses. In exceptional cases, students with less than a cumulative 3.25 academic average may be declared eligible to enroll in an independent study course upon the recommendation of the appropriate departmental chair and the approval of the Curriculum Committee. Independent study courses must be Randolph-Macon work.