Interdisciplinary Studies in Culture and Society

Interdisciplinary Studies in Culture and Society is the only major at Emory University that allows students to structure their own program of study around a field of interests that they themselves define. It is designed for independently minded students who wish to study culture and society but whose interests are broader than those accommodated by a single discipline. As part of the major, students are permitted to take courses in a number of departments, provided they meet appropriate departmental prerequisites.

Framing Courses
The major is in two parts: framing courses and concentration courses. The framing courses help students do two things: 1) examine how disciplines became ways of creating and organizing knowledge; and 2) examine how culture has been defined, and how assumptions about culture and society work in cross-cultural contexts.

Student Designed Concentration
The concentration courses allow a major to pursue questions of culture and knowledge in an area defined by the student in consultation with a faculty advisor. The concentration can be defined as a field, such as Asian or African Studies, religion, politics, social responsibility, literature, humanities and the sciences or culture, or it can be focused around a set of issues, such as the concept gender and race, or mass media and the entertainment industry. It may be as broad as the classics of western tradition, or as contemporary as theories of the post-colonial world.

Senior Project
A tutorial in the spring of the junior year allows majors to learn specific research methods and approaches. In the following spring, each major works with a faculty member in a tutorial that focuses his/her interests on the design of a senior project. The student works independently for course credit during the senior year to complete the project. The project itself usually takes the form of a traditional research paper.

Requirements for the Major
In addition to the language requirement, a total of 12 courses (48 semester hours) is required for the major in Interdisciplinary Studies in Culture and Society.

Frame Courses
IDS 213, Politics of Identity or IDS 214, Making History or AMST 212, American Identities

IDS 210, Culture of the University or IDS 216, Visual Culture

Any IDS 300-level course

IDS 390, Interdisciplinary Studies Tutorial

IDS 499, Senior Research or IDS 495R, Honors

Concentration Courses
Seven courses in a designed area of concentration designed by the student in consultation with a faculty advisor. At least one of these must focus on a culture that is not western. Courses may be drawn from IDS offerings and from any combination of departments within the college that are appropriate to the concentration area, assuming that the student meets any prerequisites for taking courses outside IDS. The work in this area culminates in the interdisciplinary research project.

What Do I DO with an IDS Major?
The IDS major provides rigorous training in critical thought and writing. Because it demands independence and creativity, IDS makes students attractive to employers in business, non-profit organizations, business, and many other career structures where flexibility and problem-solving are required. IDS can work for students preparing for professional schools. Provided that they fulfill the basic requirements for entry into such professional schools along with their major requirements, IDS majors stand out in admissions competitions as individuals with unusual and interesting backgrounds. Graduate school is an option, too, provided the student takes some courses in the disciplinary area of interest for graduate study.

For more information on specific courses offered, please visit our Spring 2008 Course Atlas or our Fall 2008 Course Atlas. For more information, contact the Undergraduate Administrative Assistant.