University Catalog 2006-2007

University Catalog > LAHS > Interdisciplinary Studies

Interdisciplinary Studies

Web: mais.gmu.edu

Executive Committee

Addleson, Burns, Hirsch, Jordan, Lont, Kidd, Miller, (director), Rodgers, Salmon, Seligmann, Sorrell, Wood, Yocom

Course Work

Students in the master of arts in interdisciplinary studies (MAIS) program do most of their work in courses listed under the disciplines that they integrate through this graduate program. In addition, this program offers courses designated MAIS in the Course Descriptions chapter of this catalog.

Graduate Program

Interdisciplinary Studies, MAIS

This program is for students who seek a master’s degree that integrates knowledge from several disciplines. It addresses the rapidly evolving demand for unique graduate study by promoting advanced scholarship that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.

MAIS offers the following structured interdisciplinary concentrations:

The MAIS also offers students the opportunity to design their own individualized programs to meet the special needs of their careers.

Admission Requirements

Students must show a capacity for original thought in cross-disciplinary research. Students will be admitted only if the program can assign a faculty advisor appropriate for the intended course of study. Applicants must fulfill Mason admission requirements for graduate study. Additional requirements vary by concentration.

Degree Requirements

Students must successfully complete 36 credits of graduate course work. Students must submit a curriculum contract that has been approved by their faculty advisor and the MAIS director. Specific requirements vary by concentration.

Credits that apply to the MAIS degree are subject to the following restrictions:

* Transfer credits are those taken before first enrolling as an admitted degree-seeking student, whether taken at another institution, another Mason graduate program, or completed through Mason’s extended studies program; or credits taken at another institution (with prior MAIS approval) after admission to the MAIS program.

All students complete their work in the program with a project or thesis. Students admitted under this catalog are required to take MAIS 797 Proposal (1 credit) and either MAIS 798 Project (2-5 credits) or MAIS 799 Thesis (5 credits).

Students admitted before fall 2004 are encouraged but not required to take MAIS 797 Proposal.

MAIS Concentration in Anthropology

This concentration prepares students for advanced work in anthropology through courses focusing on the study of culture. The salient features of our epoch—global communications, a world market, mass migrations, and intra- as well as international conflict—underscore the importance of understanding cultures in all their complexity and variety. Anthropology is the study of human similarities and differences, and their impact on a wide range of social phenomena. Anthropologists refine methods uniquely suited to understanding social phenomena at different scales within a historical context, and bring important perspectives to bear on contemporary problems and issues. Frequently, they are able to offer refreshing approaches to resolving problems and conflicts. Especially distinctive is the emphasis among anthropologists on what unites diverse peoples as well as on what distinguishes one culture from another.

In the anthropology concentration, students learn how to use participant-observation fieldwork methods, as well as interdisciplinary, comparative, and holistic knowledge and research methods. Courses are offered in the analysis and understanding of nationalism and transnationalism; social movements, ethnicity, and identity; conflict and violence; migration, displacement, and refugees; political economy and globalization; health and culture; education and culture; and ecology and conservation. As an interdisciplinary concentration, students take courses in a variety of disciplines including sociology, nursing and health science, education, public policy, government, conflict analysis and resolution, environmental science and policy, cultural studies, and English.

Degree Requirements

Students complete 36 credits of core courses and specialized courses distributed as follows:

Concentration in Community College Teaching (Communication, Computer Science, English, Mathematics, Psychology, Spanish or TESL)

The concentration combines 12 credits of college teaching courses (including course work required for the certificate in college teaching) with 21 credits of graduate work in one of the following knowledge areas: communication, computer science, English, mathematics, psychology, Spanish, or teaching English as a second language. This concentration qualifies students to teach entry-level courses in these growing fields at the two-year level. In addition, this MA concentration is an appropriate graduate degree for some faculty currently teaching in community colleges.

Degree Requirements

Students must complete 36 credits of course work, distributed as follows:

College teaching course requirements (12 credits)

Knowledge area course requirements (21 credits):

MAIS Concentration in Folklore

This concentration explores the processes of tradition that move through multiple expressive forms, such as folktales, folk beliefs, folk medicine, folk art, folksong, and literature. A discipline based on ethnographic fieldwork, folklore offers students a chance to work in communities and collect living traditional materials that are critical to human identity and values.

Interdisciplinary by nature, folklore thrives on local particularities as well as compelling global connections. This course of study prepares students for careers in cultural agencies, governmental organizations, and teaching institutions; and for advanced study in the humanities.

Degree Requirements

Students choose a specialization that draws on unique programs throughout Mason, such as museum studies, conflict resolution, nonprofit management, telecommunications, and writing. Internships in the many Washington, D.C., metropolitan area folklore organizations are central to students’ experiences.

Students must successfully complete 36 credits of graduate course work, including the following (at least 6 credits must be taken in courses outside the Department of English):

MAIS Concentration in Higher Education

This concentration prepares individuals for administrative and leadership positions in colleges and universities, and in associations and government agencies whose activities impact higher education. Within the concentration, students may choose to emphasize administration or student affairs.

Degree Requirements

MAIS Individualized Concentration

This concentration is for students who wish to design a graduate program to meet the special needs of their careers and life plans. Students usually choose this option because traditional graduate programs do not meet their specific goals. Students, with help from faculty advisors, design unique programs of study that include courses from several academic departments.

Students must complete a project or thesis that represents the culmination of their program of study. Work on the project or thesis is done under the direction of a faculty committee, usually chaired by the student’s faculty advisor. Project or thesis proposals must be approved by the student committee and the MAIS Executive Committee before students can register for project or thesis credits (MAIS 798, 799). The university thesis requirement for continuous registration also applies to the project.

Degree Requirements

Students have access to most graduate courses offered by Mason; note that all course prerequisites are applicable. Specific courses for an individualized degree vary according to student goals and plans. Each student must submit a curriculum contract, approved by the student advisor and MAIS director, during the first semester enrolled. Any subsequent amendments must have approval of student advisor and MAIS director.

Students must successfully complete 36 credits of graduate course work, including the following:

MAIS Concentration in Religion, Culture, and Values

Degree Requirements

This concentration is designed for students interested in the development and interaction of major religious traditions, which throughout the world continue to influence human self-awareness, identity, culture and values. The two core courses introduce students to the study of religion as a unique and rigorous intellectual discipline. Students will learn to evaluate critically a variety of perspectives on religion. Further, they will gain a clear understanding of the dimension of the sacred in all aspects of human life, including those commonly designated “secular”. Students will discover how religious perceptions of the sacred respond to an evolving world, and how such perceptions relate and influence cultures, institutions, and values. The effects of historical crises and the forces of change on religions, including contemporary religious pluralism and inter- religious dialogue, will also be examined. Students will gain a deeper knowledge of specific traditions, and a more profound understanding of values and worldviews from the viewpoint of cultural diversity and religious pluralism.

MAIS is interdisciplinary in focus, and students in the concentration will be able to take courses in and create specializations that include courses from disciplines such as anthropology, communications, conflict analysis, English, government, history, philosophy, public policy, sociology, and women’s studies. In the four suggested areas of specialization, for example, students could link their religion courses to disciplines that have special relevance to the concentration’s topics.

Students complete their work in this concentration by designing theses or projects that build on all they have learned. A project might focus on an aspect of religious communication in the media, for example, or create a comparative religious database for reporters and commentators. A thesis might address topics such as the possibility of resolving divisive ethical issues by setting them within a comparative religious context, or the effects of globalization on national/ethnic forms of traditional religious expression.

This concentration is particularly applicable but not restricted to careers in law, national and international government, print and media journalism, library sciences, archives and museums, public and social service, teaching, advanced graduate studies and religious communities and institutions. The Washington metropolitan area is rich in the presence of many major religious traditions and their places of worship.

Specializations

6-9 credits required from lists below; should include 3 credits of religion

Other specializations may be developed with approval of the graduate coordinator.

Electives

These courses are chosen in consultation with the student’s advisor, bearing in mind the student’s specialization, project or thesis topic. Any of the courses listed under specializations or courses from other disciplines (below) may be included in the religion, culture, and values concentration. With prior approval, students may take courses through the consortium and use them as electives or for their specialization to round out their program.

Concentration in Video-Based Production

The concentration emphasizes video production that encompasses various components, such as teleconferencing, interactive video, and digital editing. As low-end, high-quality video equipment becomes more affordable, more organizations (for profit and nonprofit) are investing in in-house production studios and staff. Their needs include traditional videography, teleconferencing, interactive video techniques, digital video editing, and multimedia.

Four units offer relevant courses for the concentration. The Communication Department offers courses in the theory and practice of video production. In CEHD, courses in interactive and distance learning provide a background for pedagogy and a wide spectrum of interactive skills. The English Department -offers a course in film theory, and the Art and Visual Technologies Department focuses on computer- mediated visual applications, including the study of multimedia tools and design, digital and electronic art, animation, and virtual -reality.

Students must have a basic knowledge of video production. Students with little or no video experience must take COMM 590 Seminar in Video Production within the first 9 credits of the program. Students with video experience who wish to waive this requirement must provide a videotape of their past work.

Degree Requirements

MAIS Concentration in Women’s Studies

This concentration is for students who wish to explore gender roles and women’s issues from a variety of disciplinary perspectives. The program combines graduate courses in women’s studies with courses in a discipline of interest, such as history, English, sociology, communication, health, education, or public policy. Expertise in the study of gender is increasingly applicable in a variety of professional and academic settings.

Degree Requirements

Students complete 36 credits of core courses and specialized courses, selected in consultation with an advisor, distributed as follows:

MAIS Concentration in Zoo and Aquarium Leadership

This program prepares students for advanced careers in modern, professional zoos and aquariums. The curriculum is designed to enhance relevant social and analytical skills involving critical thinking, problem solving, information technology, and group interaction, as well as advance necessary skills in leadership, and fiscal and personnel management.

This degree offers three specializations within the concentration (see web site for full description): leadership in zoo and aquarium collections management, leadership in zoo and aquarium administration, and leadership in zoo and aquarium conservation education.

Degree Requirements

Students must successfully complete 36 credits of graduate course work, including the following: