Directed individual study explained

Directed individual study (DIS) is a college, university or college preparatory school^[1] level class providing a more in-depth and comprehensive study of a specific topic than is available in the classroom.

Courses may be taken as electives. In some cases, a directed individual study may be:

• a professor-student rendition of a course that will not be offered again before a student graduates
• the college or university department does not have an established course on the subject area
• the student wishes to research an available course in more depth
• a course offered at another college or university that is not a part of the general curriculum.
• courses that may be applied to satisfy the requirements for a Master's degree.

Requirements

In general, a student should have or may have to acquire:

• an earned overall GPA of 3.0 (B) or better
• an earned 90 hours toward graduation
• have registered for a course load of no more than 15 semester hours
• the advance approval of the department head of the department offering the course, and the instructor
• follow an approved course of study of prerequisite or courses.

Process

A student identifies an area in which he or she wishes to undertake research and approaches a faculty member with expertise in that field to request a directed individual study.

The student and instructor complete a DIS form and submit it to the academic coordinator who establishes the course in the registration system. The student often titles his/her own subject area.

The content and requirements of the course are worked out between each instructor and student. Generally, students should not expect a faculty member to agree to a directed individual study unless they have had the student in a regular class and are familiar with that student. The faculty member develops a related syllabus, for review and approval by the department chair and in some cases the dean of the college.

Sources

• University of Missouri-Kansas City, Doctor of Pharmacy
• Washington and Lee University, Department of Accounting
• University of Alabama, Department of Consumer Sciences
• Florida State University, Department of Political Science
• Denison University Registrar's Office. Requirements for Directed/Independent Study
• University of North Carolina-Wilmington, Communications
• Cranbrook Kingswood Upper School Curriculum Guide. (See page 4 for directed study information.)

Notes and References

1. Web site: Archived copy . 2013-12-08 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131212085333/https://schools.cranbrook.edu/ftpimages/209/download/2013-14-Upper-School-Curriculum-Guide.pdf . 2013-12-12 . dead.