Course Descriptions

This course introduces students to the various stages of the research process and provides them with an understanding of the different methods used to conduct research commonly used in the humanities, social sciences and related fields of study. Primarily qualitative in emphasis, the course focuses on the techniques and protocols associated with interviewing, observation, content analysis, and handling materials found in archives and special collections.

This course introduces students to the various stages of the research process and provides them with an understanding of quantitative research methods and allied mathematical and statistical concepts which will enable students to engage in undergraduate research and work effectively with data. Specifically, students will acquire the knowledge and ability to apply quantitative methods to research that includes gathering and interpreting data.

Working with local museums, archives, galleries, and community-based organizations, students will build their own virtual exhibition. Students will work independently and in small groups to research their objects’ provenance and original cultural, social, historical, ethnographic, and scientific contexts. The research, documentation, and presentation process will assist in the development of research skills and cross-disciplinary critical analysis.

Methods of Inquiry is a project‐based course in which students develop a plan for an independent research project emerging from their own personal research interests. The course opens with an interrogation of how meaning is created through the research process, drawing on a variety of perspectives from the social sciences, sciences, and humanities. After critically reflecting on how knowledge is constructed, students will be asked to think deeply about what research they might undertake in their graduating projects. In advance of identifying potential strategies for their own research, students will examine and assess the methodological principles and choices informing past student projects.

This course explores topics from an interdisciplinary perspective. Drawing on the disciplines traditionally housed in the Arts and Sciences, individual offerings of the course engage in a sustained examination of a range of historical, theoretical and current issues relevant to the selected topic. The course topic will typically correspond with the Liberal Studies term theme - e.g. sustainability, memory, and revolution.

This course explores contemporary issues from an interdisciplinary perspective. Drawing upon the arts, sciences, and related fields of study, individual offerings of the course will engage in a sustained examination of a range of historical, theoretical and current issues relevant to the selected topic and/or the current Liberal Studies term theme - e.g. sustainability, memory, and revolution.