Faculty-Initiated Interdisciplinary Courses - University at Albany-SUNY

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# Faculty-Initiated Interdisciplinary Courses

The Interdisciplinary Studies Committee has approved the following Faculty-Initiated Interdisciplinary Courses. Some are not offered on a regular basis and, therefore, the schedule of classes should be consulted to determine if a course is being offered. The instructor should be contacted for further information about the course.

U UNI 150 Selected Interdisciplinary Topics (1–4; as approved)
Experimental class, the subject varying with instructors and the term offered. Course is designed to present a large body of information without expecting a mastery of detail (e.g., as in a survey course) or to present general theoretical or methodological approaches (e.g., as in a foundations course). See special announcements of courses to be offered under this heading. May be repeated for credit if content varies. Topic must be approved by the Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education and the Interdisciplinary Studies Committee of the Undergraduate Academic Council. Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor.
U UNI 240 The Research Journey (3)
This course is aimed at freshmen and sophomores with an interest in research. This will be an interdisciplinary course, exploring the rigor and principles of research across disciplines - from social studies, to arts, to humanities, to nursing, to natural and physical sciences. The purpose is not to explore how research is conducted in any single discipline, but to facilitate an understanding of how researchers identify and define problems and the discipline that lies behind imagining research. The course will empower students to think of research communities as cultures with unique vocabulary, rituals, norms, and best practices. Readings will be diverse, taken from a range of disciplinary specializations. The course will accomplish four objectives: (1) inspire excitement about the research process; (2) dissuade students of the inviolability of rigid disciplinary boundaries; (3) instill comfort with the (seemingly arcane) terminology and concepts of research; and (4) expand perception of the range of domains in need of informed researchers.
U UNI 250 Becoming a Researcher (3)
This course will prepare freshmen and sophomores to participate in research, individually, in groups, or with supervising faculty. The course will introduce students to the common steps in the research process, and how they apply across disciplines. Students will learn how to define problems across disciplines, the research designs commonly adopted across disciplines, and the commonly adopted methods of analyzing qualitative and quantitative data. The purpose of the course will be to empower students to participate with confidence in the various formal and co-curricular learning environments that characterize a Research I university. The course will accomplish four objectives: (1) recognize the similarities and distinctions in research across disciplines; (2) identify how to define a research problem; (3) understand the commonly adopted research designs across disciplines, and how to select among designs; and (4) become exposed to the commonly adopted analysis procedures of both quantitative and qualitative data, across disciplines.

U UNI 310 (= A BIO 311 & A GOG 310) World Food Crisis (3)
Interdisciplinary approach to understanding world food problems through analyses of social, political, economic, nutritional, agricultural, and environmental aspects of world hunger. Faculty from several departments in the sciences, humanities, and social and behavioral sciences present views from various disciplines. Only one version of U UNI 310 may be taken for credit. Prerequisite(s): junior or senior standing, or permission of instructor.

U UNI 350 Selected Interdisciplinary Topics (1–4; as approved)
Experimental class, the subject varying with instructors and the term offered. Course content should be beyond the introductory or survey level and the course should require prior academic achievement and/or experience related to the topic. May be repeated when content varies. Topic must be approved by the Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Education and the Interdisciplinary Studies Committee of the Undergraduate Academic Council. Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor.

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