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Independent Study for Course Credit in the School of
Business
What is an Independent
Study?
In an
Independent Study Course, a full-time faculty member acts as guide,
mentor or facilitator on a study project initiated by the student.
The final design of the course plan may be worked out between
faculty member and student, but it is the students’ responsibility
to make the initial proposal, to approach a suitable faculty
sponsor, and to manage their own work throughout the assigned
timeframe.
Who is eligible?
Any Rutgers student
studying business as their major or as a minor is eligible to
request an independent study, when they have Junior or Senior status
(having completed at least 52 credit hours). Additionally, a current
GPA of at least 3.0 is strongly encouraged.
Are there other
restrictions related to taking an Independent Study?
No more
than 6 credits of Independent Study can be counted toward graduation
requirements AND no more than 3 credits can be counted in an area of
specialization (see catalog for identification of specializations in
each major).
Other things to consider?
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There is
no requirement that faculty members take on Independent Studies and
they receive no compensation for doing so. Providing this type of
mentoring is a personal investment based on confidence that the
student will effectively manage the process and produce high quality
work. Just as with any other professional mentoring situation, it’s
important that the student recognize this placement of trust and
make every effort to meet or exceed expectations.
▪
The
information in this document is for Independent Study Course Credit
described below in two variations, one of which is a proposal for
research. The School of Business course offerings also include an
Honors Thesis option for a 6-credit research project supervised by a
faculty member. The Honors Thesis is separate and distinct from a
standard Independent Study, and information on that option is
available elsewhere.
What is necessary to put
forward a proposal?
Following are four recommended
steps to take the student from an idea through the proposal and to
enrollment in an Independent Study.
STEP #1.
Two of the most common types of independent study are shown below
with specific features to include in a written proposal. Whether the
independent study proceeds as originally proposed is subject to
negotiation between the student and the faculty sponsor, but it is
the students’ responsibility to initiate the discussion with strong
documentation of intent.
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A proposal for
Research
with a Faculty
Member:
a.
Specify a research question – a clear
statement of the specific issues you plan to investigate and
why this is interesting and important. The question should
have both practical and theoretical significance
b.
Provide background to this question in
a brief summary of previous related research. Include a
reference list from both academic journals (e.g., Journal of
Finance & Economics, Journal of Consumer Research, Journal
of Business Ethics) and business publications (e.g., The
Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Fortune).
c.
Explain the methodology you plan to use
in your investigation of the topic (i.e. surveys, readings,
interviews, etc.). The more detail you can provide, the
better.
d.
Provide a clear timeline that shows
responsibility for deliverables on specific dates throughout
the time of the project. These might include deadlines for
written work or presentations, or scheduled progress
meetings at which to review specific portions of the work
and receive feedback.
e.
Describe the anticipated benefits of
the project – the expected outcomes for your own learning
and its fit in your educational program, as well as the
potential contribution of resulting information for other
researchers and business people.
(for this type of
project, you would seek out a faculty member who does
related research) |
A proposal to study
specific information for which no class is currently
offered:
a.
Describe the body of knowledge you want
to study, including why this is important to your overall
program of study. This should include an overview of
available courses that you have investigated and verified
they do not cover what you are seeking.
b.
List proposed sources for information
you want to study. This could include books, articles in
professional journals, academic research articles, and
others. Include full bibliographic information along with
your reasoning for use of each source.
c.
Specify the final product of your work
and intended audience (written paper or chapter on the
topic, oral presentation to a class, related business
proposal, etc.).
d.
Provide a clear timeline that shows
responsibility for deliverables on specific dates throughout
the time of the project. These might include deadlines for
written work or presentations, or scheduled progress
meetings at which to review specific portions of the work
and receive feedback.
e.
Describe the anticipated benefits of
the project – the expected outcomes for your own learning
and its fit in both your education program (as referenced in
item a), and your career ambitions after graduation.
(for this type of
project, you would seek out the faculty member whose area of
teaching and research is most closely related to your topic
area) |
STEP #2.
The student submits (1) a completed application form, (2) an
unofficial transcript, and (3) the proposal following guidelines
above to a full-time faculty member. The faculty member may agree
to the proposal, suggest further discussion and possibly revisions,
or decline involvement. NOTE: the application should be
submitted to the faculty member during the time of pre-registration
for the semester in which the work will occur.
STEP #3.
If the student and faculty member reach agreement
on the Independent Study, documentation of their agreement is sent
to the Area Coordinator., who may request additional information for
clarification or simply initial the application and, if desired,
retain documentation in a central file for later reference.*
STEP #4.
If given a “go-ahead” on the proposal (form is signed by faculty
member and initialed by the area coordinator), the student contacts
Academic Services. One of the advisors will check the signed
application form and provide the Special Permission Number required
for the student to enroll in the course.
Then what happens?
With enrollment complete, the
student begins the work on the agreed project. It is the student’s
responsibility to set all necessary appointments with the faculty
mentor and manage time commitments to adhere to the proposal
timeline.
COMPLETION.
The student provides deliverables according to the descriptions and
deadlines put forth in the final, approved proposal. High quality
work is expected. Simply completing the work is no guarantee of an
A grade. When the student and the faculty mentor agree that the
work is complete, the faculty member assigns a grade and submits
that to the registrar for posting to the student’s record. To
allow for any needed discussions at this point in the process, it is
wise to schedule completion of the planned work a week or more
before the standard grade submissions for that semester.
Students are asked to sign a permission form stating that their
project will be retained for future reference and may be used as a
sample or guide for other students considering independent study.
RECORD RETENTION.
Each area coordinator maintains a file of Independent Study
Projects. This should contain the original agreement document, a
copy of the final written outcome of the project and a copy of the
student’s signed permission to use as guide for future projects. As
area coordinator responsibilities are passed to another individual,
this file will also be handed over to the new coordinator. Project
samples are to be retained for 2 years.
[
INDEPENDENT STUDY
APPLICATION
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