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The Independent Study form is availble in the Registrar's Office or MyCaroll Document Center. Independent study is open to junior and senior students only. At the time of application, a student must have earned a 3.0 cumulative grade point average. A student may register for no more than three (3) semester hours of independent study in any one term. In all cases, registration for independent study must be approved by the appropriate department chairperson and the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
This capstone course applies the broader dialogue begun in previous Catholic Studies courses into a specific, 21st Century context. The first half of the course will look at a specific example of integration, drawing the students to formulate and configure their faith for their majors, future careers, or vocations, and to integrate the broad spectrum of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness within their own lives. Then the course will develop research and writing skills, in preparation for the senior paper required in
CATH 497.
The senior paper is an original work a student prepares under the guidance of a professor in the Catholic Studies Department. Drawing upon their understanding of the Catholic faith tradition, and the insights learned ion the previous courses, students complete a 5000-7000 word essay that integrates their faith with their academic major, career,or chosen profession. The thesis must be approved by the director of the Catholic Studies Program.
The senior thesis is designed to encourage creative thinking and to stimulate individual research. A student may undertake a thesis in an area in which s/he has the necessary background. Ordinarily a thesis topic is chosen in the student's major or minor. It is also possible to choose an interdisciplinary topic. Interested students should decide upon a thesis topic as early as possible in the junior year so that adequate attention may be given to the project. In order to be eligible to apply to write a thesis, a student must have achieved a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.25 based upon all courses attempted at Carroll College. The thesis committee consists of a director and two readers. The thesis director is a full-time Carroll College faculty member from the student's major discipline or approved by the department chair of the student's major. At least one reader must be from outside the student's major. The thesis director and the appropriate department chair must approve all readers. The thesis committee should assist and mentor the student during the entire project. For any projects involving human participants, each student and his or her director must follow the guidelines published by the Institutional Review Board (IRB). Students must submit a copy of their IRB approval letter with their thesis application. As part of the IRB approval process, each student and his or her director must also complete training by the National Cancer Institute Protection of Human Participants. The thesis is typically to be completed for three (3) credits in the discipline that best matches the content of the thesis. Departments with a designated thesis research/writing course may award credits differently with approval of the Curriculum Committee. If the thesis credits exceed the full-time tuition credit limit for students, the charge for additional credits will be waived. Applications and further information are available in the Registrar's Office.