Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS)
By earning a BIS degree at Southern Utah University, you can build your own path to graduation by selecting courses from across the disciplines that relate to your specific interests. Some students want to specialize in multiple areas without increasing their time to graduation. Others want to major in a field of study that SUU doesn’t offer. The BIS major allows the most freedom to construct a degree path that is customized to your needs.
Admissions
Mission
The Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS) is a rigorous degree that allows students to customize and develop a program of study to integrate interests from different disciplines. It emphasizes a broad learning experience and offers students the opportunity to participate in an interdisciplinary, academically sound, and intentional education directly relevant to the student’s intellectual development and career goals.
Program Options
A student chooses two or three disciplines and constructs, under advisor supervision, a personalized program of study.
Programs of study need to be approved by the academic coordinator within the BIS program, department chair, and dean.
In both Option 1 and Option 2, students must meet the following requirements:
- Students also take a common core of courses (4 credits) to facilitate integration.
- INDS 2000 - Foundation of Interdisciplinary Studies
- INDS 3000 - Interdisciplinary Research Methods
- INDS 4000 - Interdisciplinary Capstone and Portfolio
- Total required credits: 46 with a minimum of 36 upper division (3 in the common core.)
- Students must complete all General Education and other SUU requirements.
- Students must complete a total of 120 credits, including 40 upper-division (3000 or higher) credits. Upper-division credits include the minimum 30 upper-division credits from disciplines and 3 upper-division INDS credits.
- A minimum of C- is required for any course counted toward the major.
- No pass/fail course may be used toward the BIS degree without prior approval.
2 disciplines: 21 credits in each, 15 must be upper-division credits in each discipline.
| Course Number | Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Common Core (Required for all BIS students) | ||
| INDS 2000 | Introduction to Interdisciplinary Studies | 1 |
| INDS 3000 | Interdisciplinary Studies Research Methods | 2 |
| INDS 4000 | Interdisciplinary Studies Research Methods | 1 |
| Total Credits for Common Core | 4 | |
| Discipline 1: Criminal Justice | ||
| CJ 1010 | Introduction to Criminal Justice | 3 |
| CJ 1330 | Criminal Law | 3 |
| CJ 3020 | Criminal Justice Management | 3 |
| CJ 3270 | Criminological Theory | 3 |
| CJ 3300 | Victimology | 3 |
| CJ 3320 | Criminal Procedure | 3 |
| CJ 4700 | Police Systems and Practices | 3 |
| Total Credits for Discipline 1 | 21 | |
| Discipline 2: Political Science | ||
| POLS 2100 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 |
| POLS 2300 | Introduction to Political Thought | 3 |
| POLS 3010 | Current Political Issues | 3 |
| POLS 3020 | Political Economy | 3 |
| POLS 3120 | Courts | 3 |
| POLS 3130 | American Legislative Process and Behavior | 3 |
| POLS 3510 | Constitutional Law | 3 |
| Total Credits for Discipline 2 | 21 | |
| Total Credits for Sample Program | 54 Credits | |
3 disciplines: 15 credits in the first two tracks each, 9 must be upper-division credits in two disciplines, and 12 upper-division credits in the third discipline.
| Course Number | Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Common Core (Required for all BIS students) | ||
| INDS 2000 | Introduction to Interdisciplinary Studies | 1 |
| INDS 3000 | Interdisciplinary Studies Research Methods | 2 |
| INDS 4000 | Interdisciplinary Studies Research Methods | 1 |
| Total Credits for Common Core | 4 | |
| Discipline 1: Family Life & Human Development | ||
| FLHD 1500 | Human Development through the Lifespan | 3 |
| FLHD 2700 | Consumerism and Family Finance in American Society | 3 |
| FLHD 3200 | Child Development: Infancy through Twelve | 3 |
| FLHD 3300 | Family Processes and Theory | 3 |
| FLHD 4100 | Family Problems and Solutions | 3 |
| Total Credits for Discipline 1 | 15 | |
| Discipline 2: Nutrition | ||
| NFS 1020 | Scientific Foundations of Human Nutrition | 3 |
| NFS 2020 | Nutrition in the Life Cycle | 3 |
| NFS 3040 | Nutrition Assessment | 3 |
| NFS 4040 | Nutrition Communication and Counseling | 3 |
| NFS 4480 | Community Nutrition | 3 |
| Total Credits for Discipline 2 | 15 | |
| Discipline 3: Spanish | ||
| SPAN 3000 | Spanish Proficiency Development | 3 |
| SPAN 3210 | Advanced Spanish Grammar and Composition | 3 |
| SPAN 4400 | Introduction to Spanish Linguistics | 3 |
| SPAN 4510 | Introduction to Spanish Translation | 3 |
| Total Credits for Discipline 3 | 12 | |
| Total Credits for Sample Program | 51 Credits | |