Description
This online research seminar introduces students to interdisciplinary studies with the goal of preparing you to formulate and write your capstone thesis. The culminating assignment of this course entails writing a formal capstone thesis proposal for your interdisciplinary research project or creative scholarly activity based on your own disciplinary interests and experience, which you will implement in the IDIS 4004 Capstone Seminar.
We will examine what the phrase "interdisciplinary studies" actually means, consider some metaphors for IDiS, review a handful of disciplinary methods, evaluate some of the advantages and disadvantages of interdisciplinary research, and — most importantly — reflect on your particular reasons for pursuing IDiS.
The primary goals of this course are (1) to enable students to carefully and thoughtfully formulate the question or topic you will address in your capstone thesis, (2) to properly research your topic using at least 10–15 peer-reviewed sources, and (3) to fully prepare to write your thesis. You will not actually write your thesis for this course, but will do so in/before IDIS 4004.
Format
This is a Research Seminar. Most of your work needs to be self-motivated and you should spend AT LEAST EIGHT hours each week READING peer-reviewed books or peer-reviewed journal articles and taking notes for your thesis. I will occasionally share some short lecture/tip videos online.
Please plan to meet weekly with Brad to update me on your progress and so that I can help you succeed. Successful students should plan to devote at least 10 hours/week to this course. The vast majority (8+ hrs) of that time must be self-motivated and self-directed and entails gathering peer-reviewed resources, READING those texts, and keeping organized NOTES of what you have learned.
Availability
You can schedule a 30-minute meeting with me 4 hours (or more) in advance. Simply click the link and select an available time. A meeting link will be auto-generated and sent to whatever email address you enter into the form. No need to email me — the scheduler will automatically notify me and I will be ready. Please be prompt.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00am–6:00pm | 10:00am–6:00pm | 10:00am–1:00pm | 10:30am–1:00pm | 10:00am–3:00pm |
Grade Breakdown
Due Dates
Course Agenda
- Read the entire syllabus carefully and email Brad if you have any questions.
- Meet with Brad (schedule here) — 10% of final grade.
- Spend some time reading at least one sample capstone thesis from previous students. Keep in mind that these are final capstone theses, the outcome of work in both IDIS 3004 and IDIS 4004. Take your time — notice titles, professional appearance, and read abstracts that capture your attention. Take a few notes to discuss with Brad.
- Brainstorm and initial research: once you understand what a capstone thesis is, start thinking about what topic you are eager to learn about. Discuss it with family and friends, and feel free to chat with an AI like ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude.
- Choose a topic for your capstone thesis — or at least come up with some well-formed ideas.
- Begin conducting research and find at least 1–3 peer-reviewed articles or books. Use the Fitchburg State Library search engine or contact a FSU librarian.
- Save articles to the folder Brad created for you and add sources to your Bibliography.
- Read the research sources you've found so far — read smart! At this stage, skim-read and spot-read rather than reading every word.
- Meet with Brad (schedule here) — 10% of final grade.
- Divide your topic into 3 main sections/questions (Brad can help!).
- Continue your research and aim to have at least 3 peer-reviewed sources for EACH of the three sections (at least 9 total, including what you found previously).
- Read at least two of the sources you've found. You may not need to read every word, but read most of it.
- Spend a few minutes reviewing this sample Capstone Thesis Proposal from 2022 so you understand what I'm looking for by the end of this course.
- Start working on your outline. Your outline is basically an organized way to keep track of the notes you are taking. It may be easiest to use the outline in the Capstone Thesis Proposal template.
- Take notes as you read. If a source is good, you should find at least three good quotations — copy them into your outline with the author and page number.
- Watch this short video explaining what an intellectual autobiography is.
- Write your Intellectual Autobiography: 3–4 pages (~750 words), relatively informal, explaining why you are passionate about the topic you've chosen. This is NOT your life story — it IS the story of why YOU are eager to learn more about your specific topic. This should require a maximum of one or two hours.
- Save your intellectual autobiography to the shared folder Brad created for you. You don't need to email it.
- OPTIONAL: Meet with Brad (schedule here).
- Continue your research until you have a total of AT LEAST 10 peer-reviewed sources (15 would be a great target). Always add each source to your bibliography as you collect it.
- Keep reading, keep taking notes, and keep working on your outline. By the end of this week, you should have fully read at least 4 sources and have around 80 pages read with several pages of notes.
- Choose your style guide (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.) — whatever you're most familiar with.
- Create an annotated bibliography. See this sample annotated bibliography. Write a brief 3–4 sentence paragraph about each source directly below each entry. The first sentence should note your reading progress; the next sentence should describe what the text is about in your own words.
- Come up with TWO possible titles for your Capstone thesis.
- Start thinking about who your audience will be — you don't need to decide yet, but start considering it.
- Meet with Brad (schedule here) — 10% of your final grade.
- Keep reading, keep taking notes, and keep working on your outline. By the end of this period, you should have fully read at least 8 sources with around 100–120 pages read (total) and 8–10 pages of notes in outline form.
- Organize and format your outline so that it looks good. It may be easiest to use the outline in the Capstone Thesis Proposal template.
- It is time to finalize your Capstone Thesis Proposal! If you have been using the template since the beginning, most of your work is already done. Now write the Introduction and Conclusion.
- Write the first THREE PARAGRAPHS of your Capstone Thesis:
- Paragraph 1: some version of the question you set out to research.
- Paragraph 2: a revised/shortened version of your Intellectual Autobiography — use "I" language.
- Paragraph 3: the "thesis paragraph" — one sentence about EACH section of your thesis, ending with a draft thesis statement. Use present tense, not future tense.
- Write a draft of your conclusion — what do you think your thesis is going to conclude? (a hypothesis / proposed conclusion)
- Create a title page (or use the one in the template).
- Revise your Outline Draft and revise your Annotated Bibliography based on Brad's feedback. Ideally, the annotated bibliography should now have at least 10–12 peer-reviewed sources with at least 6–8 already read.
- Proofread the entire proposal, run a spell/grammar check, check formatting, and verify your style guide is consistently applied.
- Meet with Brad (schedule here) — 10% of your final grade. You can meet at any point during these two weeks.
Policies
Meeting with the Professor
Students are welcome and encouraged to contact me at any time. Please feel free to email me at rbannon@fitchburgstate.edu about any topic related to this course or schedule a meeting with me.
Books
There are no required books for this course.
Accommodation Policy
To support access and inclusion, Fitchburg State offers reasonable accommodations to students who have documented disabilities (e.g., physical, learning, psychiatric, sensory, etc.). If you require accommodations for this class, please provide me with a copy of your Accommodation Agreement as soon as possible so that we can discuss your specific needs. Any information that you share with me will be held in the strictest confidence, unless you give me permission to do otherwise.
If you require academic accommodations but do not have an Accommodation Agreement, please contact Disability Services as soon as possible to establish your eligibility. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 978.665.4020 (voice/relay) or email DisabilityServices2@fitchburgstate.edu. Disability Services is located in the Academic Support Center on the third floor of the Hammond Building (room 303).
Academic Integrity Policy
Every member of the University community is expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. A student shall not submit work that is falsified or is not the result of the student's own effort. A student who is in doubt regarding standards of academic integrity in a course or assignment should consult the faculty member responsible for that course or assignment before submitting the work. A student's lack of understanding of the academic integrity policy is not a valid defense to a charge of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism will result in immediate failure.
Late Submissions Policy
This is an intensive course requiring firm deadlines. As such, any assignment:
| Submitted within 24 hours of due date | Dropped ½ letter grade |
| Submitted within 48 hours of due date | Dropped one letter grade |
| Submitted more than 48 hours after due date | Dropped two letter grades |