Independent Study Courses

Students in good standing who are unable to take a course specifically required for their major or who are interested in supplementing the general curriculum with independent work in their major may, under the circumstances outlined below, earn academic credit by taking an independent study course under the supervision of a University faculty member. Independent study courses are available only to juniors and seniors except by special permission.

Registration for independent study courses may be authorized only with the written approval of the instructor and the chairperson of the department in which credit is to be earned (and the associate dean of the Sykes College of Business if the course is taken in that college) by the third week of the semester; after that date, Associate Dean's Office (COB) or Dean's Office approval is needed as well as an Academic Petition for late registration. The Independent Study contract is available in SpartanWeb under the Academics/Forms and Information tab.

Students should take a course required for their major as an independent study course only when it is clearly a necessity, or when the experience gained will be extremely valuable to their career path.

If an independent study course is offered to a student not as a substitute for a specific course carrying a catalog number, or if the independent study course does not carry its own catalog number, the course will carry one of the following five alpha-numeric course numbers, depending on level:

Each of the five courses above may be taken on a variable-credit basis, i.e., for 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 hours of credit. If the independent study is substituting a course carrying a catalog number, then the independent study must have an equal number of credits.

Before a student may register for an independent study course, a completed “Independent Study Contract” needs to be submitted to the Registrar’s Office; if it is after the drop/add period, an Academic Petition is also required for late registration. The student is responsible for making sure that the contract is submitted to the Registrar’s Office and verifying on SpartanWeb that registration in the course has been completed.

In addition, the college or department in which the course is offered maintains a record of the contract.