Independent Study, Undergraduate

 

  1. Carefully review all policies and procedures on the Undergraduate Gallatin Independent Study web page.
  2. This form will be sent to the emails you enter for your adviser and instructor. You must follow up with them to make sure they submit their approval to Gallatin by the proposal submission deadline.
  3. Questions about this form can be directed to KatheAnn Joseph (katheann.joseph@nyu.edu).

NOTE: Students enrolled in another NYU school are not permitted to apply for a Gallatin Independent Study.

NOTE: First-year students and sophomores are not eligible to register for a Gallatin Independent Study. First-year and sophomore students should not submit this proposal at this time, and should consult with their advisers to select an alternate course.

Do not use this form. Submit the Independent Study-Colloquium Preparation instead.

Student Information

Adviser Information

Instructor Information

Questions

Are you planning to attend a course, class, workshop, etc., to supplement this study?
If yes, please explain your plan further below (The general expectation is that students will work independently with their independent study instructor, and not also attend a class.)
Are you planning to make any type of payment to an instructor or separate institution for this study?
Please explain the reason for the payment, and the name of the institution or instructor who would receive the payment
Are you planning to be outside of New York State for any part of this study?
Please explain where you will be during this study. (The general expectation is that students are on campus at Washington Square.)
Are you planning to NOT meet in person with your Instructor?
Please explain how you plan to meet with your instructor. (The general expectation is that students and instructors will meet in person.)
Are you planning to register for any other individualized projects this semester?
Please list the other individualized projects you are taking this semester

Independent Study Information

Explain why they aren’t adequate to what you want to do, or why you aren’t enrolling in them (eg, they don’t cover your topic, aren’t taught frequently enough, are major-only, difficult to get into, and so on).

It should be a useful, descriptive title that reflects the unifying theme and content of the study. It should not duplicate an existing NYU course. The title is limited to 26 characters including spaces and punctuation.

Description of Study

Like the course description in a college catalog, describe the general theme and scope of the independent study. This description should not exceed 250 words.

Readings

You must provide a reading list with authors and titles, even if tentative, along with the proposal. The list should be comparable to a similar classroom course, which means that a four-unit study requires a minimum of 6-10 books. The list of readings may include substantial articles and other secondary readings. (However, a single article is not equivalent to a book; at least 3 articles are needed to equal a book.) Readings may change during the semester as the study evolves, but the preliminary list should be appropriate for the number of units. Proposals for creative projects should include readings, as well.

The required minimum number of books for various unit values are:

  • 4 units: 6-10 books
  • 3 units: 4-7 books
  • 2 units: 3-5 books
Title Author Type

Works to be Evaluated by Your Instructor:

The proposal should indicate the kinds of work (response papers, research essays, creative works, etc.), which will be evaluated by the instructor. Assignments should be comparable in extent to a similar classroom course. Details should be provided about this work, including the number, length and type of work to be submitted (e.g., two research papers, one 10 pages and the other 15).

The scope, length, and number of assignments should be comparable to a similar classroom course, roughly equivalent to the following:

  • 4 units: 20-25 pages of written work
  • 3 units: 15-20 pages of written work
  • 2 units: 10-15 pages of written work


Independent Studies that produce creative work must also produce academic writing in the form of response papers or an essay that explains the creative work in relationship to the theories explored in the readings, roughly equivalent to the following:

  • 4 credits: 8-10 pages of academic writing
  • 3 credits: 6-8 pages of academic writing
  • 2 credits: 4-6 pages of academic writing

Syllabus

Instructors and students are expected to meet regularly throughout the semester. Meeting spaces for an Independent Study are identified and secured by the student and/or instructor. Please note that personal spaces (i.e. an apartment or dorm room) are not suitable. It is recommended that the instructor or student book an NYU space through Bobst Library.

You must provide a schedule of the meetings with the instructor, which includes the topics, the readings, and assignments to be covered during each session. You can revise your syllabus with your instructor once the semester begins.

Below is the required minimum number of meetings for various unit values:

  • 4 units: 7 meetings 
  • 3 units: 5 meetings
  • 2 units: 4 meetings  
Date / Week Number Readings Covered Amount of Work
I have read and accept the terms of the Gallatin Independent Study

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