CCPA 650 - Interdiscplnry and Comm Inqry

Credits: 3

This elective doctoral level course is designed to help prepare students for successful interdisciplinary research careers in and with communities (including schools and college campuses). Complex issues facing communities such as poverty, healthcare access, and educational inequalities necessitate interdisciplinary research approaches and there is a real need to make stronger connections among research, policy, and practice. In this weekly seminar, students will explore the methods and processes of interdisciplinary research and public scholarship. Guided reading and reflections will support the professional socialization of first year doctoral students as interdisciplinary, engaged scholars including the development of programs of research, the relationship between research and community action, and associated career trajectories. We will also meet researchers from different disciplinary backgrounds, who will talk about their own work, the methodologies of their discipline, the difficulties and successes of interdisciplinarity, as well as whether and how they disseminate their research findings to the public. These discussions aim to help first year doctoral students explore the epistemologies, theories, and methodologies of different disciplines as well as provide resources and possible connections with faculty whom students may want to work with on their dissertation and research projects. Offered: semester offered varies.