Note: This program is for catalog year 2007 and later. If your catalog year is 2006 or prior, your degree will be a BAiLS, but you may still use the guidelines below.

Who pursues BA/BS in Interdisciplinary Studies degrees?

The Interdisciplinary Studies degrees are primarily designed for students entering an occupation that requires a broad general education, seeking career advancement or personal intellectual enrichment, or considering a preprofessional plan.

Myth 1: Interdisciplinary Studies degrees are the “faster/fastest” way to graduate.

Many students expressing an interest in an IS degree for the first time are doing so because of  the desire to graduate “as soon as possible”.  IS degrees require 120 units for graduation.  Whether or not an IS program will be “faster” than a standard BA or BS is dependent upon accumulated coursework’s translation toward IS degree requirements.

Myth 2: The College of Arts and Letters does the advising for BA/BS in Interdisciplinary Studies and BAiLS.

Advising is provided by the College or School that holds the emphasis, focus, minor, or certificate in which you are interested or declare. Contact the appropriate advising office once you have identified your interest area.

Is an IS degree right for me?

The following steps will allow you to determine if an IS degree is a viable option for your graduation goal.

Step One- Find the list of IS emphasis (major) offerings for your catalog year.  NAU does not offer an IS in every discipline.

• Go to nau.edu
• Click “C” in the NAU Index
• Go to “Catalog, Undergraduate” and open link
• Choose the catalog year and open link
  • If you have not attended college for three consecutive terms (counting only Spring and Fall), you will begin in the current catalog.
  • If you have attended an Arizona institution within the last three terms (counting only Spring and Fall), you may have the option of choosing a previous catalog.
• Click on “Search” and type in “interdisciplinary studies”
  • Beginning with the 2007 catalog, look for “Interdisciplinary Studies” (you will have to scroll down) and open link
  • For catalogs 2004-2006,  search “interdisciplinary studies”, but look for the “B.A. Liberal Studies” link for general degree requirements.
• Scroll to the bottom of the page to find the list of available emphases.

Step Two- Identify an emphasis of interest or compatibility with  your completed coursework.

• Read through the requirements for the following categories
  • Liberal Studies
  • Major (includes an emphasis and one of the following: focus, minor, or certificate)
  • Communication Skills
  • General Electives

This information is located on the home page of the major or the home page of  Interdisciplinary Studies.

Step Three- Next, determine how your existing coursework might apply to the courses listed in the emphasis of interest, the focus options, and the Communication Skills.

This will help you determine if an IS degree is “faster” or appropriate for your needs.  If you do not find a focus that corresponds with your coursework, check the minors and certificates (listed in NAU’s Academic Plans on the catalog home page).

• If your courses are from Arizona institutions use the Course Equivalency Guide on the AZ Transfer website at aztransfer.com
  • Click on “University Students click here”
  • Click the “Course Equivalency Guide” link
  • Click on the name of a school you attended
  • Find the course you took and check the NAU column to determine if and how the course will transfer to NAU

If your courses are from institutions outside of Arizona, first check the “Out of State and Non-AZ-Transfer Articulation” page at http://www4.nau.edu/aio/OutOfState/OSmain.html

• If your institution and/or courses are not listed, then you should review course descriptions to determine if courses you have taken might be eligible for equivalency at NAU.  Course numbers and titles vary from institution to institution.  For example, you may have taken three philosophy courses at your home state community college, but you will need to review the NAU course descriptions to determine that NAU’s “PHI 203” course covered the same content as the “PHI 222” listed on your transcript. 
  • To review NAU course descriptions it is recommended that you open the same catalog in another window and navigate to the home page of the catalog.

• Click on “Courses”
• Click on the category for the course you are researching (e.g. for “PHI 203” go to Philosophy Undergraduate Courses)
• Scroll to find the course description

The Next Step, should you determine that you would like to pursue an IS degree, is to schedule an appointment with the advising department(s) offering the emphasis and the focus/minor/certificate to review the transferability of your courses.

Should you declare an IS degree, you will develop a program plan with the advisor(s) from the appropriate departments.