Independent Study Guidelines & Agreement Form
Independent study is an opportunity to engage in intensive one-on-one research with a member
of the faculty and earn academic credit outside the formal classroom structure. A student
interested in knowing more about a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may propose a
research project to any regular fulltime member of the Department faculty. In the case of
Comparative Literature & Humanities, this includes joint Members, Affiliated Faculty as well as
the Department's core faculty. For approval, the student and the faculty sponsor must agree that
the topic is worth investigating, that it is not covered (or is not covered in sufficient depth) by
Department courses, and that both the student and the sponsor share sufficient interest in the
topic to sustain an independent study project.
No independent study credit may be obtained for topics already being taught in the Department
during the normal period of a student's career as an undergraduate or graduate at CU. College
and campus policies also prohibit the awarding of independent study credit for any of the
following: internships, work in a university program or department, as a substitute for regular
coursework, to meet College List or Core requirements. The Department of Comparative
Literature & Humanities may sometimes grant, following petition to the Chair, independent
study credit for work completed at another institution or for extra work performed in the
framework of a regular course (in the latter case, all procedures for setting up independent study
must be completed before work begins). No Department credit will be granted for volunteer
work, work in business, non-academic work of any kind performed abroad, or independent
research associated with the doctoral dissertation.
Students must first acquire the sponsorship of a regular fulltime member of the Department
faculty. In consultation with the proposed instructor, the student draws up a plan of study,
including a definition of the topic, a preliminary bibliography, the number of semester hours for
which credit is sought, and the type of outcome (research paper, research paper plus presentation,
etc.) that is expected. In calculating the number of credit hours for which credit is requested,
students and their faculty sponsors should remember that the College requires a minimum of 25
hours of work (including reading and writing time) per hour of credit. The final plan is then
recorded on a Department Independent Study Agreement form, obtained from the Department
office or the Department website. Once the form is complete, it is submitted for approval either
to the Director of Undergraduate Studies (if the independent study is in Humanities) or to the
Director of Graduate Studies (if the independent study is in Comparative Literature). The
signatures of both the faculty sponsor and the DUS or DGS are required for registration. When
all necessary signatures are obtained, the form is brought to the Department office and the student is registered by a member of the office staff, who in turn signs the form in the appropriate space.
Students should note that, in accordance with College and campus rules, they may not register
for more than 6 semester hours of independent study credit during any term or more than 16
hours toward any one degree. Moreover, no more than 8 credit hours of independent study taken
in a single department or program can be applied toward the total hours needed for graduation.
Humanities majors may normally take no more than 3 credit hours of independent study in
fulfillment of upper division Humanities requirements, and no more than 9 credit hours of
independent study in fulfillment of requirements for the major in general. Candidates for the
M.A. in Comparative Literature may petition for a maximum of 6 semester hours of independent
study, including any independent study performed outside of the Department. Candidates for the
doctorate may normally register for a maximum of 6 semester hours, including both any
independent performed outside of the Department and any independent study credit obtained
during their course of study toward the Master's degree. Please see the Guidelines for these
degree programs for further information.
Normally, only majors or graduate students registered in the Department are eligible for
independent study in Comparative Literature & Humanities. The only exceptions made are for
students who can demonstrate an inability to meet a departmental requirement in any other way.
(An example would be a graduate student in French who needs to register for a course in
Comparative Literature in an area in which no regularly scheduled course is currently offered.)
There are no specific grade point or class standing requirements.
In accordance with College and campus rules, registration for independent study requires
departmental approval. In the case of the Department of Comparative Literature & Humanities,
such approval must be obtained either from the DUS (who reviews all requests for independent
study at the undergraduate level) or from the DGS (who reviews all requests for independent
study at the graduate level). The object of review by the DUS or DGS is to ensure: (a) the
intellectual validity of the proposed project, (b) that the number of semester hours of credit
requested is appropriate, and (c) that the project has the requisite faculty sponsorship. All
requests for Independent Study must use the Independent Study Agreement described above.
Students should also remember: (a) that the Independent Study Agreement must be completed,
signed, and approved prior to the initiation of the project—credit may not be obtained
retroactively; and (b) registration for independent study must occur according to the deadlines
for all other courses.
Independent Study Guidelines & Agreement Form
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Fall '08 Courses
