Information for Faculty Advisors

Members of the faculty who agree to serve as advisors for an Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Studies program should realize that it will involve significant time both in the initial planning with the student and in continuing to advise him or her once the Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Studies program has been approved.

Becoming a Faculty Advisor for IDS Majors

1. The advisor should take the time to know both the student and his or her program. No student proposals will be considered by the committee that do not carry a substantive written statement of support from each member of the advisory committee.
2. Advisors must meet with the student to evaluate both the objectives of the student's program and the courses and thesis chosen to achieve those objectives before the proposed plan is submitted to the committee for approval.
3. The committee should meet with the student at least once a semester, (unless the student is away from campus). Progress toward the stated objective should be evaluated and alterations in the curriculum or thesis made when necessary. These joint meetings become particularly important when the student enters the thesis phase of his or her program. Responsibility for arranging these meetings should be shared by the student and principal advisor.
4. Faculty members who are going on temporary or permanent leave should not sign proposals as advisors. If unforeseen circumstances arise that make it necessary for an advisor to leave Tufts, it is his or her responsibility to arrange a suitable temporary or permanent substitute.
5. Advisors are responsible for the final evaluation of the student's work, including an oral defense of the thesis.
6. Members of the advisory committee must sign a written assessment of the student's work and recommendations for the honors to be awarded, and present it to the Student Services Degree Audit Coordinator in Dowling Hall by early May for May graduates and by late December for February graduates.
7. The advisory committee must approve any significant changes to the proposed major once it is declared and reported to CIS with an explanation and a letter of support from the primary advisor.