Bachelor of Individualized Study

Office Location: Robinson A 253

Special Edition

May 17th, 2016

Hello, BIS Program students.

Over the past few weeks, we have received information from various departments at Mason asking us to inform our students about new course offerings for Fall Semester. We have compiled that information in this newsletter. Also, we have included some strategies you may want to try as you look for courses that fit your BIS concentration.

Please remember that you should have an academic advising appointment at least once per semester with a BIS advisor. You may schedule an in-person or telephone appointment, whichever is most convenient for you. Our office hours are 10:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and we offer Saturday phone appointments.

- Contact an advisor:

Linda Hemm, [log in to unmask], 703-993-2303
Lenore Kuch, [log in to unmask], 703-993-4572
Mark Sistek, [log in to unmask], 703-993-4568
 
- Contact the BIS Office:

[log in to unmask], 703-993-4556

We encourage you to let us know whenever you have questions, need assistance, or have news to share. Wishing a happy summer for everyone!

Best regards,

Julie

Julie Allstrom, BIS ’12, Student Services Manager
Bachelor of Individualized Study (BIS) Program

Some ways to find the courses you are looking for

- University Catalog:
Click here to search George Mason University’s catalog of undergraduate and graduate courses that are available for credit. Make sure to select the 2016-2017 University Catalog from the drop-down menu.

- Mason Online:
Click here for a list of all of the fall 2016 courses offered online.

- Tags:
Looking for interesting courses to take? In the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, classes are browsable, with tags and full text search. Below are just a few of the over 200 tags available.

childhood | digital media |film | food| gender | japan | media | myth and legend | mindfulness | social change | sports | world cultures

For the full list, or to search by full text, click here.

Note: UNIV 304 is recommended for students who completed BIS 300 in Spring 2016 or who will be enrolled in BIS 300 in Fall 2016.

Learn How to Publish Undergraduate Research

Note: UNIV 370 is recommended for students who have completed BIS 300 and will be enrolled in BIS 390 or BIS 490 in Fall 2016.

- UNIV 370 - Navigating the Academic Publishing Process
will be offered in Fall 2016 as a special topics class. The main goal of the class is to teach student researchers the skills they need to navigate the academic publication process. A series of exercises, discussions and presentations will take students through this process. By the end of the semester, students will know what to expect when they do decide to publish a paper.

The class will be held every Tuesday from 3 PM – 4:15 PM in Fenwick Library.

For more information contact Theresa Calcagno at 703-993-3712 or [log in to unmask]

1 Credit Courses to Strengthen your Academic and Professional Skills

Conflict Analysis & Resolution

- CONF 325 Dialogue and Difference:
(R, 4:30 - 7:10pm, Leila Peterson)
Students will gain an understanding of the challenges of communicating across differences and the skills required to communicate effectively. Students will engage in preparing and analyzing communication strategies and over the term will participate in a dialogue group that explores the meaning and experience of difference on the Mason campus.

- CONF 398 001 Multicultural Negotiation
(M, 10:30pm - 1:10pm, Anat Ziff)
This course will provide the theoretical and practical background for students to understand negotiation strategies, help them select the right approach for a successful negotiation, and craft their skills to excel in international and multicultural negotiations

- ARTH 320: Arts of the Islamic World, Fall 2016.

Prof. Lawrence Butler.

Wednesdays, 4:30 to 7:10 PM

This course is meant as an introduction to the arts and architecture of the Islamic world, from the time of the Prophet to the present day. The course will concentrate on selected moments and monuments in the central historic regions—the Arab Middle East, North Africa, Spain, Iran, India, and Turkey—and consider the relationship of the visual arts to the history, geography, and traditions of each region. We will also consider contemporary arts, and problems of historic preservation. The Washington, DC area is particularly rich in museum collections of Islamic art, which this course will feature. Students will visit a local museum collection on their own during the semester as part of the course work.

This course may be used to fulfill the Mason core requirement in Global Understanding or the CHSS requirement for Non-Western culture. Please note the course is not listed for Mason Core Fine Arts credit.

SOCI 313: Statistics for Behavioral Sciences

The Sociology and Anthropology department would like to share a note about a new option starting in Fall 2016 for the Mason Core quantitative reasoning requirement. Beginning in Fall 2016, SOCI 313 will fulfill the Mason Core requirement for Quantitative Reasoning. Students interested in social statistics are encouraged to enroll. Anthropologists and Social Scientists deal with data of varying types. This course provides an introduction to the use of statistics for social and behavioral science data analysis. It will help students develop a basic statistical literacy, including an understanding of commonly used statistics and their role in social research, and the ability to perform basic statistical calculations. In this class students will also become competent in the use of SPSS statistical software - a highly marketable skill!