You are in the official General Catalog
for California State University, Fresno.
Independent Study. Independent study
is offered to give students experience in planning and outlining a course
of study on their own initiative under departmental supervision. Independent
study should deal with a special interest not covered in a regular course
or with the exploration in greater depth of a subject presented in a regular
course. Each department has an independent study upper -division course
(190). In addition, some departments have a lower-division course (90) and/or
a graduate-level course (290).
To be eligible for independent study, students should have an overall grade
point average of 3.0 or higher. This requirement may be waived in exceptional
cases, when approved by the department chair. Maximum credit of 6 units
in independent study courses is allowed toward the bachelor's degree, and
maximum credit of 6 units in independent study courses may be approved for
use toward a 30-unit master's degree. Such credit is limited to a maximum
of 3 units per semester. Under extraordinary circumstances more than 3 units
per semester may be allowed on petition to the department chair.
Eligible students desiring to register for Independent Study must first
obtain the consent of an instructor, who will guide the project, and the
chair of the department in which the course is given. Students must register
for Independent Study courses during the regular registration period in
the same manner as they register for any other course at the time of registration.
An independent study course normally includes an oral examination by a committee
set up by the supervising instructor, a formal report that is filed in the
department office, and an abstract of the study that is filed with the department
chair. Approval forms and copies of the current regulations may be obtained
from department, school, or college offices. The entry on the permanent
record shows the discipline and course number only; the title does not appear.
Certain special regulations concerning enrollment in Independent Study courses
during a summer session can be found in the Summer Session Catalog.