Engaging Today's World, Producing Tomorrow's Leaders, Since 1973

Learn more about how the Future is Made in Bellamy

  • torches

    Congratulations to the Class of 2024!

    We want to look back on your commencement and say congratulations! Check out the cosspp Commencement Celebration photos below!

    Click Here

  • Interdisciplinary Social Science YouTube video.

    Welcome to the Interdisciplinary Social Science Program!

    Hear from student, professor, and faculty perspectives within the ISS program.

    Watch Now

  • Have questions about the ISS program? Contact advising!

    Have Questions about the ISS Program?

    Meet with an advisor for guidance when learning more about the Interdisciplinary Social Science program, or declaring your major!

    Learn More

  • Follow us on social media, in black text with a tan background. The Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X, and YouTube icons are lined up at the bottom.

    Follow ISS on Social Media

    Follow us to see student spotlights, our "Why ISS" video series, and more to learn more about the degree program!

    Learn More

  • torches

    Subscribe to our new quarterly alumni newsletter!

    We send newsletters to all of our Alumni & Friends with quarterly updates. If you would like to receive our summer edition, please use the link below to subscribe!

    Sign Up

 bellamy

Interdisciplinary | Individualized | Holistic

Our world is highly complex. An interdisciplinary orientation to the social sciences allows students to pursue a holistic study of the complex issues and problems facing the social world. Our students are encouraged to apply a spectrum of perspectives to specific public policies and social issues. They are guided to identify an interdisciplinary “discipline” that draws on various fields of research and scholarship as they choose from several flexible options to pursue their individual interests.

Subscribe to the Alumni Newsletter

About Our Program

Student Spotlights

Kayla Mathai headshot

Kayla Mathai

Majoring in Interdisciplinary Social Science with a concentration in Law and Society, Mathai is also receiving her public policy and US Intelligence Certificate; she was initially a political science major.

“I wanted to learn more about the social sciences instead of focusing on just one aspect. So, I decided to change my major in a way that would allow me to gain knowledge on the social sciences but also prepare me with an interdisciplinary skill set for the real world. In this major, I am also able to choose a primary and secondary concentration.”

Rodney Wells Headshot

Rodney Wells

Majoring in Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, Wells is a part of a cohort of eight scholars selected from colleges across the country for the John Robert Lewis Scholars & Fellows Program. The Program was founded by the Faith and Politics Institute in honor of former congressman, civil rights and voting rights icon John Lewis.

“In studying the principles that guided John Lewis, these principles of nonviolence serve as the north star in the pursuit of civil rights and social justice. I’m not only grateful, but very hopeful that this makes me a better leader at FSU and in my home community in Jacksonville.”

Mission Statement

The Interdisciplinary Social Science program engenders individualized scholarly goals that guide students’ learning paths and learning attainment. We do this by promoting academic dexterity through teaching intellectual capacities that support innovation and collaboration through interdisciplinary curriculum, methodology, and experiential engagement. We focus our efforts on providing an environment that promotes holistic understandings of complex social dynamics through the integration of disciplinary perspectives across the social sciences and beyond. Through student-centered teaching and purpose-driven advising, we cultivate conscious multidisciplinary collaboration and an integrative vision of complex social phenomena.

Download the 2022 ISS Bylaws

Designing Your Major

The Interdisciplinary Social Science degree can be attained through several optional academic plans. Academic plans can be focused in flexible multidisciplinary academic paths, or through structured specializations.

The ISS major consists of 43 credits that can be organized in various ways. Students are encouraged to work with academic and faculty advisors to plan the best options for pursuing a cohesive, multidisciplinary path toward their learning goals.

 
Get in Touch

Multidisciplinary Academic Plans

Students will use at least two social science disciplines in pursuit of their academic goals. The major coursework can be organized to include primary and secondary departments, and the integration of departmental perspectives as a successful academic path.

Specialized areas of study support a structured multidisciplinary plan of study related to specific interest areas. The specialized areas of study include pre-organized multidisciplinary options to advance student interests and learning within a specific area of study.

Learn More