The following steps will help you write a successful CIS proposal. You may also consult past proposals for guidance. All Davidson students declare a major at the end of second year; accordingly students apply to the Center during their second year at Davidson.

1) Schedule an initial inquiry meeting with the CIS Program Assistant, Ms. Vicki Heitman (704-894-2385, viheitman@davidson.edu). Then, meet with the CIS Director, Professor Scott Denham, during his office hours. Meet with prospective faculty advisers (usually two, sometimes three, all from different departments) to discuss your interests and your plans for an interdisciplinary major through the CIS. Begin drafting the proposal.

2) Finalize your choice of advisers. Ensure that they are both able and willing to act as advisers for your major program. Your advisers must be full-time, tenure-track or permanent faculty; they should also be in residence at Davidson College during your senior year, or they should indicate their commitment to advising you while on leave, on sabbatical, or abroad. Since the primary function of your CIS advisers is to direct your senior thesis, choose faculty whose areas of expertise are best suited for the senior thesis you will write.

3) Work closely with your advisers throughout the process of drafting your proposal. Most proposals are between five and ten pages. In the text, please include the following:

• A brief statement highlighting your interests and accomplishments at Davidson. Include information that will help others learn about your self-discipline, maturity, academic achievement, and ability to work independently. This section serves as an intellectual geneology.
• A statement indicating why you wish to design your own major program, and why the work you want to do cannot be accomplished within a single department.
• A description of your proposed program of study, followed by a list of all courses, seminars and independent study projects that will count towards the major. A major in the CIS consists of twelve courses: ten curricular courses, at least five of which must be at or above the 300 level; plus two thesis courses during the fourth year, CIS 495 Thesis (fall) and CIS 496 Thesis (spring). Your list ought to include fifteen to eighteen courses, to allow for potential registration difficulties and changes of design. Please list both the course number (e.g. PHI 125, BIO 318) and title, and indicate with an asterisk (*) those courses you have already completed. Also indicate with a number symbol (#) any courses currently in progress. Pending registrar approval of transfer credits, courses taken elsewhere may count toward the CIS major. List potential study abroad courses with a brief description.
• A description (in as much detail and specificity as possible at this date; a page or two) of the topic you have chosen for your thesis, the culmination of your major program in the Center.
• A brief note about a back-up major in another department with a list of major courses already taken. That is, show what your major will be if you do not major in the Center. 
• Your pledge, which indicates that you have upheld the Davidson Honor Code and have met with all proposed advisers, and they have agreed to act as such.
• All drafts should be prefaced by a cover sheet that includes your name and proposed month and year of graduation, the title of your proposed major, the names of your advisers, and the date on which the proposal is submitted. (Don't forget to change the date when submitting later drafts!)

N.B.: Excellent oral and written communication skills are necessary for acceptance as a CIS major. The professors who will decide whether or not to accept you as a CIS major evaluate all aspects of your proposal, including your ability to express yourself clearly and concisely in error-free prose.

Proposals that do not conform to these standards and guidelines will not be accepted.

4) Submit electronic and hard copies of the draft to the Center Director and to your prospective advisers. Chances are that you will be asked to revise it.This step should happen at least three weeks before the proposal deadline.

5) When all parties (including you) are satisfied that your proposal is as complete as possible, submit revised electronic and hard copies to the Director and your advisers.

6) Upon receipt of the final, revised, and complete draft, the Director will circulate the proposal to the CIS Faculty Advisory Committee. They will respond within a week, and if they agree that the proposal should move forward, then we will begin the process of scheduling the proposal meeting, which can take another week or two. Advisory faculty may also require revisions (known as "revise and resubmit") at this stage. As before, submit your proposal to your advisers and the director on paper (pledged and signed) and, to the director, as a word file. This revision process will take another two weeks at least: one week for your revisions and meetings with your proposed advisers; a second week for the Faculty Advisory Committee members to read your revised proposal.

7) At this point you may be asked to move to the proposal meeting stage, or to seek out another major in the College. If you are invited to the proposal meeting, you will then meet with the Director, your proposed advisers, and a member of the CIS Faculty Advisory Committee. In this meeting you will present your proposal and discuss it in some detail. This group will also set your major curriculum, which becomes a binding set of courses required for the major and thus for graduation. At the conclusion of the meeting you will be invited to join the Center, or not; that is, to develop a major within a single discipline at the College.

As you can see, the proposal process takes time and involves a number of different people. A CIS major cannot be declared at the last minute or in haste.

Deadline for CIS proposals the Friday before spring break at noon.  (Some exceptions are possible; see the CIS director.)

You may submit your proposal any time before the deadline.

Past Proposals

See the director for examples of previous proposals.