Academics

Science and Technology Studies currently offers a concentration in the program.

 

 

 

Requirements (NEW as of February 2019):

Science and Technology Studies concentrators must complete a total of six courses. Five of these must have the STS prefix. Students must take: Introduction to STS; Senior Seminar; and three electives, of which at most two can originate in the same department. In addition, Science and Technology Studies concentrators must complete one course with a laboratory or field work component in natural, social, or computer science; this course may also satisfy one of the divisional distribution requirements.

Students may petition the Chair for recognition of a course as an STS course even if it is not cross-listed in STS. The petitions will be approved or denied on a case-by-case basis.

 

STS Concentration Learning Objectives:
The Program in Science and Technology Studies (STS) aims to provide students with an interdisciplinary framework through which to appreciate the complex interactions between science, technology and society, and with which to analyze and understand the ways science and technology give shape to, and are in turn given shape by, society, culture and history.  The STS Program furthermore serves as a forum in which students from all divisions are invited to partake in critical dialogue on a range of pressing issues: scientific controversies, expert knowledge, innovation and sociohistorical transformation, politics and policy, media and communication infrastructure, public understanding of science and technology, and philosophical questions.

Concentrators in STS will:

  1. Acquire knowledge of the major trajectories of theory and empirical research in STS.
  2. Engage science and technology empirically: as products, processes, and ways of  knowing and doing situated in specific social, cultural, political, and historical contexts.
  1. Explore and critically evaluate the broad range of implications posed by extant and emerging science and technology.
  1. Become adept at communicating STS claims and findings, across disciplinary boundaries and to the broader public.

 

STUDY ABROAD FAQ:

Students MUST contact departments/programs BEFORE assuming study away credit will be granted toward the major or concentration.

Can your department or program typically pre-approve courses for major/concentration credit?

Yes, in some cases, if appropriate course information is available in advance (e.g. syllabi and/or course descriptions), though students should be sure to contact the department.

What criteria will typically be used/required to determine whether a student may receive major/concentration credit for a course taken while on study away?

Complete syllabus and course description, including readings/assignments.

Does your department/program place restrictions on the number of major/concentration credits that a student might earn through study away?

No.

Does your department/program place restrictions on the types of courses that can be awarded credit towards your major?

No.

Are there specific major requirements that cannot be fulfilled while on study away?

No.

Are there specific major requirements in your department/program that students should be particularly aware of when weighing study away options? (Some examples might include a required course that is always taught in one semester, laboratory requirements.)

Yes. Be sure to check record of enrollment in Div 3 (sciences with labs) to satisfy program.

Give examples in which students thought or assumed that courses taken away would count toward the major or concentration and then learned they wouldn’t:

None to date.