Directed and Independent Study Policy Eligibility Guidelines
Directed and Independent Study Policy: To be eligible for either a Directed or Independent Study course, the student must have matriculated status with SUNY Brockport, or the student must have been accepted to a program of study at SUNY Brockport.
The undergraduate student must have:
1. Completed 24 credits of college-level study or by department chair/program director approval.
2. A cumulative GPA of at least 2.00 or higher
The graduate student must have:
1. Completed 6 credits of graduate-level study or by department chair/program director approval.
2. A cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher.
General guidelines for Directed Study and Independent Study:
1. Subject to the maximum credit load allowed in a semester (Fall/Spring), a student may carry no more than two Independent Study courses, not exceeding 6 credits, and no more than one Directed Study course, carrying the same number of credits as the course for which it substitutes, for a total not to exceed 9 credits in a semester.
2. Subject to the maximum credit load allowed in a session (Winter/Summer), a student may carry no more than one Independent Study course, not exceeding 3 credits, and one Directed Study course, with the same number of credits as the course for which it substitutes, for a total not to exceed 6 credits in a term/session.
3. A student may count no more than 30 credits of any combination of Directed Study and Independent Study courses to satisfy the requirements of an undergraduate degree.
4. Both Independent Study and Directed Study courses are only possible by arrangement and at the discretion of the instructor and/or the department. A student pursuing either type of course may be expected to work with less instructor involvement than is customary in a standard course.
5. A Directed Study course will have the same designation, liberal arts (A) or professional (B), as the course for which it substitutes. An Independent Study course may have the liberal arts (A) or professional (B) designation, depending on its objectives and outcomes.
6. Academic programs retain the right to further restrict the number of Directed Study credits, Independent Study credits, or credits accruing from a combination of two that can be used to satisfy programmatic requirements. These restrictions must be published in the catalog.
7. A graduate student may take no more than 9 credits of Independent Study if the program of study requires 36 credits or less or no more than 12 credits if the program of study requires more than 36 credits.
8. A graduate student may take no more than a combined total of 15 credits of Independent Study and Directed Study courses.
9. To register for either a directed study or an independent study course, a student must complete an online registration form, which requires the signatures of the student, the instructor, and the department chair (or program director). An independent study course requires completing additional information including, but not limited to, a list of objectives, description of project requirements, meetings with professor or sponsor, and bibliography.
