152
M.A. in Cross-Disciplinary Studies
Core Courses:
MACS 5020 - Theories and Philosophies of Conflict and Peace
This course is designed as a survey course on contemporary theories of conflict and
conflict resolution. Students will examine a variety of theories that center primarily on
the fields of history, economics, sociology, social psychology, anthropology, political
sciences, and social relations. Offered winter.
MACS 5200 - Research Design and Program Evaluation
This course focuses on the development of applied research skills, including basic
research tools, assessment, social science research, current research in the field, and an
introduction to program evaluation through analysis of published work. Offered winter
and summer.
MACS 5310 - Introduction to Systems Theories
This course presents an overview of systems theories that use metaphors of system,
pattern, interaction, communication, and language to describe human behavior and
relationships. Offered all terms.
MACS 5400 – The Interdisciplinary Writer
This course is designed to assist graduate students in creating essays, thought papers,
and other pieces of writing that reach an intended audience with clarity, skillful craft, and
purpose. It includes reading and writing assignments for an academic setting focused on
interdisciplinary perspectives. Students will be expected to participate in class discussions
and improvisational writing exercises. Because this is a writing course, rather than just a
course about writing, there will be a workshop component to the class. This means that
all participants will bring in copies of their work to share to develop writing speaks to
others. At the end of this course you will be better able to recognize, in your own writings
and those of others, a piece’s purpose, its organizational structure, level of craft
execution, authorial voice, and engagement of the audience.
MACS 6130 - Practicum I: Supervised Field Experience
This course is a field research project that incorporates classroom knowledge and
real-world settings. Students will demonstrate their ability to apply theory to practice
and analyze situations utilizing knowledge from previous course work. Offered all terms.
MACS 6160 - Practicum II: Supervised Field Experience
This course is a field research project that incorporates classroom knowledge and
real-world settings. Students will demonstrate their ability to apply theory to practice
and analyze situations utilizing knowledge from previous course work. This is a
continuation of MACS 6130. Prerequisites: MACS 6130. Offered all terms.
Elective Courses:
SHSS 6620 - Academic Writing
A user-friendly seminar on how to write clear, unpretentious academic prose. Covers
technical issues–sentence structure, punctuation, tenses, idea development–in a non-
technical manner. Includes strategies for creating and editing manuscripts and for
researching, organizing, and writing literature reviews. Offered all terms.
