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Health & Safety Information

Remote work and classes will continue through Sunday, January 30, 2022. All student services will remain accessible both remotely and in person, and athletics, theatre and most other events will continue as planned. For more information, view the university's health and safety protocols. Visit the  Spring 2022 Student Services Guide for information about student support services and campus activities available during the remote period.

Clock tower through view of flowers

Center for Interdisciplinary Studies

Advancing interdisciplinary theories, methods, and practices for a global world.

International studies students attend information fair

About

The Center for Interdisciplinary Studies at Kean University brings together faculty and students in the spirit of intellectual curiosity to explore, create and adopt new interdisciplinary ideas and approaches for life in a globalized world.

Interdisciplinary studies can be defined as “a process of answering a question, solving a problem, or addressing a topic that is too broad or complex to be dealt with adequately by a single discipline or profession.”

What we offer

For students, we offer an interdisciplinary B.A. degree in Global Studies and numerous academic minors. Each minor is worth 18 credits and can be taken in conjunction with any major degree program.

For faculty and staff, the center provides opportunities to advance collaborative teaching and research and to expand interdisciplinary affiliations and partnerships across campus.

Why IDS?

Interdisciplinary studies (IDS) is ideal for those who have an interest in multiple subjects; who want to develop integrated, contextual, and systematic knowledge of world affairs and who like engaging in diverse perspectives of universal issues. Through this process you will:

  • Acquire out of the box thinking abilities
  • Cultivate integrated analytic proficiencies
  • Learn research, writing, and real-world problem-solving skills
  • Develop versatile knowledge that traverses disciplinary boundaries.

Where can IDS take you?

Graduates with an interdisciplinary studies background have transferable, adaptable skills sought out by a wide range of employers. They find employment in businesses, government agencies, foreign service, nonprofits, journalism, consulting firms and the educational sector; or they go on to pursue post-graduate degrees.

IDS minors

  • Africana Studies
  • Environmental Justice **NEW**
  • Latin American Studies
  • Women's and Gender Studies

Featured News

Kean student Natalie Hernández interviews a volunteer in South Africa.

Students Conduct Research in South Africa

Two Kean students and their professors spent more than two weeks of the summer in South Africa conducting research on volunteering for Mandela Day, a time of community service held annually in honor of the anti-apartheid revolutionary.
Kean's Sara Compion with Viva Foundation's Meleney Kriel.

Building Bridges Across Continents

Kean students recently got a lesson in international social activism from the head of a nonprofit organization that is helping to build communities in impoverished areas in South Africa.