Independent Study

Independent studies give students opportunities to enrich their Davidson experience by stretching beyond the standard curriculum. 

Independent studies offer a unique place for students to investigate a topic not offered as a course, delve into a project, or engage in research under the mentorship of a faculty member. 

If you have an idea for an independent study, talk with a faculty mentor. If you both feel that an independent study is the right pathway, use this form to officially apply for the independent study by 5pm on the second day of the semester. 

An independent study can count toward your major with some restrictions:

• Computer Science major: a student may count at most one independent study toward the major, but it cannot be used to satisfy the Applications or Systems requirement.
• Mathematics major: a student may count at most one independent study toward the major, but it cannot count as one of the two electives that is numbered above 300. 

Past students have completed research projects in mathematics as well as computer science, investigating areas such as graph theory, sports analytics, virtual reality, machine learning, bioinformatics, ethics.