Mentored Independent Study

Description
The Mentored Independent Study course was a pilot program during the Fall 2005 semester, that has continued each fall ever since.

In the program, first-semester Division 3 students are paired with third-semester Division 1 students based on similar academic interests. The Div. 3s mentor the Div. 1s in independent projects over the course of the semester. They work with their partners to identify a specific topic of study, hone the Div. 1s interests into a feasible project, and then support the Div. 1 students as they design, implement, execute and revise that project.

In addition to meeting weekly with their partners, the Div. 3s attend a weekly meeting with the faculty instructor of the course, in order to report on their Div. 1s’ progress and to get help, advice and support from the group. The class also participates in common readings and writing assignments about the mentoring process, at the discretion of the instructor, and discussion about these assignments is part of the class discussion as well.

Second Year Students
Are you entering your 3rd semester at Hampshire this fall, and are still in Division I or Div Limbo? Looking for an Independent Study?

Would you like to complete an independent project during fall semester 2009?

If so, consider the Mentored Independent Study option for this fall, a product of Hampshire's Re-Radicalization. First-semester Division III students are paired with third-semester Div I students, based on similar academic interests and compatibility. Over the course of the semester, the Div III students mentor the Div I students in independent projects. Within partner work, they identify a specific topic of study and hone the student's interests into a feasible project. With their mentoring partners, the Div I students design, implement, execute and revise that project. 3rd semester students meet weekly with their respective Div III mentors.

We cannot guarantee that you will be able to do a mentored independent study; it depends on whether or not we can find you an appropriate partner among the Div IIIs who are interested in participating this year. We suggest you register for your courses in the fall until we can confirm a match for you, which will happen in the beginning of September during the add-drop period.

Please send clear and concise proposals; they will be shared with potential mentors.

Only students in good academic standing who are entering their third semester of Division I will be considered. If you would like to be considered for Mentored Independent Study, please send us the following information:


 * Name:
 * Email:
 * Preliminary title of your project:
 * Short description (paragraph or so) of proposed project:
 * School where you would locate this project:
 * Courses you have taken in that particular school:

Please send your application to Roxy Finn at rlfLM@hampshire.edu. On the subject line, please write "MIS F09 Division I Applicant" Thank you!

Division III Students
ARE YOU A DIV III IN THE FALL? INTERESTED IN MENTORING?

Are you finishing Div II and heading for Div III in the fall? And are you interested in fulfilling one of your advanced learning activities by mentoring a 3rd semester Division I student in an independent project? If so, consider the Mentored Independent Study option for this fall, a product of Hampshire's Re-Radicalization.

First-semester Division III students are paired with third-semester Division I students, based on similar academic interests and compatability. Over the course of the semester, the Div III students mentor the Div I students in independent projects. Within partner work, they identify a specific topic of study and hone the student's interests into a feasible project. With their mentoring partners, the Div I students design, implement, execute and revise that project. In addition to meeting weekly with their partners, the Div IIIs attend a weekly meeting with the Professor of the course to report on their Div I's progress and to get help, advice and support from the group. In this course, Div III mentors will be expected to engage with reading and writing assignments as related to mentoring activities.

Meeting time Fall 2009 will be Wed. 4:30-6:00 pm, in the Lemelson Center. Professors: Colin Twitchell and Ellen Donkin.

If you are interested in this possibility, please send, as soon as possible, the following information to Roxy Finn at rlfLM@hampshire.edu If you can remember to put "MIS F09: Mentored Independent Study" in your Subject Line, it will help Roxy identify your request.

Your name: Your email: The areas of your Div II concentration: The areas of your planned Div III work: School in which you locate most of your work: Any other areas in which you feel qualified to mentor a student on an independent project:

After we have possible Div III mentors we will be soliciting names of 3rd semester students for possible mentoring matches.

Because this program runs through specifically assigned partners, and we cannot guarantee a mentee for every person who would like to be a mentor, it is suggested that you register for another advanced academic activity until we can confirm a match for you. If this does not happen before graduation in May, it may not happen until the beginning of September. In other words, we request flexibility on your part, and advise you to plan your advanced academic activities accordingly.

Learn More
At the end of the semester, each third-semester students’ work is evaluated by their Div. 3 counterpart. These evaluations are approved by the faculty instructor. The Div. 3 students are evaluated by their third-semester students and by the faculty instructor. This experience is equivalent to one course or learning activity in Division I for the third-semester students. It does not fulfill the eight-course and/or distribution requirements that are part of the First Year Program. For the senior students, their work fulfills the advanced learning activity requirement for one semester of Division III (refer to the description of “advanced educational activities” on page 111 of Non Satis Non Scire to see how this activity fulfills that requirement).

Students at Hampshire benefit from experiencing independent work outside of the classroom before entering Division 2 and 3. Work on a major project in close collaboration with a Division III student serves several purposes:


 * It synthesizes learning that has taken place during Division 1 and allows the younger students to do some major work in a field of interest, helping them make some decisions about what they might want to focus on for their Division 2.


 * It gives older students a significant experience in fulfilling the advanced studies requirement of Div. 3. Additionally, it allows the older student to be both student (on their own Div. 3) and teacher (with the third-semester student). In this way, the experience of being on both sides provides the older student with insight into their own work and experience as a Div. 3.


 * The program connects older and younger students in a meaningful mentorship. Unlike other mentorship programs, MIS is successful because students have a goal to reach by the end of the semester, and a shared academic interest linking them together. In many cases the mentorship develops into a friendship, but the program is still successful even when this is not the case.


 * An independent study program of this type allows for an increase in independent work; something that the Re-Radicalization of Hampshire College, the group that founded this program, believes many Hampshire students want and need more of. Yet it does not replace the course requirements of Division I, nor does it replace the bulk of classwork in the Division II.


 * Independent study gives students some of the tools they need for increased independent work in Division II and certainly in Division III.

Questions? Contact one of the previous course instructors:


 * Aaron Berman
 * Herb Bernstein
 * Michelle Bigenho
 * or Josiah Litant, one of the program founders and previous co-instructors

Video
This was a video created February 22, 2006 - it is a panel discussion of the very first Mentored Independent Study semester, Fall 2005.