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Course Catalog

The Writing Program

As part of the undergraduate program, a student must successfully complete three writing-emphasis courses. These courses use writing to help students acquire both subject knowledge and writing ability. In these courses, students learn and communicate their knowledge through writing.

Writing-emphasis courses are intended to train students in writing across the disciplines throughout four undergraduate years. Therefore, the best plan is to take them in varied fields and to space them out.

These courses, designated as ‘‘W Courses,’’ are offered in most departments. A complete list of W courses is available at the Writing Center’s website, www.bucknell.edu/WritingCenter.

Not every course that contains writing, even a great deal of writing, will be a W course. W courses have certain characteristics:

1. A W course provides writing instruction. In writing and revising, students receive the help and advice of an instructor and perhaps writing tutors or students in the class. The writing instruction may take the form of written or oral responses to drafts and papers, but it also can be reading composition textbooks or discussing writing.

2. The course pays attention to and encourages the different stages of writing as a process: pre-writing or brainstorming, writing drafts, revising, and editing. Writing is treated as a dynamic process of expressing one’s ideas in words and revising one’s ideas and words by reconsidering them in light of feedback from others. Writing is, therefore, not merely a written end-product, but a tool for learning and thinking.

3. The course will teach the conventions of writing needed by students. These conventions vary from discipline to discipline and class to class. Students will be introduced to basic expository skills and the conventions appropriate to writing in the discipline of their choice.

4. In a W course, students write frequently. Writing frequently does not necessarily mean many assignments. Students may write multiple drafts of a few assignments. The point is that to improve one’s writing, one must write. W courses provide the opportunity for practice and for the feedback so vital to writing well.

5. Students write to learn the subject matter of the course. Writing to learn takes many forms: notebooks, journals, answers to exam questions, laboratory reports, fieldwork reports, essays, and other formal and informal assignments. Students must understand the material in order to write about it, and that understanding emerges from trying to find words to communicate it to others.

Rules affecting the writing requirements are given in the introductory material for the College of Arts and Sciences and for the College of Engineering. This requirement is independent of the English requirement for the College of Engineering.

International Education

The Office of International Education’s primary responsibility is to help provide an international focus to the academic life of Bucknell students. The staff advises and assists undergraduate students in all majors who wish to incorporate an off-campus study experience into their academic work, by spending a semester, year, or summer in another country or on a specialized program in the United States.

Bucknell offers a variety of undergraduate study opportunities for students in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Central and South America. Both language and non-language majors are encouraged to consider a semester or academic year abroad when their curricular plans might be enhanced by such experiences.

Bucknell sponsors programs in Spain, France, Barbados, and England (described below) and enjoys formal relationships with the Advanced Studies in England in Bath; Associated Kyoto Program in Japan; Denmark's International Study Program; the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Nottingham; the faculty of chemical engineering at the University of Rovira i Virgili in Spain; IES (The Institute for the International Education of Students) in Austria, Australia, China, England, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and Japan, and the Swedish Program at the University of Stockholm. In addition, off-campus programs sponsored by other American colleges or institutions have been approved for Bucknell student participation. Within the United States, students may participate in the Duke University Marine Laboratory Program in North Carolina or semester internship programs in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia.

When students qualify for any of these programs, they are regarded as enrolled at Bucknell while off campus, allowing them to receive academic credit, to continue all financial aid (except work-study), and to maintain their place in their academic class. Students on Bucknell en France or Bucknell in London receive Bucknell grades and credits. Students on Bucknell in Barbados receive one or two Bucknell credits with grades and two or three transfer credits. Students on Bucknell en Espana will receive a half credit for the orientation course and their remaining credit as transfer credit. Students on all other programs receive transfer credits; no grades are posted on the Bucknell transcript. Bucknell charges all students on non-Bucknell programs on-campus tuition minus a special tuition credit which partially defrays the additional costs of off-campus study. Bucknell then pays the tuition component of the program costs whether that tuition is lower or higher than Bucknell’s tuition. If the program tuition is lower, the differential amount remains at Bucknell and is applied to the same university expenses that tuition always covers. If the program tuition is higher, Bucknell pays the full amount to the program without charging the student for the extra cost. Students on non-Bucknell programs pay all non-tuition costs (e.g., room and board) directly to the program. These latter costs are detailed in Estimated Cost Sheets in the Office of International Education. Students on Bucknell programs will be charged on-campus tuition. Room and board charges vary by program.

Information and applications may be obtained in the Office of International Education. Because prior planning, deadlines, and appropriate arrangements are crucial, it is necessary to consult with the office’s staff well in advance of the semester to be spent off campus. Specifically, applications must be completed in December or February by students who wish to be off campus during the fall semester and in April or September by students who wish to be off campus during the spring semester. Check with the Office of International Education for specific dates. Off-campus study during the semester or for the full academic year is open to all eligible students. In order to gain approval, qualified students should demonstrate the academic appropriateness of their program choice.

Students proposing to pursue off-campus studies should have an excellent academic record, a history of good conduct and, normally, a minimum grade point average of 2.80. Exceptions to the preceding may be considered where there is evidence that the student is capable of sustained academic effort of high quality in an academic environment that may lack close supervision. All requests for special consideration will be reviewed by the director, Office of International Education.

Juniors and first-semester seniors are eligible for off-campus study. The last semester of the senior year must be spent on campus if a Bucknell degree is desired. Only advanced language majors may be advised to go abroad as early as second semester sophomore year. Students may study off campus for two semesters and may earn maximum credit equivalent to four full courses for a semester and eight full courses for a full academic year. It should be noted that courses elected off campus must be pre-approved for transfer credit by the appropriate department chair and must be passed with grades of ‘‘C’’ or higher if credit is to be awarded. Before leaving campus, students must submit to the registrar a regular schedule indicating off-campus study rather than the usual on-campus courses.

Bucknell en Espana

Bucknell en Espana is a study abroad program for students majoring or minoring in Spanish, as well as for other students who have reached the level of language proficiency equivalent to Intermediate Spanish II (SPAN 105). Each semester a Bucknell faculty member leads a group of students to Granada where they live with host families selected for them. The program, administered by the Spanish department and the Office of International Education, is affiliated with the Universidad de Granada and its Centro de Lenguas Modernas. Bucknell students with more advanced levels of Spanish proficiency will enroll in courses in the Estudios Hispanicos program, choosing from a variety of disciplines, including Language, Culture, Literature, Art History, Music, History, Geography, Sociology, Political Science, Economics, Management, and Film. Students who have completed SPAN 105 or the equivalent but are not sufficiently advanced for Estudios Hispanicos will enroll in the Cursos de Lengua y Cultura Espanolas, which offers courses in Language, Literature, Geography, History, Art History, and Culture. All qualified students who wish to study in Spain are expected to prepare for and participate in Bucknell en Espana; for those students who have not yet completed SPAN 105, another study abroad program appropriate to their level of proficiency will be available.

Courses approved by the student's academic adviser at Bucknell or the appropriate department director/chair will count toward their major.

Bucknell en Espana is open to Bucknell students in good standing who have completed Intermediate Spanish II (SPAN 105) or the equivalent. It is expected that Spanish majors will complete, at the minimum, SPAN 208 (Advanced Conversation and Composition) prior to departure, although it is recommended that they take at least one course in literature or culture (SPAN 220, 222, 270, 280, 285) before going on the program. This will help to ensure their acceptance into the advanced Estudios Hispanicos program. Students who have completed at least SPAN 105 qualify for the Cursos de Lengua y Cultura. For students who are considering a second major or a minor in Spanish, the courses taken in Lengua y Cultura also count toward either.) In addition to the language requirement, factors determining a student's acceptance to Bucknell en Espana include her/his grade point average, motivation, maturity and independence, integrity and responsibility.

The tuition for Bucknell en Espana is the same as tuition on campus. The tuition charge includes a round-trip ticket on a group flight out of New York and excursions in Spain. Room and board fees are determined by current rates in Granada and are similar to Bucknell rates. Payments for tuition, room and board will be billed by the university and will be due at the same time as for on-campus students.

Applications for fall and full year are due in early February, and those for spring semester are due by mid-September. Application forms are available in the Office of International Education.

Bucknell en France

Bucknell en France provides an opportunity for qualified Bucknell students regardless of major to complement their education by studying for a semester or a year in France. The program is administered directly by the French and Francophone Studies program and the Office of International Education in cooperation with the Université François Rabelais in Tours, France. All students who wish to study in France are expected to prepare for and participate in Bucknell en France.

Students remain officially enrolled at Bucknell and at the same time are registered as students in the French university. Their courses are taught in French, integrated into the Bucknell curriculum, and receive Bucknell grades and credit. Courses approved by the student’s adviser count toward the major or minor. Course offerings, which vary slightly from year to year, usually include language, literatures, history, art history, economics, management, and political science. Courses in other disciplines may be arranged by independent study. The first month is spent in intensive study of French at the Institut de Touraine.

Bucknell en France is open to all Bucknell students in good standing who have completed FREN 150. Although not required, FREN 230, FREN 231, FREN 270, and FREN 271 are recommended in preparation for study in France. Students who do not meet the minimum language requirements for the regular Bucknell en France program can be placed in the Institut de Touraine in the fall for a semester of intensive French. While no minimum grade average is required, letters of recommendation must give evidence that the student has the maturity, integrity, independence, and responsibility necessary for study abroad.

Students who have completed a regular fall semester program in Tours can take advantage of their improved language and cultural skills to participate in more advanced or specialized options during the spring. Remaining in Tours, they may take one or more courses at Université François Rabelais, Ecole Supérieure de Commerce, or Ecole d’Ingénieurs de Tours, and they have the opportunity to do an internship in a business or public office. They also have the opportunity to apply for participation in approved institutes in Paris, or study in another French-speaking area such as Cameroon, Martinique, or Quebec.

The fee for Bucknell en France is the same as Bucknell tuition and the housing fees are the same as equivalent accommodations on campus. In addition to the courses, the fee covers the round-trip trans-Atlantic airfare and excursions in France. Student grants and loans apply.

Brochures and application forms are available at the department of foreign language programs, the Office of International Education, or from any French professor. Applications are due in mid-September for the spring semester and in mid-February for the fall semester.

Bucknell in Barbados

The Bucknell in Barbados semester allows students to live and study in a developing country, experience its culture and interact with peers from Caribbean nations. The program takes place each spring semester at the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies (U.W.I.), about three miles from Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados. It is administered by a Bucknell professor-in-residence who offers a core course in which all students are expected to enroll. Students also are expected to enroll in three courses of their choice at the University of the West Indies. The range of choice is broad, and courses may be selected from the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and law. Students have the option of substituting a 10-hour per week internship for one of their three elective courses.

Bucknell students have interned with various UN agencies, the Central Bank of Barbados, the Caribbean Development Bank, the Caribbean Tourism Organization, the Barbados Institute of Management and Productivity, the Caribbean Centre for Development and Administration, and the Bellairs Research Institute of McGill University, a marine biology institute. Bucknell in Barbados is open to all Bucknell juniors and, in exceptional circumstances, sophomores who are in good academic standing. Applications are available in the Office of International Education and are due in mid-April.

Bucknell in London

Bucknell in London, offered every fall semester to qualified juniors and seniors, is taught by two Bucknell professors and one or more visiting British academics. The curricular emphasis of the program, which has ranged from anthropology, biology, classics, English, music, political science, and sociology to computer science and civil and environmental engineering, will vary according to the disciplines of the two professors who co-direct each fall semester’s Bucknell in London. Since all courses are designed to take full advantage of the program’s British location, numerous day and overnight field trips to sites in London and outside London are organized to complement various classes. Students select four courses from among the five or six offered. All courses receive Bucknell grades and credit.

Students are housed in flats in central London. Applications, due in mid-February, are available in the Office of International Education or from the two prospective faculty directors.

Summer Opportunities 

In addition to semester and year-long programs, Bucknell also offers several faculty-led summer programs. Summer programs in Barbados, Northern Ireland, and the Virgin Islands are offered on a regular basis. In addition, Bucknell faculty periodically lead summer programs to other locations, which have included such destinations as China, England, and Nicaragua. Eligibility requirements vary. Students seeking more information are encouraged to contact the program directors or the staff member in the Office of International Education responsible for summer programs for more information.

Extended Academic Programs

The Humanistic Scholars Program

The Humanistic Scholars Program offers the opportunity for Bucknell students to do sustained work in the humanities in a campus environment that is supportive of high achievement. Small classes, close contact with faculty, and a residential component are among the many attractive features of the program. Students in any major or degree program are welcome to participate. Completion of the Humanistic Scholars Program is noted on the student’s transcript.

During their first year, students who wish to enter the Humanistic Scholars Program enroll in the Humanities Residential College, where they take two courses, one each semester, that constitute prerequisites for future work in the program. These courses are the Foundation Seminar "Myth, Reason, Faith" which deals with biblical, Greek, Roman, and medieval texts, and "Art, Nature, Knowledge" which deals with works of music, art, literature, philosophy, and science from the Renaissance to the 19th century. During their first year, Scholars participate in Common Hours where they discuss and formulate the questions for an optional comprehensive exam to be taken at the end of their first year. Passing the comprehensive exam will qualify students to continue as Humanistic Scholars.

In their sophomore year, Scholars enroll in a third course, "Nihilism, Modernism, Uncertainty." This course deals with issues in the 20th century with examples from art, music, literature, philosophy, and science. As in the first-year courses, the enrollment is kept small enough to encourage discussion and intellectual engagement. All of the courses in the Humanistic Scholars Program are team taught and include many guest lecturers from a variety of disciplines.

During the junior year, Humanistic Scholars are strongly encouraged to study abroad for at least one semester. During the senior year, they write a thesis in the department or program of their major.

Participation in the Humanistic Scholars Program is also possible for sophomores who may have missed the opportunity to enroll in their first year. The courses are identical with the above description.

Courses in the Humanistic Scholars Program fulfill certain Common Learning Agenda and other requirements, depending on the student’s degree program. Students must apply and be accepted by the normal university procedure in order to study abroad. Registration for independent study leading to a senior thesis or honors thesis requires permission from the department of the student’s major; it is the student’s responsibility to obtain permission from a faculty sponsor for the thesis. For an honors thesis, it also is necessary to have the project approved by the Honors Council.

The Justice and Social Change Program

The Bucknell Program in Justice and Social Change strives to create a four-year intellectual and social community among students and faculty interested in issues of justice, social problems and social change at the local, national, regional and global levels. The goal of the program is to provide intellectual substance to and a supportive community for the notion that we must "think globally and act locally." Students in the program enjoy an ongoing relationship with faculty who have designed the program and participate in cocurricular activities. Students from any major or program are welcome to participate. Students who are interested should contact the Academic Coordinator of the Residential Colleges.

Students ordinarily join the program after enrolling in the Social Justice College or Global College of the Residential College program for first-year students. During registration period in the fall of the first year, and as late as the beginning of the spring semester of the first year, students join by registering for the designated spring semester course. Students who were not enrolled in the Residential Colleges are eligible to join the program at this time, subject to approval by the coordinating committee that administers the program.

The two core courses for the program are POLS 276 Global Justice and Social Change and UNIV 219 Peace Studies. Students in the program enroll in one of these courses (depending on which is offered) during the second semester of the first year. During the sophomore year, it is expected that students will live together in a residence hall (a hall or house, depending on the size of the program) which is reserved to Justice and Social Change participants, linked to the first-year Social Justice and Global Colleges through a variety of programs, and staffed by a Resident Fellow who is responsible for linking the academic, living, social and programmatic environments.

During the fall semester of the sophomore year, students enroll in the other core course, either UNIV 219 or POLS 276 (depending on which course is offered). During the spring semester of the sophomore year, students enroll in one of a set of domestically oriented social justice/change courses. Courses previously approved for the program include ECON 236 Unemployment and Poverty, GEOG 223 Gender and Geography, SOCI 213 Race in Historical and Comparative Perspective, SOCI 243 Race and Ethnicity or ENGL 228 Topics in Gender Study. The coordinating committee will publish a list each year of approved courses.

During the junior year, students are encouraged to study off campus for at least one semester in a program that offers courses on the themes of justice and social change.

Students must apply and be accepted by the normal university procedure in order to study off campus. If a student is unable to study off campus for academic or personal reasons, then she/he will undertake a semester or summer internship in a social change organization, either for credit, under the rubric of the nontraditional course program, or not for credit.

During the senior year, students undertake a culminating experience which can take one of several forms: a thesis, a seminar, or a project, some of which might satisfy the Arts and Sciences College Capstone requirement. Registration for independent study leading to a senior thesis or honors thesis requires permission; it is the student’s responsibility to obtain permission for a faculty sponsor for the thesis. For an honors thesis, it is also necessary to have the project approved by the Honors Council. During the spring semester of the junior year, students in the program propose a mechanism for satisfying the culminating experience to the coordinating committee of the program. During the second semester of the senior year, students participate in a common hour, which meets a number of times during the semester, to present their ongoing work to other students in the program. Participation in this common hour is necessary to successfully complete the Justice and Social Change program. Completion of the program is noted on the Bucknell transcript.

Graduate Studies

Bucknell grants master’s degrees in animal behavior, biology, chemistry, education, engineering (chemical, civil, electrical, environmental, and mechanical), English, mathematics, and psychology. Five-year coordinated bachelor’s and master’s programs are provided in biology, chemistry, and engineering. The professional degree in education provides for focused study in seven established areas of specialization: elementary and secondary principalship, supervision of curriculum and instruction, school superintendency (letter of eligibility), elementary and secondary counseling, school psychology, college student personnel, and instructional specialist.

Students are admitted to graduate standing by the director of graduate studies, from whom the Graduate Studies Catalog and application material may be obtained. The Graduate Studies Catalog and applications for admission and graduate financal aid are also located on the web at www.bucknell.edu.

The regular undergraduate student who has arranged to complete all undergraduate degree requirements may, with prior approval, take up to two courses for graduate credit. An application for graduate credit by an undergraduate student may be obtained from the Office of Graduate Studies or the Office of the Registrar.

Non-degree students who hold a bachelor’s degree and wish to enroll in undergraduate courses may apply to the post-baccalaureate enrichment program. Application to the post-baccalaureate enrichment program is made through the Office of Graduate Studies.

If non-degree students wish credit and transcript verification of their enrollment, they are required to pay per course tuition fees; if non-degree students do not wish credit, they are advised to audit the course(s) and are required to pay only audit fees. Non-degree students wishing to enroll in graduate courses must apply to the Office of Graduate Studies.

Summer Session

Bucknell provides a six-week summer session offering regular, full-credit Bucknell courses, off-campus study courses, and programs in professional education. The summer session serves both undergraduate and graduate students who choose to take summer courses in order to enrich their educational experience or to accelerate their degree progress at Bucknell or elsewhere.

Bucknell’s summer session offers courses across the curriculum. Students who are working toward degrees or certification are advised to consult with their advisers to determine which summer courses most appropriately meet their needs. Students also are encouraged to explore new interests and to develop new skills and areas of expertise which will serve them well in any career path or interest pursuit. One of Bucknell’s goals is to provide the means for fostering the growth and development of a lifelong commitment to learning.

College of Arts and Sciences

The College of Arts and Sciences offers courses across its divisions:in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and mathematics. Courses are available at introductory and advanced levels. Many departments also will arrange independent study courses.

College of Engineering

The College of Engineering also offers a number of regular courses, including at least one general course in engineering science. Courses in independent projects and special problems can be arranged in all departments of the college: chemical, civil and environmental, electrical, and mechanical. Students with specific needs for work in engineering during the summer should consult with their advisers or chairs of the appropriate departments.

Independent Study

Most departments in both colleges offer independent study or special project courses which permit students, in consultation with members of the faculty, to develop a course of study tailored to their individual needs. Arrangements for such courses should be made as early as possible in order to assure that a faculty member willing to direct the student’s study will be available during the summer.