Becoming Interdisciplinary: The Student Portfolio in the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies Program at Arizona State University

Abstract

This paper serves as a case study on the use of student portfolios at a large undergraduate interdisciplinary program at Arizona State University. The paper addresses the follOwing question: How can student portfolios improve student learning, IDS teaching, and IDS curriculum assessment? The history of the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS) program, its features, its partnership with ASU Career Services, and the process of student portfolio implementation into its curriculum are reviewed in order to demonstrate how the BIS program student portfolio requirement has contributed to the program’s success as an undergraduate interdisciplinary studies degree program.