All Cultural Studies students are required to participate in at least two Connecting Experiences as part of their BDP work. Take a look at what some Cultural Studies students have done recently for their BDP Connecting Experiences, then read on for additional information and resources.
Spotlights
Advising
Resources
Past Connecting Experiences
Major: Journalism
Type of Experience: Research
Mentor: Mark Bernstein, Communication Sciences and Disorders
For her fall 2009 Connecting Experience, Kate will be conducting research on the perceptions of disabilities through media representations. She will first research disability rights in Texas and then focus on a select number of media outlets to examine how they represent persons with disabilities. Kate is interested in how these images affect a societies’ opinion and perceptions. Her work will culminate in an intensive, investigative magazine-style feature story that will combine her work on this topic with her skills and training in journalism.
Major: Communication/Human Relations
Type of Experience: Research
Mentor: Josh Gunn, Communication
Merav completed a research project exploring religion and cultural identity. Her goal for this research was to gain knowledge about religion and popular culture. Through directed readings, she studied the rhetoric of religion and its influence on a number of factors including cultural identities, cultural norms and behaviors, and new religious beliefs.
See also past Connecting Experiences spotlights for Cultural Studies.
Katrina Kosted, the Connecting Experiences advisor for Cultural Studies, can help you find research and internship experiences that connect to your major and your career plans. Call 232-7564 to make an appointment with Katrina. Remember to plan ahead—if you want to be in a connecting experience next semester, you should be planning for it now!
All students participating in a Connecting Experience will be required to attend two meetings during the semester, where you will have the opportunity to talk with advisors and other students about how your experience is going, and where you’ll learn about how to talk about and build on your experience in the future. Please see the Connecting Experiences Resources page under Current Students for details.
For Connecting Experiences guidelines, contract forms, scholarship applications, reflection essay guidelines, internship sponsor forms, and important deadlines, please see the Connecting Experiences Resources page under Current Students.
The EUREKA Web site provides a variety of resources, including scholarship information and a database of faculty research interests.
Important: There is no “list” of possible Connecting Experiences to choose from — because Connecting Experiences are designed to fit your own personal interests and goals, the “list” is as long as your imagination and creativity allow. With that in mind, here are some of the internship and research experiences Cultural Studies students have had in the past. They might help you get started brainstorming what you might want to do for your Connecting Experiences.
“The BDPs are the most supporting, structured, and above all, rewarding when it comes to making undergraduate academics an in-depth experience, an experience that will not only help you expand your horizons, but will add value to your degree.”