Duke’s approach to interdisciplinary education calls for incorporating research and engagement, facilitating collaborative projects and responding quickly to emerging intellectual configurations.

The university offers a rich array of academic programs that cross traditional boundaries and build on its strength as an interdisciplinary research university. It continues to make investments in new collaborative learning models that invite contributions from all corners of the campus community.

The Office of Interdisciplinary Studies provides mechanisms for interdisciplinary faculty and graduate students to develop new courses, refine teaching strategies, and connect research, education and community engagement.

Through its facilitation of collaborative, problem-centered, interdisciplinary inquiry, the Bass Connections program serves as a cornerstone of Duke’s efforts to integrate research, education and community interaction. 

The university institutes, initiatives and centers (UICs) support interdisciplinary education through a range of mechanisms such as the Duke Global Health Institute’s Doctoral Scholars Program, which provides research grants for fieldwork and requires collaboration outside students’ disciplinary homes. See academic programs run by the UICs.

Below, we share selected opportunities for the Duke community from the Office of Interdisciplinary Studies and the UICs.

Selected Interdisciplinary Opportunities in Education

Bass Connections Project Teams [see opportunities for graduate and professional students; funding available during summer; possibility of funding during academic year in some cases]

Collaborative Project Expeditions

Ph.D. Computational Fellowships

Summer Course Development Grants [open to schools, departments and other units that offer undergraduate curricula; Ph.D. students are involved]

Graduate Working Groups [Franklin Humanities Institute]

Duke-Margolis Scholars Program in Health Policy and Management

Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs Accelerator

Clean Energy Prize

U.N. Climate Change Negotiations Practicum [course with application process; funding provided for travel in some cases]

Global Policy Program in Geneva

Student-Fueled Initiatives