Seminar activities also vary with the study area. A visit to a museum or art gallery goes with a Humanities Seminar. In Science, laboratory experiences and field trips are utilized to show students the ways of Science and to allow them to experience the excitement of discovery. Many of the activities described in a Social Sciences seminar syllabus are used in other seminars as well, i.e., lectures by faculty team members or guest lecturers, presentations by group members, group discussion, library research, learning journals, and a research paper. Students in all seminars may be asked to read materials related to the seminar theme prior to the seminar and to complete written assignments after the completion of the two-week seminar period.
Seminars meet for two consecutive six-day weeks and activities take up a full day.
Students who have completed the comprehensive exam for the study area tutorial are automatically invited to a seminar. Others become eligible with the consent of the mentor. The fourth study area or Inter-area Studies calls for a synthesis of the first three study areas via the preparation and defense of an undergraduate thesis. The student begins the Area with Inter-area reading leading to the completion of an undergraduate thesis prospectus under the direction of a primary adviser. Following approval of the prospectus by a committee composed of three faculty, the student writes the study under the direction of the committee chairperson.