The special senior independent study program offers an opportunity for a senior to develop an independent study as a tutorial course in either semester of the senior year. Application for an independent study does not guarantee its approval. The applicant must be in good academic standing and have demonstrated self-discipline, independence of mind, and self-motivation.

An independent study may be on any topic and may involve any of a wide range of learning activities, but it must have the following minimal attributes:

• It must involve a substantial intellectual effort by the student not wholly unrelated to subject matter taught in courses or activities at the school.
• It must be judged by the student and faculty advisor alike as central to the student’s intellectual development.
• It must result in a product that can be clearly specified by the student in advance and subsequently evaluated by the faculty member supervising the project.
• It must involve a clearly reasoned set of learning activities or steps that can be monitored continually as the project unfolds.
• It must be designed so as to culminate in time to be graded by the supervising faculty member before the end of the relevant semester.

(from the 2008-2009 Curriculum Guide)