Interdisciplinary studies (IDS) courses at Rocky Mountain College provide students with the opportunity to cross disciplinary boundaries and acquire skills and knowledge that will prepare them for academic and professional success.

IDS 010 – RMC Exit Assessment Exam

Semester: Fall, Spring, and Summer
Semester hours: 0

IDS 010 is an online proficiency exam used to assess core curriculum outcomes. It is a critical component of the college assessment system. Results of this exam play an important role in evaluating the quality of an RMC education and guiding curricular improvement. Students are enrolled in the course automatically upon submission of a graduation application. The course is graded as pass/no pass. A passing grade is issued on completion of the exam.

IDS 111 – College Success and Self Leadership

Semester: Fall and Spring
Semester hours: 2

There are four essential elements of college student success: academic, financial, degree and social. This course will explore these interconnected topics and help students discover their strengths, interests, values and habits. This course is intended to help students discover new ideas, strategies, and resources to empower them to be successful, both academically and personally.

IDS 115 – Indispensable Qualities of Leadership

Semester: Fall
Semester hours: 3

This course is the study of the art of leadership and how leadership skills can be developed. We will study leaders throughout history, from Sun Tzu (of over 2,000 years ago) to the latest leadership examples. This course will utilize reading, classroom discussions, group participation efforts, and two films in the attempt to dissect the idea of leadership. This course will also look at “personal leadership” characteristics that will enable the student to achieve success at Rocky Mountain College and in society.

IDS 120 – College Study Skills/Developmental Reading

Semester: Fall and Spring
Semester hours: 2

Sponsored by Services for Academic Success (SAS), this course introduces major learning strategies that lead to academic success. Key topics include note-taking systems, scheduling methods, memory principles, academic resources, and test-taking strategies. Students are provided with class-related assignments that encourage study skills mastery. In addition, students are provided individualized reading programs based on their present reading skills.

IDS 160 – Discovering Careers in Health Sciences

Semester: Offered at discretion of biology department
Semester hours: 1

This seminar course is designed to expose new students to the breadth of health-related careers available to them with a degree from RMC, with plenty of time to tailor their undergraduate education to their chosen career path. Guest speakers with various backgrounds (MD, PT, PA, DMV, etc.) will speak each week, answer any questions students may have, and provide valuable networking contacts. This is the first of three courses in the “Medical Careers Pipeline.”

Prerequisite: freshman standing

IDS 220 – College Newspaper

Semester: Offered at discretion of department
Semester hours: 1-3

Requires permission of the faculty advisor. Pass/no pass grading.

IDS 243 – Scientific Writing and Analysis

Semester: Fall and Spring
Semester hours: 2

Students will write clear and concise scientific papers and reports. Writing assignments will focus on grammatical requirements for formal scientific writing; abstracts; outlines and organization including paper, paragraph, and sentence structure; paraphrasing and citation usage; and methods of data presentation. A portion of the course will be devoted to data analysis, drafting of tables, and preparation of graphs. IDS 243 is required for biology and chemistry majors and minors.

Prerequisite: ENG 120 and declared major or minor in a natural science or permission of instructor

IDS 260 – Investigating Careers in Health Sciences

Semester: Offered at discretion of biology department
Semester hours: 1

Investigating Careers in Health Science guides students through a health science shadowing experience (20 hours) and a volunteer experience (20 hours). Students will attend a volunteering fair, keep journals and present their experiences orally to the class at the end of the semester. At the end of this course, students will have made valuable contacts in their field of choice and laid the groundwork for a successful application to a graduate program in the health sciences (MD, PA, DMV, PT, etc.). This is the second of three courses in the “Medical Careers Pipeline.”

Prerequisite: None; IDS160 is suggested

IDS 276 – Irish Protest

Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 1

The contentious political culture of Ireland has transitioned multiple times throughout the last 300 years. Governmental, non-governmental, religious, and local groups have emerged in the debate about governmental power in Ireland and Northern Ireland. This course will trace the current developments in Irish politics through a history of the IRA, Sinn Fein, Ulster Unionist, and Irish Nationalist party. The protest rhetoric in these social movements has framed the political identity of the citizens of these two countries. This course will track the progression of current developments in Irish politics by examining communication attributes of the various organizations that have engaged in the political protests. We will travel to Dublin, Belfast, Derry, Galway, and Dingle to gain diverse political and religious perspectives in the respective countries. Introductory material will be presented prior to departure so students have a historical and political context in which to understand the political protest and the cultural tours.

IDS 278 – The Rhetoric of Irish Protest

Semester: Summer
Semester hours: 1

This credit is earned by the students during the 12-day trip to Ireland in the May session. The contentious political culture of Ireland has transitioned multiple times throughout the last 300 years. Governmental, non-governmental, religious, and local groups have emerged in the debate about governmental power in Ireland and Northern Ireland. This course will trace the current developments in Irish politics through a history of the IRA, Sinn Fein, Ulster Unionist, and Irish Nationalist party. The protest rhetoric in these social movements has framed the political identity of the citizens of these two countries. This course will track the progression of current developments in Irish politics by examining communication attributes of the various organizations that have engaged in the political protests. We will travel to Dublin, Belfast, Derry, Galway, and Dingle to gain diverse political and religious perspectives in the respective countries. Introductory material will be presented prior to departure so students have a historical and political context in which to understand the political protest and the cultural tours.

Prerequisite: IDS 276

IDS 304 – Negotiations

Semester: Fall
Semester hours: 3

Negotiation is the art and science of securing agreements between two or more interdependent parties. The purpose of this course is to understand the theory and processes of negotiation as it is practiced in a variety of settings. The course highlights the components of an effective negotiation and teach students to analyze their own behavior in negotiations. The course has a strong experiential component, providing students with an opportunity to develop their skills by participating in negotiations and integrating their experiences with the principles presented in the assigned readings and lectures.

IDS 305 – Mediation

Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 3

Mediation is an interdisciplinary field. Mediators come from all disciplines and walks of life. A potential mediator ought to possess the patience of Job, the hide of a rhinoceros, and the wisdom of Solomon. Mediation is an alternative to a decision rendered by a judge, arbitrator, or other decision-maker. Mediators help the parties in a dispute to engage in constructive and creative communication, which will allow them to explore the issues and reach a mutually acceptable resolution of their dispute. The goal of the course is to provide those basic skills necessary to further pursue mediation, either as a profession or as another arrow in the student’s quiver of practical and life skills.

IDS 313 – Enactus: Entrepreneurship in Action

Semester: Fall and Spring
Semester hours: 2

Enactus students apply their innovative ideas to develop entrepreneurial projects that transform lives and shape a better, more sustainable world. Students will develop skills in leadership, communication, and teamwork through learning and practicing the principles of sustainable enterprise. Students select, plan, and implement real-world projects and compete annually at the national Enactus competition. This course can be taken a maximum of four times.

IDS 360 – Preparing for a Health Science Career

Semester: Offered at discretion of biology department
Semester hours: 1

This course is designed to give students pursuing health careers guidance in preparing their applications. Students will develop their cover letters, résumés, personal essays and other application materials, as well as participate in mock interviews. This is the final course in the three-course “Medical Careers Pipeline.”

Prerequisite: None; IDS160 and IDS 260 are suggested

IDS 422 – Methods and Materials: Teaching Natural Science in the Secondary School

Semester: Fall
Semester hours: 2

This course emphasizes the teaching of biology or chemistry at the secondary 5-12 level. Methods of teaching these subjects, including incorporation of active hands-on experiences, reviewing texts for content appropriate to various grade levels, and the use of technology in the classroom, constitute major parts of the course. Particular attention will be paid to thinking, reading, listening, writing, and speaking instruction. Teaching diverse and at-risk student populations will also be discussed. This course is the capstone course for the biology or chemistry education major.

Prerequisite: EDC 040, admission to the teacher education program, senior standing

IDS 483 – Organizational Leadership

Semester: Spring; Even years
Semester hours: 3

This course operates on a format of open discussion, risk-taking, initiative, honest self-assessment, experiential exercises, and observation of real-life leadership practice. It will challenge students to craft their own perspectives strengthened through critical examination of case studies, workshops, readings, and local public leaders who will share their own leadership perspectives.

Prerequisite: IDS 115 and junior or senior standing

IDS 485 – Experiential Leadership

Semester: Offered at discretion of department
Semester hours: 1

This capstone course gives the student hands-on experience outside of the classroom. In consultation with an advisor in the Organizational Leadership minor and under the direction of a coach, advisor, or mentor, as appropriate, the student will participate in leadership activities to strengthen their leadership skills and then create a capstone project or paper that assesses their own leadership effectiveness. Options for the leadership experience include participation in an internship, in a job shadow experience, on an athletic team, in an extracurricular activity, as a resident advisor, or other activities as approved by the advisor.

Prerequisite: IDS 115, COM course in the Organizational Leadership minor, junior or senior standing