Interdisciplinary Practices in Higher Education

Drawing on eight crowdsourced cases, Interdisciplinary Practices in Higher Education demonstrates the range and diversity in approaches to teaching, learning and collaborating across disciplinary and institutional borders. The cases explore everyday challenges within interdisciplinary higher education experiences such as designing study programmes, planning curricula, ensuring sufficient assessment and feedback for diverse groups of students and coordinating and aligning expectations with external stakeholders. Each case is analysed by three leading experts, providing solutions and practical guidance to support practice.

Chapters explore the challenges of:

• Breadth versus depth in interdisciplinary teaching and learning activities
• Disciplinary identities in interdisciplinary collaborations
• The governance and administration of interdisciplinary courses and study programmes
• Career trajectories for interdisciplinary researchers
• Aligning expectations with stakeholders in transdisciplinary endeavours

A highly practical, solution-based book, this is an essential read for lecturers, students, researchers and others who might wish to embark on an interdisciplinary path or develop future border-crossing practices within their higher education institutions.

Bianca Vienni-Baptista is group leader and lecturer at the Transdisciplinarity Lab, ETH Zurich, Switzerland.

Merel van Goch researches how and what students and scholars learn at Utrecht University and Radboud University, the Netherlands.

Rianne van Lambalgen is assistant professor and programme leader of liberal arts and sciences, Utrecht University, the Netherlands.

Katrine Ellemose Lindvig is assistant professor of higher education research at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.