Frequently Asked Questions
What can I do with this minor?
A family studies minor complements most majors.It focuses on the context of the family to illustrate the principles in many majors. For example, nursing takes a holistic approach to health, emphasizing the whole person. Family studies can extend and amplify this focus by concentrating on health in the context of the family. Similarly, education also concentrates on the interaction of the learning/teaching environment with the home environment. This provides a natural connection to family studies. Thus, students can use the minor to direct the precepts of the major specifically toward the context of the family.
Why must all family studies minors take the capstone seminar?
The capstone seminar allows students to really focus on their area of interest and pull all the information about their major and minor together. Further, the seminar requires students to think synthetically in an interdisciplinary fashion. This is good preparation for most workplaces which expect employees to integrate many disciplines.How do you find out who is teaching the capstone seminar?
The capstone seminar is taught by the director of the Family Studies program. Currently that is Dr. Lynn Turner, Communication Studies. You can determine the director on the website, in the timetable of classes, or by contacting Sue Farrell in the Arts and Sciences main office sue.farrell@marquette.edu via email or by phone at (414) 288-3223.What are the requirements?
The capstone seminar requires regular attendance once a week, active participation, and the completion of a major, seminar paper, focusing on a question which can be examined through an interdisciplinary lens. In order to accomplish this, students must find two advisers from two different disciplines on campus to agree to mentor and evaluate them on the seminar paper.Why do you need to have two advisers for your paper in the seminar?
Having two advisers helps force students to integrate at least two different disciplines in the seminar paper. It provides two ways at looking at the question and the two advisers can guide students toward two different literatures that relate to the question of interest.Do you have to declare the minor?
It is VERY desirable to do so.