Interim is the annual four-week term that sets Wofford apart from many other schools. It is the segment between fall and spring semesters when students are encouraged to try something new and outside of their comfort zone.
Generally students take only one “JAN” course during Interim. However, this year’s course offerings are going to look a bit different.
The Wofford faculty recently decided to grant standard semester credits for January Interim in addition to increasing the implementation of letter grades. For the 2024 Interim, they are offering seven on-campus departmental Interim courses and one travel departmental Interim course.
A.K.Anderson, professor of religion, has six years of experience in coordinating the Interim term.
“The quality of (learning work) has grown in the last eight or nine years… In the time I’ve done learning work, we’ve kind of ranged between about 70 and 110 students doing internships… which doesn’t include clinical internships,” Anderson said.
Karen Goodchild, Chapman family professor of humanities and Interim coordinator, has overseen interim planning for two years.
“We agreed that, even if faculty are proposing courses within their departments like an art history course, it still has to also meet qualities that we expect to be true to the Interim (model), which can be risk-taking, experiential, or adventurous,” Goodchild said.
Goodchild reiterated that there are plenty of Interim options and opportunities for each student.
“Any student who’s interested in doing some kind of preprofessional work during Interim should look into the learning work program,” Goodchild said.
“If you don’t have an internship but would like one, get in touch with Jenn Sainovski in career services,” Goodchild said. “Let her know what kind of internships you’re looking for and she can work with you to try to help you find something.”
“Just because you don’t already have something set up, don’t panic, it is still possible to be a part of the program, it just requires that step of working with career services.”
Faculty members believe that the recent changes will benefit the student body but hold true to the mission that Interim “prepares its students for extraordinary and positive contributions to a global society.”
Terriers are known for their involvement in studying abroad, particularly during Interim. The month-long focus provides students with the time to become immersed in another culture without committing to an entire semester away.
According to Anderson, some interim trips don’t make it, but they all would in an ideal world
“When faculty propose a travel interim, they do it with a certain budget in mind… If a budget has been created with 16 students and there are eight, it just can’t work financially,” Anderson said. “That’s the only reason, baring health issues or something else, that travel interims don’t make it.”
The Interim courses that offer letter grades will appeal to many students because, in some cases, its completion will satisfy the required content of a semester class, such as a general education or major related course. The hope with this is that Interim experience would apply to more than just the “JAN” term courses as seen on the course catalog.
This interim has been thoughtfully enhanced with new opportunities and developments for the Terriers.
Interim registration opens on October 10th and closes on the 13th. The final learning work interim application deadline is November 15th. Contact Anderson for questions. For questions related to internships feel free to reach out to Jenn Sainovski in career services. Both emails can be found in the Wofford directory.
