This document discusses integrative studies and its benefits. It defines integrative studies as combining education, career, and life experiences to recognize and solve complex problems from multiple perspectives. Integrative studies allows students to make connections across disciplines and synthesize learning. The document also discusses how integrative studies benefits the author by providing a broad perspective and allowing her to connect her three areas of concentration - retail management, organizational leadership, and integrative studies - to create a specialized degree for her career in the pharmaceutical industry.

1. Running head: WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 1
INTS2310 Relevant Artifact
I have included this artifact because it expresses in detail what integrative learning is and why it
is so beneficial. This artifact is relevant to my future plans because it encompasses and reminds
me of what integrative learning entails. It also showcases and reinforces my knowledge of how
to apply it in my career. With this knowledge, I will incorporate the process into my future career
plans which will lead to a more comprehensive understanding in most any situation.

2. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 2
What is Integrative Studies?
Paige Turnbow
Texas Tech University

3. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 3
What is Integrative Studies?
We have learned that the definition of integrative studies is an approach to answering questions,
solving problems, and addressing contemporary social issues from multiple perspectives.
Integrative studies provides for a synthesis of study and life, an application of interdisciplinarty
to complex problems (p. 4). My personal definition of integrative studies is the combining of
education, career, and life experience which empowers us to recognize and solve complex
problems. Integrative studies allows us to interconnect the experiences of who we are and what
we have learned during our existence and being able to integrate that into new ways to evaluate
and solve issues. This form of learning goes above and beyond the idea of interdisciplinary in
that integrative studies utilizes a common base of knowledge in combination with multiple
disciplinary views. Integrative studies provides for a common body of knowledge recognizing
various disciplinary perspectives, as well as learning how to synthesize and evaluate those
perspectives (p. 4). It is imperative to know more about more and continue learning, inside and
outside of the classroom, throughout our life. The more knowledge we have about various
disciplines, the more empowered we will become. There is something that can be learned from
every experience.
Integrative studies is beneficial on many levels. It allows for a broad perspective of how
to process, interpret, and resolve a situation or problem. Integrative studies is beneficial in
regards to teaching how to use synthesis to combine multiple views of a topic to encourage
understanding. It encourages the comparison and contradiction of concepts, knowledge, and
ideas and to discover new perspectives in solving a problem.

4. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 4
Integrative learning is a process where students bridge curricular and co-curricular
activities explore and make connections across their general education curriculum and their
major focus of study, and synthesizes previous learning with new (p. 27). Integrative studies is
intended to incorporate multiple areas of concentrations and finding the connection between the
various perspectives. The chosen areas of concentration will in some way interconnect. This
connection may not always be obvious or intentional, but it exists and is the responsibility of the
student to find the connection. Connections can be made via multiple perspectives, such as self-
knowledge, relevance to personal life, and personal experience.
I began my degree program twenty years ago majoring in merchandising with a minor in
marketing. This degree program is no longer available at Texas Tech, so I am enrolled in the
university studies program. My three areas of concentration are retail management,
organizational leadership, and integrative studies. Retail management and organizational
leadership have a multitude of commonalities and connections. These concentrations are
connected in the obvious manner of overseeing or managing a company, a department,
employees, a family, or an organization. Integrative studies is an essential concentration to my
degree program because it helps me connect the non-traditional or the not so obvious aspects of
the two previous concentrations. Integrative studies promotes thinking outside the box to
discover the correlations within the entities. What I have discovered by utilizing what I have
learned thus far is the financial aspect of running a business or household directly effects the
employees or members of the family. Being a successful leader and maintaining a financially
sound environment will boost morale and encourage individuals to be more invested.
My three areas of concentration will create a specialized degree that will be beneficial to
my career. As a retail manager I am responsible for making a profit, reporting to upper

5. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 5
management, leading a team of employees, ensuring the employees are doing their job and are
satisfied within the company, and ensuring customer satisfaction. There are numerous
individuals and situations that need to be given consideration. Integrative studies is giving me the
foundation to weave the multitude of complex components regarding management and
leadership to address a given situation. As part of my degree curriculum, I am taking a
communication course which emphasizes communicating in the workplace. This is an integral
bridge between my concentrations. I can synthesize the communication between the demands of
upper management with the expectations of the employees which will help me to be a more
successful and profitable leader. Integrative studies, retail management, and organization
leadership can be woven together to create a specialized degree that would benefit a multitude of
endeavors.
Obamacare is a complex problem that affects every individual citizen in the United States
of America. This is a complex problem because it involves the perspectives of a diverse
sampling of relevant disciplines which are looking to provide health care for all U.S. citizens at a
reasonable cost. It is important to understand that one’s disciplinary perspective could not
provide the answer(s) or adequately inform our understanding of a complex problem or issue (p.
35).There are several disciplines with varying perspectives that need to be synthesized and
evaluated. The perspectives would include those of medical professionals, technology experts,
tax advisors, and government. Medical professionals are looking at the issue from the
perspective of trying to stay in business and earn a profit while the cost of healthcare has
increased exponentially. Technology experts will address the problem from the perspective of
creating, maintaining, and tracking the health insurance websites for the government entities. We
heard a great deal about the insurance sites crashing as they were overloaded with users. Tax

6. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 6
professionals have the perspective of tracking who is insured, as the government penalizes
citizens without health insurance via federal income taxes. State and national governments are
now inherently ingrained in the health insurance business. The common ground between the
disciplines is the welfare of United States citizens and a better more affordable healthcare
system. Each discipline brings a highly unique perspective to this issue.
I have been in the work force for twenty years and have worked for quite diverse
organizations. I have never found my true career calling. In using my life experience and
ultimately looking at how my areas of concentration are intimately connected and how they can
be utilized, I believe I have found a career to be excited about. My immediate goal after
graduation is to obtain a position in the pharmaceutical industry as a marketing liaison. I strongly
believe that with this specialized degree and my three areas of concentration, retail management,
organizational leadership, and integrated studies, this career path is highly obtainable. My
concentrations rely heavily on marketing, economics, management, communication, and the
integration of all these facets will enhance my marketability. I plan to utilize this knowledge
base while integrating the common threads of my life experience. I am empowered through
integrative studies to synthesize my knowledge to become successful in an entry level position
and striving to be a leader within this chosen field. By connecting the management and
leadership aspects of my curriculum, with the marketing and communication, I believe I will
aspire to a management level in a relatively short period of time. If I stay focused on the
following statement, I believe I will be successful. Integrative studies provides for a common
body of knowledge, recognizing various disciplinary perspectives as well as learning how to
synthesize and evaluate those perspectives, thus empowering people to address meaningful and
complex issues in new and unique ways (p. 9).

7. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 7
Reference
Tanner, M. (2015) Introduction to Integrative Studies (1st ed.) Dubuque: Kendall Hunt Pub Co.
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What is Integrative Studies? Grading Rubric

8. WHAT IS INTEGRATIVE STUDIES? 8
Criteria
Points
Possible
Points
Earned
General
Paper adheres to APA formatting (title page, citations, references
page, etc.). This rubric pasted at the end of the assignment.
15
Writing is clear with appropriate grammar, spelling, and
punctuation. Headings are appropriately labeled
10
Definition (250 words)
Defines Integrative Studies in a personal way. Definition is clearly
derived from course definition.
10
Student discusses how Integrative Studies is beneficial. 10
Education (500 words)
Discusses 3 areas of concentration and connections. Also discusses
the specialized nature of degree program.
20
Complex Problem (250 words)
Identifies a complex problem and perspectives (outside 3 areas) that
might be used to research problem.
20
Connection (250 words)
Discusses future plans/next steps. 15
Total 100
Instructor Comments: