SUNY Geneseo's Brodie Hall (SUNY Geneseo/Matt Burkhartt)
Cadence Panol '26 began her studies at Geneseo with an undeclared major. She loved dance and communication and took classes in both, as well as theater production, film, international relations, Russian, and other subjects, looking to find her niche.
"Nothing really fit" for a degree, says Panol. "I had a lot of different interests, and there was no established program that allowed me to do all of them."
Then she heard about the individualized studies major, created by Geneseo in 2020 to meet the academic needs of students like her, whose career goals or interests don’t fit into a traditional degree program.
"The individualized studies major offers students the incredible opportunity to design their own major," says Melanie Medeiros, professor of anthropology, director of the Center for Integrative Learning (CIL), and coordinator of the individualized studies major. "This major gives students the flexibility to curate a liberal arts experience that meets their current interests and future goals."
Students choose to pursue either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science. The degree combines at least two distinct disciplines and a capstone project, completed during their senior year and integrating the various subjects and interdisciplinary learning they’ve covered. Students are also encouraged to work with the college's Center for Digital Learning to create a personal website that highlights their efforts and presents them to potential employers in a cohesive package, says Medeiros.
The major aligns with self-designed opportunities offered at other State University of New York colleges as well as the 30 schools in the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges. Fourteen students have earned an individualized studies degree since Fall 2020. Panol is one of six students currently pursuing the degree.
Panol chose to major in visual communication and production, with minors in dance studies and the Edgar Fellows Program. She has studied various forms of performing arts and how we communicate through dance, film, and other genres. In Summer 2024, she explored ways dance influences Senegalese culture through Geneseo's Modernity in West Africa study abroad program. As part of her capstone project, she is choreographing a piece for the Geneseo Dance Ensemble’s Fall 2025 show.
"The individualized studies program allowed me to find my passion for dance and photography and develop an academic background to have a career in the arts," says Panol.
Other individualized studies majors are currently pursuing degrees in environmental science; environment and communication; identity and mental health; urban studies and planning; and mathematics, physics, and entrepreneurship.