The Odyssey Program

Propose Your Own Odyssey

Individually-designed projects

A. For an individually designed project, you must develop your own idea and plan for its execution. Note that there is a checklist for this process in the Odyssey Guide. Students working on a project as a group should submit a single proposal. Be sure that all names and ID numbers are included with the on-line proposal form.

B. Select a sponsor as early as possible in the process. Look for someone who has expertise in the area you are interested in or who at least will share your enthusiasm for the project. You may wish to speak to several people before selecting the one with whom you wish to collaborate. Please note that for projects in the AC and UR categories your sponsor must be a member of the Hendrix faculty. For all other categories your sponsor may be a member either of the faculty or of the administrative staff.

C. Consider the categories carefully and select the one that matches your project the best. In your proposal submission you must speak to the criteria of the category you have selected. If the match is not good, your proposal may be sent back to you for revision.

D. Work with your sponsor to write a coherent description of what you propose to do and what you hope to learn from the project. Give your project a concise but descriptive title. You are encouraged to bring a draft of the proposal to the Odyssey Office for advice.

E. Once your project description is complete and approved by your sponsor, fill out and submit an online Proposal Form. Please note that the form must be approved by your sponsor and the Odyssey Director. It must be submitted before you begin the project or very shortly after you have begun. Project proposals that do not require funding are accepted year-round. The Odyssey Office does not accept proposals retroactively.

F. You will receive notification by e-mail when your project is approved for credit.

G. Once you have completed your project and met all the requirements of the category you have selected, submit an online Project Completion Form to the Odyssey Office. The form must be approved by your supervisor, and you must write a brief project description (150 words or fewer) describing your experience and what you have learned. (See guidelines for writing the project description in the Odyssey Guide.) If an hours log is required, let your supervisor review it. Your credit will not be registered as complete until you have submitted your completion information.

Please note: the Odyssey Office does not support or condone missing classes to complete an Odyssey project. The only exception to this policy is for travel to a conference that occurs during the academic year, and under these circumstances, it is the student's responsibility to make up all course work missed.