You’ve probably never had a reason to go to Hoblitzelle Hall. Built in 1975, it’s a small, nondescript, one-story building on the edge of campus with only a few classrooms and questionable air conditioning. But inside this building, believe it or not, at least one person is working her dream job.
“I love what I do,” says Kasey McKee, an advisor at the School of Interdisciplinary Studies. “And I’ve been an advisor at all three programs I’ve graduated from. How cool is that?”
Kasey is an alumna of the program she advises, Interdisciplinary Studies (IS), receiving her BA in 2004. She went on to earn her master’s in social work in 2007, and after a varied career including over eight years of advising experience, she currently works with students in not only the IS programs – both BA and BS – but also American Studies (AMS) and Education. And while she is an advocate for all three programs, she’s not shy about admitting she has a favorite, even if it took her a while to appreciate it.
“I just didn’t understand the beauty of an IS degree. It felt like, back in the day, more of an afterthought, but now that I’m here I see how it can be a really progressive and helpful forethought.”
IS might be the most overlooked and misunderstood program at UTD, but its role in ensuring the universality and accessibility of education is essential. Because it can be custom fit to anyone’s goals or interests, it ensures there is a degree at UTD for everyone.
“They are bold degrees,” Kasey tells me. “They are you really leaning into you, and your multiple interests. They’re accessible for everybody.”
What does she mean by that? What does it mean to be both accessible and customizable, and how do the degrees work?
“With the IS degree you have two foundations and a concentration,” explains Kasey. “So the reason I say it’s triple marketable is because the graduate in this area could say, well, I have the foundation in business, I have a foundation in economics and political science, and a concentration in, maybe, pre-law. So this person has 3 areas they can market when they go to employers. You can highlight or minimize the different content areas depending on the job that you want.”
“I just didn’t understand the beauty of an IS degree. It felt like, back in the day, more of an afterthought, but now that I’m here I see how it can be a really progressive and helpful forethought.”
kasey mckee
The IS programs are also ideal for returning and transfer students. “We can use almost any credit you have. Something interesting about my cohort is I have a lot of non-traditional students, meaning older students. I have one who’s been in school for 37 years. So my saying is, it’s not a matter of when but if. Nobody cares when you get a degree; they care if you have a degree.”
Another group of students who find they’re a good fit for IS are those who, for whatever reason, want to graduate as quickly as possible. “i can help graduate them pretty fast,” Kasey explains. “If you look across colleges and universities most schools right now are trying to provide the opportunity for people to have easily attainable degrees utilizing past credits.” If you’re a parent or caregiver, a full-time employee, or anyone who needs a lot of online coursework, IS might be what Kasey calls “a problem solver.”
Also, she says, “students come to me if they can’t find their major at UTD and they want to make that major.” Some common concentrations she helps create for students are Sports Management and Environmental Studies – majors that don’t exist at UTD, but which can be custom-made by Kasey through the IS program. Her most common split at the moment is Management/Political Science, although students can combine any diverse range of interests, for example, Art and Business Administration for an Arts Management degree, or IT and ATEC for UX design. As Kasey puts it, “we can really tailor your academic experience to help fit your dream job.”
For those struggling to fit college into their lives, or fit themselves into a major, IS may be the answer. Most importantly, it’s a program that removes barriers to higher education, and that is of utmost importance to Kasey. “A university experience is not for the elite or folks who can afford it or for people who have been planning this their whole lives,” she insists. “Everybody deserves a university experience.”
For students who know they want to go into teaching, Kasey also advises Education majors. UTD’s Teacher Development Center helps students get certified to teach in K-12 classrooms in Texas, and Kasey works closely with the TDC to ensure students are meeting the necessary requirements for their certification.
Finally, Kasey advises the BA in American Studies, which she explains is “an excellent degree if you want to go pre-law, or if you want to do nonprofit work. You really get to explore – more than any degree at UTD – race, class, and gender, which is really important in our community right now.”
An AMS degree might give pre-law students an edge when they start applying to law schools, because while Political Science is the typical pre-law major, AMS “helps people differentiate and have a different way to market themselves, but also study content that wouldn’t necessarily be on the straight Poli-Sci track,” she explains. For example, students can add “urban studies or gender studies or even technology classes within a pre-law track.”
“A university experience is not for the elite or folks who can afford it or for people who have been planning this their whole lives. Everybody deserves a university experience.”
kasey mckee
So how did Kasey find IS over 20 years ago, and how has she used her degree?
“I was on the eight-year plan,” she explains. “I went to community college for four years. I was going to be a photography major. I got really well trained, but then I just felt a calling to work more with people.”
After earning her associate’s degree and transferring to UTD, Kasey was told her diverse credits made her a good candidate for IS. “It ended up being the perfect degree for me because I have a foundation in Arts and Humanities, I have a foundation in Economics & Political Policy, and then I have a concentration in Counseling. So little did I know that degree was setting me up to be the professional social worker that I am today. It was the perfect degree.”
After graduating with her BAIS in 2004, Kasey continued her education. “It was a professor at UTD who told me about social work. I had no idea what social work was.” After earning her master’s and becoming a licensed clinical social worker, Kasey embarked on what she calls “an amazing career, which technically started here. I’ve worked with men, women, and children survivors of sexual violence. I’m a fully licensed counselor. I’ve done therapy. I’ve worked at three major universities. I’ve helped launch a nonprofit. I’ve worked in workforce development.”
All these experiences eventually led Kasey to academic advising. “What I love more than anything is working with all kinds of people but especially young adults and college students and even older adults, helping them find what they’re good at and find their passion and direction.”
She finds that advising isn’t that different from counseling. “I call it counseling lite! I’ve done a lot of trauma work, and I don’t do that anymore, but we have some pretty deep conversations. I’ve got a good chunk of students that we have very deep and challenging conversations about their careers and their lives, so I think I’m a really good fit for the program.”
Ultimately, Kasey says, “I love helping. A little bit of encouragement goes a long way. I’m fortunate that I’ve literally been part of thousands of people’s journeys at this point, which I find to be a privilege. I think a little bit of cheering on and encouragement and direction can help really change a person’s pathway. So, I love what I do.”
After 20 years holding an IS degree and a year advising IS students, Kasey admits to one regret. “In school I wish I had had the courage to embrace and own my ‘weird’ major, and I would encourage any student to do that because at the time I thought I was doing college ‘wrong.’ I thought I had all these different pieces, and they didn’t make sense together, but now I can look back two decades later and figure out, oh, wait that was me! That’s who I am now! And I have had the most meaningful, ideal career I could think of.”
If you think IS could be the start of your own ideal career, visit us online to learn more and apply today.