Field Studies in the Modern Workplace: CFS 393-0: Chicago Field Studies

Field Studies in the Modern Workplace: CFS 393-0

"The class that accompanies the internship as part of the CFS program has been another great experience. Many of the readings that we discuss in class are interesting, with many of them centered about the history of work and workplace culture. We also learn about each other’s internships and how they’re going, which I always find really helpful and interesting, as it allows me to think about my own internship experience in the context of how the other students’ experiences are." -Luis Ortega, Spring 2017 FSMW intern at CASE

Credits available: 2-4 credits during Fall, Winter or Spring. Can be taken for 1, 2, 3 or 4 credits in Summer ONLY.

Credits toward degree: CFS credits typically count towards general elective credits.

For Weinberg students who started at Northwestern before Summer 2023, this course will count one credit toward Weinberg Distribution Requirement for Area III: Social and Behavioral Sciences. If Area III distribution requirement has already been met, then Modern Workplace will count one credit toward Area IV: Historical Studies.

For Weinberg students who started at Northwestern in or after Summer 2023 (including transfer students), this course currently does not count toward any Foundational Disciplines or WCAS requirements. For students in other NU schools, please consult your academic advisor to see if this or other CFS classes count towards any requirements for you.

Course Description

In this course we will examine the modern workplace as a social, cultural, and political formation shaped by shifting values, norms, and material possibilities over time. We’ll begin from the premise that your internship is not only a chance for you to gain experience or to try something out, but also an endeavor ripe for analysis of what work is, has been, and could be–for you and for all of us.

Course readings and materials will ground us in the history and theory of labor in the US since the mid-19th century. Assignments and class discussions will spur you to think critically and dynamically about the relationships between that history, those theories, and your internship experiences as we take up questions of power, inclusion, innovation, social mobility, personal fulfillment, and more.

Possible Instructors: Nina Wieda, Liz McCabe, Sarah Silins, Jess Puri, Nick Dorzweiler, and others

CHICAGO FIELD STUDIES

Field Studies in the Modern Workplace: CFS 393-0

Course Description

Types of Internships that relate to the Field Studies in the Modern Workplace course: