February 17, 1977 MAJORS BEHREND COLLEGE MAJORS IN THE DIVISION OF ARTS AND HUMANITIES The Division of Arts and Humanities of the Behrend College of fers a program based in disciplines which are at the core of the traditional college education. These disciplines provide students with education for many careers. The majors of the division range from general interdisciplinary majors to more specialized majors in particular disciplines. All courses of the division, both the general courses and those for specific majors, aim to provide a student with a better sense of himself and his place in the world. In the broadest sense of the term, they provide him with a philosophy for life. General Arts and Sciences is a 36-credit interdisciplinary major which permits a student a high degree of choice and flexibility in determining what courses he or she may take to satisfy the requirements of the Bachelor of Arts degree. Instead of becoming a discipline specialist and majoring in a specific area, the student majoring in this program broadens the base of his or her academic education by taking advanced courses -in two or more related disciplines. Quite often the result of this approach to academic study is the development - of a thematic program, that is, courses clustered around a particular subject that give a student the op portunity to stkdy that subject from the perspective of various disciplines. For'example, a student might pursue a course of study in three areas such as psychology, sociology, or computer.science instead of concentrating all thirty-six credits in one of these disciplines as in the case of a traditional major. Many students utilize the General Arts and Sciences major to combine study in Liberal Arts courses with intensive study in such areas as business, science and math, engineering, education,, and the arts. The flexibility of the General Arts and Sciences major not only permits the student to develop such programs but actually en courages this type of innovative approach to course selection and program design. Students desiring a pre-professional major to prepare them for admission to medical and dental schools can also give strong con sideration to majoring in General Arts and Sciences. In fact ; most Liberal Arts pre-medical or pre-dental students elect this major because of its flexibility and the availability of a science mathematics option. A unique advantage of the program is that it provides the student with the opportunity to combine intensive study in the fields of science and mathematics necessary to gain admittance to medical and dental schools with the opportunity for extensive course study in the arts, humanities, and social and behavioral sciences. With medical and dental schools becoming in creasingly aware of the value of this broad liberal arts-science education, a flexible program such as GNAS is ideally suited to such students. In general the flexibility of this major allows students to prepare for a great variety of interests-for professional health schools, in such fields as medicine, dentistry, optometry, podiatry, osteopathy, and physician’s assistant programs, and also for law schools, graduate schools of various sorts, and employment in business, government, and industry. It truly provides education for many careers. American Studies A somewhat more specialized major, but one still based in the notion of interdisciplinary study, is American Studies —the in- .DIVISION OF NATURAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING The Division currently offers two baccalaureate degrees, a B.A. in Science and a B.S. in Applied Science, in addition to its associate degree programs in Engineering Technology. The B.A. degree program in Science contains a broad base of general requirements in Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, and foundations-level work in mathematics, chemistry, biology, and physics. The student expands this foundation in one of the areas above for his or her major requirements. The B.S. degree in Applied Science has fewer general requirements, and permits em phases within the major in Chemistry, Biology, or Mathentatics to a considerably greater extent than does the Science degree. Both programs contain a large number (25) of elective credits. which students often find useful in expanding their chosen areas DIVISION OF SOCIAL, BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES At present, seven different baccalaureate programs are available within the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences: B.A. in Economics General Arts and Sciences Pre-Law Political Science Psychology B.S. in Economics Psychology Studies In all these areas, the Division has the expertise to offer a wide range of courses. This range of courses will satisfy programming needs of many who desire to major in the particular areas. Those having questions about any Behrend College majors should contact the Division Head or professors in the appropriate discipline. Two baccalaureate programs in Economics (the B.A. and the 8.5.) are offered as undergraduate majors at Behrend College. Economics is the social science concerned chiefly with the descrip tion and analysis of the production , distribution, and consumption of goods and services and with making choices among alternative courses of action. Economics analyzes both private and social benefits and costs and the value of these to an organization, to other affected groups, and to the economy as a whole. Economics majors receive training in problem solving. For this reason, they are often employed by business firms and govern mental units. In such positions, they engage in the evaluation of ongoing activities to determine, first, if they are efficient, and second, whether or not they should be continued. Individuals trained in economics play a significant role in identifying the full costs and benefits of these activities. This major, affords maximum flexibility for students to tailor programs to fit individual needs. The program has five options, one of which is in social and bekavioral sciences (see Penn State Bulletin, P. 183, for more details). The undergraduate Pre-Law major provides students with a program that will prepare them for entrance to law school. Since law schools prefer a general rather than specific set of courses, the Pre-Law program has only three mandated courses, while the other six courses required for the major can be used by students to pursue their interests in political science. This'flexibility gives General Arts and Sciences Economics General Arts and Sciences Pre-Law Behrend Collegian vestigdtion of the characteristics of America designed to provide a broad view of the ideas, institutions, processes, and structures which characterize American culture. The major is in terdisciplinary, drawing on courses in history, social sciences, the arts, philosophy, religious studies, and English. Graduates of the Americafi Studies major often seek jobs in social and.human services, in government, business and industry. Some find positions in travel agencies and related organizations. Opportunities depend to a great extent upon how the major has been combined with other courses. Many graduates in American Studies have also gone on to graduate study in law, medicine, social work, and other fields. One of the more specialized programs or traditional majors in the offerings of the Division of Arts and Humanities, the English program offers a variety of courses in literature, literary criticism, and various forms of writing. All English majors explore through literature a wide range of human experience and values. All majors learn how to gather, analyze, and synthesize information. All majors get substantial practice in the techniques of research and writing, techniques which are transferable to other areas. A recent national survey of English majors identified the following non-academic career goals in order of preference: per sonnel relations, sales and marketing, public relations, management advertising, editing and writing, research and in : vestigation. Graduates of this program are employed in business, industry, government, publishing, and education. Liberal Arts graduates in general, and English majors in par ticular, are valued, according to one study, because “they are well rounded people, with broad ranges of verbal communication .. . and adapt easily to new situations.” Many English majors go on to graduate study and to advanced degrees in law, medicine, business, library science, divinity, and education, as well as in English and other liberal arts disciplines. History is pari of the humanities and the social sciences. History majors study the broad sweep of human development over time as an evolutionary process. This discipline inherently involves the study of different cultures and the interrelationship among economic, social, religious, and political forces. The Behrend College offers a variety of history courses in the following areas: the ancient world, medieval society, modern Europe, the United States. The breadth of these offerings provides considerable flexibility for students, so that they are able to study many different societies or concentrate ohone. In addition to a knowledge of historical movements and ideas, the history major provides students with training in writing and speaking clearly, and analyzing and synthesizing information. The major has a broad applicability, with graduates pursuing careers in such fields as civil service, foreign service, elementary and secondary school teaching, and journalism. Many students in terested in post-graduate work enter law school or pursue graduate work in history. AU of the courses in the Division of Arts and Humanities attempt to provide the student with the capability of answering the three questions that Voltaire once posed as the only important ones to ask: “Who am I? Where am I? Where am I going?” with additional upper-division courses. The majors may both be considered preparatory for a wide range of student interests, in cluding graduate study in science, professional schools, and resear ch or technical employment. In support of these majors, the Division has a very broad diver sity of faculty interests and strengths, spanning the traditional areas of the sciences and a variety of non-traditional areas as well. Opportunities often exist for students to participate, in regular or specialized courses, in the research activities of faculty members. Outstanding students may also have the privilege of enrolling in selected courses in mathematics and engineering, through the graduate center during their senior year. students the opportunity to explore interests that highly structured majors cannot. Thus, although the Pre-Law major is preparatory to further study in law school, it is a significant program in its own right, one that would be particularly attractive to students who desire greater discretion in their choice of required courses. Undergraduate study in Political Science is designed to provide the student with a basic knowledge of politics and government in several areas of concern. These areas include American govern ment, comparative politics, international politics, political theory and public administration. Study in each of these sub-fields prepares the student for one or several career opportunities depen ding on the area of emphasis chosen. The major in Political Science may. be preparatory to further study in such fields as law, public service and administration, education and teaching, and research in the study of politics. As a course of study. Political Science is one of the broadest disciplines within the liberal arts. It utilizes approaches from philosophy, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and mathematics. For students with an interest in politics, as well as in other social phenomena, political science offers an appropriate means to pursue those interests. Psychology Studies Psychology is at one time a scholarly discipline, a scientific field, and a professional activity. Its overall focus is on the study of both animal and human behavior and related mental and physiological processes. As a scholarly discipline, psychology represents a major field of study in academic settings, with emphasis on the communication and explanation of principles and theories of behavior. As a science, it is a focus of research through which in vestigators collect, quantity, analyze, and interpret data describing animal and human behavior, thus shedding light on the causes and dynamics of behavior patterns. As a profession, psychology involves the practical application of knowledge, skills, and techniques for the solution or prevention of individual or social problems; the professional role also provides/m opportunity for the psychologist to develop further his understanding of human behavior and thus to contribute to the science of psychology. . Psychology majors may select either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science program. The B.S. program is intended for students with a strong interest in science, and it requires more course work in the biological, physical, and mathematical sciences than does the B.A. program. English: Literature History Political Science MAJO S6e^ ce , Sd Studies pte-V-O* Political Science English: L 'tercit Ure r ne ro\ Ec °norr, ic c,\ud' eS continued at bottom of page 4 Page 7
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers