Master of Arts in English - Literature Option

at California State University - Fresno USA

The Department of Finance and Business Law offers three options (areas of emphasis) within the Bachelor of Science in the Business Administration degree program.

The Real Estate and Urban Land Economics Option provides the background for a wide range of career opportunities in addition to residential and commercial real estate sales. These areas include development, lending, banking, appraising, escrow, property management, and construction. Usually students who enroll in the real estate option will complete all courses necessary to take the California Brokers License Examination.

The communication major is designed to provide broad-based competencies in oral and written communication, critical analysis of human discourse, and social scientific and humanistic research methods. The major also emphasizes how this theoretical knowledge is applied in specific contexts ranging from personal relationships to business management to public advocacy.

Our aim is to prepare students to understand and provide leadership in a competitive communication-oriented society. We offer a balance of humanistic and scientific instruction in communication skills people need to function effectively in teaching, business, law, nonprofit organizations, public service and administration, public relations, government, and management. Outside the workplace, these skills will also enhance students' ability to be active in civic engagement and community service.

Our program requires a comprehensive understanding of the breadth and depth of the communication discipline, as well as its major theoretical frameworks and research methodologies. The major and minor emphasize how this theoretical knowledge is applied in specific contexts ranging from personal relationships to professional organizations to public advocacy. Students investigate problems in diverse cultural settings, which make the San Joaquin Valley - with its tremendous ethnic diversity - an ideal location for study.

The Communication Skills for Professionals Certificate program recognizes development in such areas as presentational speaking, problem solving and decision making, leadership, and interpersonal communication.

Our program offers a variety of exciting activities to enrich students' educational experience. We have an active student organization, the Communication Club, and a debate team that participates in competitive intercollegiate tournaments and hosts public debates on campus. Our annual Peach Blossom Festival brings more than 5,000 elementary-age students to campus to present prose and poetry.

The theatre arts major and dance major offer you the opportunity to develop your skills in acting, directing, dance theory, research and performance, choreography, playwriting, children's theatre, technical production, scene design, costume design, sound design, stage management, lighting design, history, literature, and teaching. After completing our program, you will have the background that will enhance your ability to pursue either a teaching credential, advanced degree or a professional career.

Our professionally trained instructors will guide you through a program that is not only educational but fascinating. A major or minor in theatre or dance can be one of the more exciting times in your life because it will develop communication and performing skills that will aid you no matter what career you finally decide to pursue. If theatre or dance is what you want, then the California State University, Fresno Theatre Arts Department is ready to serve you.

Electrical Engineering
The Electrical Engineering Program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

Electrical engineers design and develop electronic circuits, equipment and systems in the areas of electromagnetics (antennas; radar, radio, and television systems), communications (telephone systems, satellite communications; laser and optical fiber communications; aircraft and missile guidance systems), computers and digital systems (computers, microprocessors, and microcomputers; artificial intelligence), physical electronics and optics (transistors; integrated circuits; optical display devices; lasers; optical fibers), power systems and energy conversion (electric power generation; analysis and synthesis of power transmission and distribution protection systems design; on-line power control protection systems design), and control systems (computer control, robotics, automated manufacturing, intelligent sensors). Hands-on experiences are emphasized and gained through laboratory work and design projects.

Computer Engineering
The Computer Engineering Program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). Computer engineering is a discipline which allows the student to obtain expertise in the design, programming, and applications of computers. It prepares the graduate for professional practice or graduate studies.

The program combines the following:

• A strong emphasis on electrical engineering (primarily electronic circuits and systems)
• A broad basis in mathematics, physical science, and general engineering
• Fundamentals of computer science including programming methodology, software engineering, and operating systems
• Introductory and advanced concepts in the design of computers and computer systems

A rich set of technical area courses is available to allow students to broaden their knowledge within any of several computer engineering areas.

The Africana Studies program (AFRS) at California State University, Fresno offers an interdisciplinary curriculum that illuminates the connectedness of the human experience and provides culturally-appropriate knowledge and skills. This helps students understand the experiences of African peoples all over the world and other ethnic groups in the United States. The program also involves its faculty and students in research, experiential learning, career counseling, computer technology, curriculum development, conference participation, and extended day, evening, and weekend courses.

Africana Studies emphasizes the study of the history and culture of African Americans as they relate to the experiences of Africans on the continent and other peoples of African descent in the Diaspora. The major in Africana Studies provides an epistemological basis for understanding issues that pertain to the experiences of African peoples and other minority ethnic groups in the American society. The curriculum promotes an awareness of the African heritage of African Americans and others throughout the Americas. Opportunities are provided for students to engage in study abroad and service-learning in Africa and the Caribbean to stimulate intellectual interest in, and linkage to, contemporary Africa and the African Diaspora while enhancing global understanding of the varied social realities of the human experience.

The faculty of the Department of Management comprises individuals who have studied and pursued business careers throughout the world. Well over a dozen specializations within the field of business administration are taught, researched, and shared with the business community by these professors. Case studies, experiential exercises, computer simulations, laboratory research, business community projects, guest speakers, and seminar discussions are just a few of the ways in which instructors provide the students with a "real-world" exposure to business. The combination of faculty expertise, teaching skills, research activities, and business experiences assures the student of receiving the best possible management education.

Linguistics is the study of the human capacity for language. Language is the defining characteristic of the human species; without language, there would be no civilization, no culture, no scientific or technological development, none of the achievements and capabilities distinctive to the human species. Therefore, the study of the nature of language is fundamental to the understanding of what it means to be human.

Students and faculty in linguistics investigate the nature of human language, its structure, diversity, universality, acquisition by children and adults, historical change, and its use in society. They study how language is processed in the human mind/brain, and how it relates to other human cognitive faculties. And they study and develop applications of linguistics to teaching, technology, and many other fields.

The B.A. Option in General Linguistics provides a broad background in the scientific study of language, including but not limited to phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, language acquisition, sociolinguistics, and related areas.

The department offers a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation Administration for individuals who are committed to the recreation and leisure services profession. The major in Recreation Administration prepares students with the knowledge, understanding, ability, and skill necessary to successfully function in professional positions related to the major.

Curriculum
Accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Parks, Recreation, Tourism, and Related Professions, the department offers a B.S. and a Minor in Recreation Administration.

Students in the recreation administration major complete a core of courses. These courses are designed to assist students in acquiring competencies related to the principles of recreation, leadership, group dynamics, and leisure behavior. Courses also cover legal and financial aspects of recreation service, advanced program planning, organization and administration of leisure services, evaluation, and professionalism.

Students develop specific skills in the areas of communication, human behavior, youth services, entrepreneurism, and adventure-based recreation and tourism, finance, management, marketing, funding, resources, program planning and supervision, and facility management.

Under the guidance of a practitioner, students in recreation administration are encouraged to acquire 1,000 hours of paid or voluntary hands-on experience in a variety of recreation, clinical, or leisure services agencies. In addition, they complete full-time internships with commercial recreation and tourism enterprises, public recreation agencies, nonprofit organizations, park-oriented agencies, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and other service organizations.

The B.A. Option in Interdisciplinary Language Studies is for those students interested in combining the study of a particular language or languages with the core areas of linguistics.

The M.F.A. in Creative Writing offers advanced degree training to talented students who wish to gain expertise in the writing of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction. It assumes that, as in music or the visual arts, the best education for the artist includes: training in the history and traditions associated with the student's discipline, training in theoretical and formal approaches to the craft, and extensive practice with critique of student work by peers and faculty writers. The program combines studio and academic approaches, providing the student with substantial critical workshop experience and a solid background in theory and literature. In addition to a traditional literature based course of study, we offer the Emphasis in Publishing and Editing for those students who wish to gain professional training and experience in the field.