Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science with concentration in Environmental Chemistry

at Concordia University Wisconsin USA

The overarching goal of the Technical and Professional Communication program is to prepare graduates to take complex information and make it consumable to internal and external audiences who may not have discipline-specific knowledge. Graduates will become more aware of the forms of communication and communication processes in order to successfully convey their messages.

The Technical and Professional Communication major will emphasize written, oral, and digital communication skills. The coursework will prepare students to collect, analyze and communicate complex information to various audiences. The Communication Department’s approach to this major asks students to complete courses including social media, interpersonal, group dynamics, visual rhetoric, technical writing and speaking, and critical thinking and information dissemination.

The program curriculum will draw upon three primary spheres: writing, visual, and digital storytelling; analytic and critical thinking skills; and oral and interpersonal skills. Additionally, students can select one of three specializations or tracks: Health Care; High-tech Literacy; and Corporate/Organizational. Some program-level learning outcomes include:

• Develop and present cogent, coherent, and accurate writing for general and specialized audiences.
• Communicate effectively to audiences by listening actively and responding constructively as Scripture instructs within various contexts.
• Draw from various disciplines to describe orally and in writing how existing knowledge or practice is advanced, tested, and revised in each core field studied.
• Distinguish and examine communication-related problems from a Christian perspective to better serve society.
• Cultivate appropriate organizational skills related to professionalism, work ethic, and attitude.
• Analyze complex data and be able to combine them into easily-understandable presentations utilizing excellent critical thinking skills.

The aim of Concordia’s program is to prepare you for a career in the biochemical industry or to pursue graduate studies to earn a PhD, an MD, or a PharmD. Expect to be challenged on a regular basis. Our professors have designed a rigorous curriculum to help you advance as a scientist and develop analytic reasoning.

A significant portion of your studies will take place in our recently constructed laboratories, with state-of-the-art technology and equipment. Whenever possible, our faculty take a hands-on approach to learning, so you can expect to quickly become comfortable in a lab setting. You’ll gain a thorough foundation in the various areas within chemistry, including organic, analytical, physical, and biochemistry and within biology, including molecular biology. And CUW students aren’t limited to the required courses for developing their skills. If you have a particular area of interest, you have the opportunity to work one-on-one with a faculty member in conducting an undergraduate research project.

English is one of the most versatile degrees you can pursue because the skills you’ll learn are transferable. Critical thinking, reading comprehension, writing, and communication are essential in pretty much any career field—not to mention in your personal life.

You have two paths to choose from when pursuing a degree in English at CUW. This program can be a standalone liberal arts degree, or a complementary major for those of you seeking a degree in secondary education. Both routes will allow you to explore the language, literature, and expression of the Western canon. In order to demonstrate your understanding of texts and ideas, you’ll be regularly asked to write analytically and creatively. Professors will motivate you to think critically about texts and consider them within a Christian context, applying their lessons to your day to day life.

Courses center around comprehending, expressing, and analyzing ideas (both others’ and your own), so the content is going to get deep. Get ready to read a wide range of authors, and be prepared to speak up and engage in high-level academic discourse with faculty and fellow students. You will continually be learning to better express yourself by studying how others have communicated their thoughts.

Exercise plays an important role in a person’s overall health and well-being, but if done incorrectly, it can have unpleasant consequences. An understanding of how the body responds and adapts to exercise can help a person achieve peak fitness, lose weight, prevent disease, and maintain physical wellness. CUW’s exercise physiology program can help you harness the expertise needed to be others’ guide on their path to optimal health.

At Concordia, we’re committed to students’ overall health. In fact, it’s written in our mission statement. So you can expect the groundwork to be laid for you to be able to go out and do the same for others. By choosing to major in our exercise physiology program, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to learn about the human body and how it responds and adapts to the stress of physical exertion. You’ll be exposed to the theoretical knowledge required to conduct safe and effective fitness evaluations for at-risk populations, and you’ll have ample opportunity to put that knowledge into practice through hands-on learning experiences.

In Concordia’s own Exercise Physiology Laboratory, you’ll learn to assess cardiovascular, neuromuscular, and pulmonary responses. And you’ll spend quite a bit of time studying the sciences to develop a broad understanding of the mechanics within the human body. With all of this knowledge, you can graduate well-prepared to sit for the nationally recognized certification exams offered through the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Once you graduate, you can choose to either immediately enter the workforce or pursue professional/graduate studies.

Music therapy is the process of using music to aid changes in behavior and brain function in order to promote health and wellness. Our music therapy program is an equivalency program offered by CUW through Alverno College. What does that mean? You’ll benefit from a well-rounded Bachelor of Arts in Music degree through CUW, while earning a Music Therapy Equivalency Degree at Alverno College. This allows you to focus on the specific courses required to become a board certified music therapist. You will follow our liberal arts music curriculum and graduate from CUW with a music therapy concentration.

A key element of your studies is learning how to work within a multidisciplinary team in medical and psychiatric hospitals, hospice, schools, and clinics. A day in your future life could involve helping Alzheimer’s patients retain memories, Parkinson’s patients improve mobilities, infants reduce their stay in the neonatal ICU, and people suffering from depression deal with their symptoms.

Because of our partnership with Alverno College, you’ll be assisted in securing a top internship position to gain hands-on experience and build up your resume for the future. As a CUW student, you will be exposed to and have opportunities to participate in a wide range of musical ensembles including band, orchestra, choir, and handbells. Besides the regular classes, we have many student-led musical groups and events to enjoy throughout the school year. The liberal arts music major program offers you the chance to interact with and learn from other music students outside of the music therapy program.

The special education program has a strong liberal arts foundation with a Christian emphasis. Education coursework and fieldwork experiences begin freshman year. It offers a public education track, a Lutheran teacher diploma track for students wishing to pursue education as an LCMS church work professional, and a Christian teacher certification track for students wishing to pursue education in another Christian school setting. This program may be pursued as a special education major only, leading to K-12 certification in cross categorical special education or as a dual major combining special education and general education. Dual majors are available at the early childhood and elementary/middle school levels. The special education program is accredited and approved by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.  Job openings in this field are plentiful, as this is a high-need certification area nationally.

In addition to coursework, you’ll experience firsthand the blessing and challenge of working with special needs children in an actual, real-world setting. You’ll be grounded in a deep understanding of child and adolescent development in mind, body, and spirit, as well as the range of exceptionalities. You’ll work to master content knowledge in addition to a wide range of instructional strategies and learner accommodations. You’ll develop skills in classroom management, curricular design and assessment, and engagement and collaboration with other educators and school stakeholders.

One of the most important skills you can bring to any business is the ability to be a leader who understands the industry, knows how to build up a team, and creatively problem-solves when challenges arise. Our MBA in Management will equip you to do just that. The program is designed with flexibility in mind so you can complete the program while working full-time. Because our classes are offered at our main campus, our off-site locations and online, you can take courses no matter where you’re located on the map. You’ll broaden your perspective as you learn from industry leaders and work alongside a diverse student body. And you’ll have freedom to choose which courses you want to take for your concentration. As you progress through the program, faculty will engage you in topics like global productions and operations, supply chain management, sustainable business practices and strategic innovation - so you’ll be well-equipped to make a positive impact in the world of business.

When you cross the stage as a graduate of our MBA program, you’ll have in-depth knowledge of management practices, lean systems and analysis, loss prevention and project management processes. You’ll have the hands-on experience to apply proven project management tools and techniques at each stage in a project’s lifecycle. You’ll also have the understanding of how to integrate organizational strategies while involving the parent, supplier and sub-supplier organizations in domestic and global environments. What’s more, you’ll come out as a stronger leader, a better communicator, and a strategic thinker. You’ll even have a portfolio of your work to show potential employers.

Concordia exists to help students develop in mind, body, and spirit. The liberal arts program embodies this mission, with a wide spectrum of coursework aimed at building a firm foundation of knowledge, preparing students mentally, physically, and spiritually for impactful lives of service to Christ.
Rather than concentrating on a single field of study, the liberal arts program explores a variety of subjects to build a firm foundation of knowledge across the board. Perfect for the scholar who loves learning, or the student who doesn't feel a strong calling to a specific career path, this program helps you develop into a well-rounded individual, ready to take on whatever life brings your way.

Our liberal arts program will equip you with a broad base of knowledge across many disciplines. The rigorous curriculum will help you sharpen your critical thinking skills and grow as a person. You will explore coursework in:

• Literature
• History
• Math/Computer Science
• Communication
• Art
• Physical Development
• Language
• Theology
• Philosophy
• Natural Science
• Social Science

As you know, it isn’t easy getting into advanced programs in the health professions. The good news is Concordia has a major designed specifically for those who aspire to such careers. You’ll gain the intellectual, scientific, and ethical tools you’ll need to serve others, specifically by helping them lead healthier lives.
Whether your end goal is a graduate program in the medical sciences; admission to a school of medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, or veterinary science; or enrollment in a professional program such as physician assistant or physical therapy, our bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Sciences will help develop a foundation for your desired future career.

The biomedical sciences major has three tracks you can choose from: Human Biology, Pre-Medical, and Research. Your selection of electives within your chosen track will enable you to further individualize the final program based on your particular career goals. Plus, CUW has outstanding faculty in the biomedical sciences who are willing and able to guide you in your selection and work with you to help you fulfill your vocation. And the support continues outside of the classroom through mentoring programs and networking within student organizations such as the Pre-Med and Pre-Pharmacy Clubs.

What will your time at CUW look like? That, of course, depends on you and your interests, but we can at least give you an outline of the coursework you’ll receive. Your foundational classes will focus on the subjects of human biology, genetics, microbiology, chemistry, physics, and bioethics. Depending on your track choice and electives, you may delve as deeply as you like into anatomy and physiology, molecular genetics, research methods, histology, immunology, and pharmacology.

Our goal in the Master of Occupational Therapy program is to prepare you as an outstanding occupational therapist, who will positively impact communities by empowering others to reach their highest potential through leadership, best practice, advocacy, and innovation. We emphasize the importance of serving all clients with the best care possible.

You’ll develop the skills necessary to enable people (persons, groups, or populations) to do their day-to-day occupations for the purpose of improving or enabling participation. (OTPF-4, 2020) By combining classroom, laboratory, and supervised clinic-based instruction, our courses train you for a wide range of occupational therapy settings.

Through our program you’ll be able to:

• Demonstrate advocacy skills to be an effective change-maker in surrounding communities
• Use best practice for the evaluation, intervention, and measurement of outcomes for individuals or communities
• Effectively and efficiently solve occupation-based problems
• Develop leadership skills
• Effectively communicate and collaborate in a variety of communities

Students in the MOT program will have the opportunity to explore the entry-level Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTDe) degree. At the conclusion of the second semester, students will be given the choice to continue in the MOT program or declare interest in the OTDe program. Students who declare interest in the OTDe will be evaluated by OT faculty to determine eligibility to enroll in OTDe coursework.

This is a full time graduate professional program taught in a blended format. Students interact with their classmates and professors online before and after in person classes, which focus on active learning and/or lab activities. Students apply to and enroll in one of three tracks, as determined by their educational background:

• Accelerated
  • Students starting as a freshman at CUW looking to earn a bachelor's and master's degree in 4.5 years
• Bridge
  • COTAs looking to further their education and opportunities as an OTR
• Post-baccalaureate
  • Applicants holding a bachelor's degree