Bachelor of Arts in Community Advocacy and Social Policy

at Kaplan Group - Arizona State University - Downtown Phoenix Campus USA

The MS in community resources and development with a concentration in sustainable communities is a research-oriented master's degree program designed to prepare students for their future careers by teaching them to analyze and understand critical topics and issues pertinent to the fields of tourism, parks and recreation management; nonprofits and nongovernmental organizations; and sustainable communities.

The MS program in physical activity and health offers a unique opportunity for advanced training with options to focus on exercise science, fitness and conditioning, or physical activity and health promotion alongside faculty who are immersed in the latest research.

This program prepares students to translate and apply evidence-based exercise science, fitness and lifestyle behavior change approaches to improve health and well-being and prevent chronic disease across the lifespan. It also prepares students to design fitness and conditioning programs for athletes.

Students in the program develop competencies in research design, statistical methods and the ethical conduct of research studies and they have the opportunity to conduct a mentored research project as part of a thesis, if desired. They also learn to apply theoretical models of behavior change for the development and implementation of interventions to facilitate the adoption and maintenance of physical activity and other health and wellness behaviors. Students develop and demonstrate their knowledge of the causes, risks factors and impact of exercise, physical activity and fitness on the disease process in cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, cancer, musculoskeletal health and functional fitness through a critical examination of epidemiological research and exercise intervention studies.

Sports journalism is the fastest-growing sector of the news media industry, with continued growth on all platforms --- multimedia outlets, broadcast and cable channels and networks, radio and podcasting, and team, league and conference websites and social media platforms.

The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication's MA program in sports journalism is a 36 credit hour, three-semester program providing students with unparalleled preparation for careers in sports media and communications.

Students begin with an intensive multimedia skills-based course, which teaches them to produce sports and news coverage across broadcast, digital and print platforms. From there, students choose advanced classes in sports reporting, videography, podcast production, live sports production, play-by-play, narrative writing, documentary video and participate in sports bureaus located in Phoenix and Los Angeles. Students learn the values and principles embodied by Walter Cronkite in classes that focus on sports journalism ethics and the challenges faced by the industry.

Psychology is the scientific study of human behavior. This diverse field includes mental health and counseling as well as child development, neuroscience and brain function, memory and decision-making, behavior analysis, statistics and more. It also crosses over into other disciplines such as medicine, law, business and economics.

This BA program in psychology --- emphasizing critical thinking and reasoning, quantitative research methods and writing --- goes beyond the classroom, adding practical experiences through internships, service-learning and faculty-supervised research. (Some opportunities are not available to students enrolled in the degree offered through ASU Online.)

Graduates are prepared for graduate programs in psychology or other areas as well as for professional employment.

The public policy concentration program is designed for students who would like to work in cross-sector roles within public and nonprofit institutions around the world. Other students may use this program as a springboard into jobs in the private sector that have significant overlap with public agencies. In short, graduates are prepared in both global management and public policy in order to meet the demands of an increasingly interwoven economy.

The Master of Global Management program with a concentration in public policy prepares students for careers as policy analysts and leaders in public service. Graduates are involved in the formulation, approval, implementation and evaluation of public policy at all levels of government and in the private and nonprofit sectors. Offered in collaboration with the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions graduates are able to apply analytical techniques and conceptual frameworks to understand policy issues as well as to identify potential solutions to real-world challenges.

The BS program in public service and public policy prepares students for work in government at all levels and in nonprofit organizations through comprehensive coverage of topics in public policy, public leadership and management, and urban studies.

Students discover the challenges of management and learn how to lead a public organization and understand the process of policy development. This program examines the public sector and addresses, in a practical way, the challenges facing the public. The program is unique because it enables students to study public service, policy and administration with a professional focus.

Students select one of the following concentrations areas to supplement their core courses, including; American Indian studies, business, criminology, emergency management, health policy, law and policy, nonprofit leadership and management, parks and recreation management, public leadership and management, science and technology, social services delivery, sustainability, or urban and metropolitan studies.

The program prepares competent, entry-level recreational therapists with the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities needed to improve functional outcomes and increase participation in life activities for individuals experiencing health conditions. It is designed for students who want to learn to conduct assessments, develop service plans, implement therapeutic interventions, and evaluate and document outcomes of care. They gain skills to effectively provide comprehensive therapeutic recreation services that include program design and evaluation, individual and group service provision, and advocacy. The required fieldwork component of the program facilitates the development of competencies to provide quality recreational therapy services.

Students who choose this degree program are committed to improving people's lives and contributing to their communities. This degree program is one of two such programs in Arizona, both offered by the School of Community Resources and Development. This program has a heavier emphasis on healthcare settings such as hospitals and human service agencies while the Bachelor of Science in parks and recreation with a concentration in therapeutic recreation prepares students to provide recreational therapy services in community settings such as youth programs, adaptive sports, or parks and recreation.

The MPS program in community development practice trains existing and future practitioners in approaches to developing healthy, sustainable and resilient communities. The program provides students with historical and theoretical foundations, applied research skills and core competencies centered around community building, development practices and the facilitation of democratic and cross-sector collaboration toward social innovation and community solutions. This program allows students to establish an emphasis on topics like housing and economic development, education, social and environmental justice, health, and sustainability, drawing from the extensive expertise of ASU faculty.

This concentration is offered to students who are interested in starting their own business or who need to be entrepreneurial in the organizations they work for. This concentration sharpens entrepreneurial skills, helps develop business plans for global enterprises and promotes innovation and economic growth globally.

The World Economic Forum reports that empathy and collaboration are two critical abilities for a global leader's success. These abilities are equally critical for those seeking careers in global entrepreneurship, and they rely on the development of social capital. This academic concentration is designed to develop a student's social capital through field-based action learning, team-based projects and stretch assignments. Students learn and master proven methods and techniques to build sustainable, trusting relationships --- the basis of social capital --- with others from diverse parts of the world, developing intercultural empathy, the ability to have an interpersonal impact and the mental dexterity to act with diplomacy.

Global entrepreneurs are innovators who use their international business acumen and professional connections to identify transnational and cross-cultural opportunities, turning them into new value-generating initiatives. The Master of Global Management program with a concentration in global entrepreneurship provides a broad foundation of international business knowledge and sharpens students' entrepreneurial skills by helping develop business plans for global enterprises. This concentration offers learning opportunities specifically designed to foster innovation and economic growth worldwide to stimulate the growth of students into global entrepreneurs. Students build on a base of skills in areas such as finance and accounting with specialized education in research, pitching business ideas and analyzing markets for the viability of new products and services.

The School of Public Affairs offers a concentration in law and policy as part of the BS in public service and public policy.

Through this concentration, students who have an interest in public policy focus on legal issues and the policy implications, broadening their educational experience while concentrating in an area that is in high demand.