Bachelor of Arts in Psychology

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

The BA program in community advocacy and social policy focuses on advocacy strategies through an in-depth exploration, analysis and comparison of social service systems and policies from an empowerment perspective.

The program's emphasis is on examining the needs of historically under-served individuals, families and communities. Policy analysis and social change are critical themes in developing an advocacy knowledge base as are the equally important themes of prevention and social well-being. Students complete courses in two core areas: diversity and oppressed populations and social issues and interventions.

While the Bachelor of Arts in community advocacy and social policy program is fully accredited regionally under the North Central Regional Higher Education Association, it is not accredited through the Council of Social Work Education because this degree is not a BSW degree. Therefore, the Bachelor of Arts in community advocacy and social policy degree would not fulfill a professional licensing requirement that requires a Bachelor of Social Work degree from a CSWE-accredited Bachelor of Social Work program.

The BS program in health sciences provides students with the academic knowledge and skills that allow them to move directly into a range of employment opportunities within the health field or to continue their education in discipline-specific programs.

Students choose a track focus in either community-based health outcomes; health legislation and regulation; integrated care; or language, speech and communication.

A limited number of students each year may apply to pursue the echocardiography certificate through Mayo Clinic. Once the certificate is successfully completed, students may transfer the credits to Arizona State University and those credits may be applied toward completion of the Bachelor of Science in health sciences. Students interested in this option should seek advising before starting this track.

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 School of Public Affairs offers a concentration in emergency management and homeland security as part of the BS in public service and public policy.

This concentration program provides students with the skills and knowledge to manage and assume positions of leadership within the field of emergency management and homeland security. Concepts of public policy and management are blended with emergency management principles to enhance and foster critical thinking within the general field of study. More specifically, the program's focus provides the student with a comprehensive perspective, which is critically important for emerging leaders in disaster management.

Understanding the intersections between business and politics is more important than ever for managers and executives in the private, nonprofit and public sectors. The World Economic Forum's latest Future of Jobs Report and McKinsey Global Institute's Jobs of the Future report both have suggested that transdisciplinary, virtual collaboration and cross-cultural competence are extremely important job skills for the near future. Thunderbird's MGM program with a concentration in global affairs equips students with the knowledge base and hard skills needed to thrive in the growing job markets at the nexus of global business and international politics.

This concentration is designed for students who aspire to take on management and executive positions in government agencies such as the U.S. Department of Commerce, the State Department and the Treasury Department or similar roles in the government of a student's home country. The global affairs concentration also positions graduates for leadership roles in international organizations such as the World Bank or World Trade Organization and in major companies that require analysts to monitor policy trends, managers to oversee global supply chains and representatives to advance global business interests to governments, both domestic and foreign.

The School of Public Affairs offers a concentration in science and technology policy as part of the BS in public service and public policy. The program prepares students to tackle many of today's most important challenges: climate change, energy, information privacy, public health and global development.

The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication's 12-month MMC degree program uses the teaching hospital model to immerse students in the practice of journalism and prepare them for careers in today's rapidly evolving media industry.

This 36 credit hour program begins with a multimedia boot camp, teaching students how to report and produce stories for text, photo, video and audio elements. In the second semester, students can dive deeper in a selection of advanced courses, such as those focused on narrative writing, podcasting, advanced broadcast production, documentary production, health reporting, business reporting, Spanish-language news, transborder coverage, strategic communications and digital entrepreneurship.

The program culminates in a professional immersion experience in one of the Cronkite School's strategic communication labs or news bureaus in Los Angeles, Phoenix or Washington, D.C. Working under the guidance of award-winning journalists and strategists, these capstone programs offer real-world experience in a professional news or agency environment.

Learn to understand complex public problems and develop and implement innovative policy solutions. Through coursework and real-world projects, you gain the analytic skills required to address society's most challenging problems.

The MPP program allows students to approach the study of public policy with a focus on public policy in the urban setting.

The program trains people to lead by making positive policy decisions, addressing the difficult questions associated with public policy, and managing the process of policy creation, approval, implementation and evaluation. Students also gain an understanding of policies addressing issues such as poverty, education, the environment and public safety. At the conclusion of the master's degree program, students are able to identify, analyze and interpret the challenges and dilemmas of public policies, especially those of urban areas. Students also are able to approach policy analysis with a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods and are prepared to develop innovative processes and tools to deal with changing realities of public policy and address issues on a global, regional and local scale.

The Master of Public Policy program with a concentration in urban policy provides knowledge and skills for students seeking or advancing careers in areas in which urban dynamics and local governance play an integral role in the policy process. This concentration's program emphasizes theories and research concerning urban policy analysis and economics as well as urban management, urban city government, public budgeting and finance in an urban context.

The MS program in science of health care delivery focuses on the study and design of systems, processes, leadership and management approaches used to optimize health care delivery and health for all. This degree program is for individuals interested in a career in the health care industry. It provides students with the knowledge and competencies they will need for contributing in a patient-centered, safe and cost-effective health care system.

The curriculum is centered on achieving high-value care through leadership, population health, informatics, systems engineering, health care management, and health economics and policy. Students learn Lean Six Sigma principles and apply them to health care delivery issues.

The program challenges students to work on innovative solutions to improve the U.S. health care system by simultaneously improving the health of the population, enhancing the patient experience and reducing per capita cost of care. Students apply concepts through case studies and team-based projects to facilitate integration of knowledge and competencies. Participating students work in a cohort through the program and are able to complete the degree in nine months (one academic year). Students are paired with leading health care delivery organizations to complete an applied capstone project during the program.

Want to develop and implement innovative policy solutions to environmental problems facing society? Through this top-ranked specialty within the MPP program (#5 in Environmental Policy and Management, U.S. News & World Report), you will gain the analytic skills required to address environmental challenges from local pollution to global climate change.

The MPP program equips students with the analytical tools needed to understand and address public policy issues. Students also develop skills in managing the process of policy development, approval, implementation and evaluation.

Through a focused set of electives, the MPP concentration in environmental policy deepens student expertise in specific areas and issues, such as the greening of local governments and policy evaluation of public and private partnerships, and builds the knowledge base and skills to bring sustainability solutions to the government, corporate and nonprofit sectors. At the conclusion of the master's degree program, students are prepared to apply sustainability principles and approaches to careers in a variety of fields that address environmental and, inevitably, human challenges.