Bachelor of Applied Science in Computer science

at Northwest Missouri State University USA

The Human Services major at Northwest is designed to meet human needs through interdisciplinary knowledge, focus on prevention as well as remediation of problems, and maintain a commitment to improving the overall quality of life. Faculty focus on preparing students to effectively serve individuals, families, groups and communities in the human services field; communicate efficiently with clients and professionals; and develop culturally competent skills.

A career in the human service profession promotes improved service by refining accessibility, accountability and coordination among professionals and agencies in service delivery.

Finance majors at Northwest focus on three areas: financial services, corporate finance and finance management.

• Financial Services prepares students for the financial services industry. This comprises the professions of brokerage, insurance, real estate, and banking. In this business sector the students will need to understand the products customers purchase and how to relate this information to the customer.
• Corporate Finance provides students with the tools to work within the corporate structure under the chief financial officer, where accounting and financial information is used to make corporate decisions. Students will communicate with both the financial and accounting personnel and identify accounting information and financial models for decision making.
• Financial Management permits students to prepare for a position in management rather than a staff position in finance under the corporate treasurer. This option blends the knowledge of finance and management so the student is prepared to make management decisions that require an understanding of finance. Almost all decisions in business require a balance of interests from all functional business areas, using the decision-making process and the tools of finance to guide the corporation to the achievement of its goal.

Earning a Political Science degree at Northwest prepares students for multiple employment opportunities in public service and private sectors including federal, state and local government, law, criminal justice system, municipal planning, city management, urban affairs, education, non-profit administration, campaigns and elections, public policy analysis and internal development and relations.

The major has three areas of emphasis: the american institutions (formerly criminal justice) emphasis provides an understanding of legislatures, police prosecutors, public offenders and courts and corrections; the public administration emphasis focuses on the decision making process and job opportunities in public organizations and local, state, federal and international agencies; and the global affairs emphasis studies the global trends and events, and enhances intercultural understanding.

Comprehensive communication majors with an emphasis in interpersonal communication study how people create, send and receive messages, and analyze the ways in which messages affect the perception of the relationship. Students learn methods of identifying problems in communication, correcting problems, and training and developing communication abilities for members of various communities. At Northwest, faculty focus on communication theory and ensuring students are efficient in public speaking, writing, group behavior, persuasion and interpersonal communication.

Geography is a holistic discipline that studies the relationship between humans, the unique cultures of construct and the environments in which they live. This major prepares students for a wide range of careers in varied areas of geography and culture. This major offers three different areas of focus:

• Culture and Society
• Environmental Geography
• Geographic Information Science

Each emphasis allows students to specialize in one of these fields and tailor classes within that emphasis to fit their interest beyond the core courses within the program.

As a student majoring in geography at Northwest, you learn the importance and impacts of space, the uniqueness of places and regions, and how humans and environment interact.

The major focuses on culture and regional geography with a wide range of tropical and regional courses available. Students will develop physical geography expertise in areas like geomorphology, atmospheric processes and sustainability. The major also teaches skills in analyzing, planning and critical thinking to prepare you for success in your career.

English majors tend to be readers or writers. Many are both. Through coursework in literature, writing, linguistics and the history of the English language, students explore a diverse range of texts with the goal of becoming thoughtful and knowledgeable readers, writers, thinkers, communicators and artists.

In addition to reading and writing, students are introduced to the principles of linguistics, writing pedagogy, community literacies, publishing, workplace writing and creative writing. They read and engage in discussions about literary works, participate in literary criticism, write in a variety of analytical argumentative and creative genres, and are challenged to view language through artistic, social and scientific lenses.

Wildlife ecology and conservation majors at Northwest study wildlife populations to understand patterns of distribution and abundance, and how these patterns may be used to manage and conserve populations. Faculty focus on ensuring students understand the natural history and ecology of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians; gain the ability to conduct scientific experiments and surveys to monitor wildlife populations; learn techniques used to manage and conserve wildlife populations; and balance the needs of populations with people’s needs.

Northwest’s technical theatre and design major provides multiple hands-on opportunities to students, beginning with the first semester of their freshman year. Students perform four mainstage productions as well as four to six student-directed productions each year. Additionally, students have access to professional-level control councils, intelligent lighting fixtures and cutting-edge LED and color-changing equipment.

Northwest professors focus on producing employable graduates and preparing students for advanced education. In addition to hands-on opportunities available to technical theatre and design majors, faculty help prepare resumes, cover letters and portfolio monologues for each performance.

The biomedical science major emphasizing the chiropractic track is designed for students who want to enter the chiropractic field.

With more chiropractic schools requiring a bachelor’s degree, Northwest offers a unique program that provides students with foundational knowledge in biomedical sciences for three years. During the fourth year, students attend a chiropractic school, gain hands-on experiences, and return to Northwest to finish their bachelor’s degree. Northwest has articulation agreements with Palmer College of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa, and Logan University in Chesterfield, Mo.

Northwest faculty focus on teaching students human anatomy, the positioning and function of bones and muscles, and their relationships within the human body; human physiology, interrelationship between organs and organ systems, and the fundamentals of physical and life sciences.

Economics majors at Northwest develop analytical, critical thinking and decision-making skills in preparation of evaluating the decisions made by businesses, consumers and government. The goal of this degree is to assess information and decisions in order understand the structure, operation and investigation of decisions.

In addition to small class sizes, Northwest students receive instruction from faculty who have received the Dean’s Award for Exemplary Teaching and the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Classes are small and upper-level courses have an average of fewer than 10 students.