Bachelor of Music, Concentration in Composition

at San Jose State University USA

The Bay Area needs well-trained technical writers and editors. The high-tech companies of Silicon Valley require people who are able to write quality manuals, reports, and web updates; write clear business reports and promotional materials; communicate effectively both with consumers and within the company; and understand each step of the publication process.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that demand for technical writers will continue to increase for the foreseeable future, especially in regions of the country like ours. Download more information about the demand for technical writers. [pdf]

So what is Professional and Technical Writing (PTW)? Simply put, PTW is writing done in a workplace environment designed to persuade, inform, or instruct. While “professional” generally applies to business writing and “technical” generally applies to writing about technical topics, most professional writers would find the distinction superficial because they are frequently required to do both.

Approved for implementation in the Fall of 2008, this is an innovative, interdisciplinary degree which includes core coursework in the department and supporting coursework from SJSU's business and nutrition programs. Elective coursework enables students to craft the breadth and depth of their studies to best match their career objectives.

There are a wide range of hospitality related careers for students graduating with a degree in Hospitality, Tourism and Event Management including: Hotel/Resort General Manager, Financial Controller, Catering Coordinator, Meeting Planner, Sales Director, Marketing Manager, Conference/Tradeshow Manager, Banquet and Events Coordinator, Restaurant Manager, Contract Food Service Manager, Food and Beverage Manager, Human Resources Manager, Tourism Specialist, Travel Consultant and Information Systems Specialist.The Bachelor's degree in Hospitality Tourism & Event Management is comprised of a core set of classes (42 units), electives (18 units), and foundational course work (9 units). A business minor may also be of interest to students in this degree program.

To get started, check in with our HSPM staff for direction on who to contact to set up an appointment. Whether you are transferring from a different SJSU major, another University, or you're just beginning your studies here at SJSU we will guide and assist you in achieving your goals.

Learning Outcomes

• Describe and explain how peoples and societies evolve across time and space demonstrating the importance of context (social, political, economic, cultural, environmental, ideological, and technological).
• Illustrate the complexity of historical causality and describe past events from multiple perspectives.
• Analyze the credibility of historical sources and arguments, revising interpretations as new evidence warrants.
• Conceive and carry out historical research, constructing persuasive evidence-based arguments using primary and secondary sources according to recognized standards of the historical discipline.

If you have a drive for innovation and the passion to create a new business or add value to an existing business, the Concentration in Entrepreneurship is an excellent choice for you. With an entrepreneurship degree from San José State University, you will have the fundamental skills and analytical tools across different business functions that are necessary to start a new business. You will also gain a global perspective of entrepreneurship and an insight into how to cope with change in a rapidly evolving environment due to global competition, new technology, and changing customer requirements.

The goal of this concentration, offered by the Department of Physics and Astronomy, is to give the candidate a thorough grounding in physics, computer programming, and numerical methods. All candidates are required to complete a thesis including the defense (Plan A) or take an oral comprehensive examination as culminating experience (Plan B).

The Sport Management Graduate Program at San Jose State University is housed in the Department of Kinesiology within the College of Health & Human Sciences. There are approximately 100 graduate students in the department, including a cohort of roughly 15 Sport Management students that are accepted into the program annually. Students from a variety of disciplines (e.g., Business, Hospitality, Kinesiology, Sociology, etc) are encouraged to apply.

A major focus of the program is to develop culturally informed professionals capable of management and leadership across the many sport industry professions.  In addition, the balance between applied research and practical experiences ensures that our graduates have a deep and transferable knowledge base as they enter the job market, as well as potentially influencing sport scholarship by pursuing higher levels of education.

The goal of the Sport Management Graduate Program is to prepare graduate students for a variety of management positions in the major sports industry segments: Professional Sport, Intercollegiate Athletics, Interscholastic Athletics, Youth and Community Sport, Sport Tourism, Health and Fitness, International Sport, Event and Facility Management, Sports Governing Bodies and Associations. The requirements for the 30-unit program are: Two core research methods courses, four sport management courses, including marketing, finance, legal aspects, and leadership, two electives, an internship course and a final master's project. SJSU’s location in California’s Bay Area affords a wide array of exciting internship
opportunities. Completion of the program will enable individuals to be prepared to work in the wide range of disciplines within the sports industry, including high school and intercollegiate athletics, professional sport, corporate fitness and health, public relations, sport marketing, event management, private businesses, and community services.

The School of Journalism and Mass Communications embraces the innovative spirit of Silicon Valley, emphasizing cultural and intellectual diversity, the First Amendment, and the free flow of ideas.
Students pursuing a Master's in Mass Communication are eligible for graduate assistantships within JMC. These positions are competitive and priority is given to new graduate students. They will spend the semester supporting one or two professors with a variety of projects. Each professor will have unique tasks for their student assistant. The graduate assistantship is an opportunity for the student to gain professional experience in an area of interest and supplement their academic development.

The M.A. in Applied Anthropology is designed to help students develop skills in applying or using anthropological knowledge which can be used across a wide range of careers. Specifically, its mission is to enable students to build on their knowledge of cultural anthropology, physical anthropology and archaeology to address real world problems and issues. The program seeks to provide a structure through which students can develop as practitioners by working closely with faculty on projects that are often done in collaboration with regional organizations. Graduates of our program have secured positions in public, private, and non-profit organizations as researchers, designers, administrators, and program developers. The M.A. program is built around three broad sets of research skills: (1) ethnographic methods for understanding how social systems, including organizations and communities, function in the regional environment; (2) assessment and evaluation skills, especially those based on qualitative methods that complement quantitative methods; and (3) the planning and design of programs, organizations, services, and artifacts.

Students graduating from this program should:

• Understand a range of anthropological research methods and be able to conduct research relevant to problem solving in various settings and for different clients or partners
• Know basic models of applying anthropology in different settings and have the skills to be able to function as practitioners in several
• Be knowledgeable about (a) the discipline of anthropology in general and how it contributes to understanding and improving contemporary society; and (b) a particular field of anthropology in greater depth
• Be able to function effectively in at least one content area or domain of application
• Understand personal, political, and ethical issues inherent in research and application
• Develop professionally as practitioners with skills in contracting, project management, and budgeting, as well as the ability to communicate about project goals and findings and the discipline of anthropology to diverse audiences
• To be knowledgeable about the region as a social and cultural system with complex state, national, and global interconnections

Students in the BFA program will have accomplished these objectives and will have produced a portfolio of work that will enable them to apply to graduate schools. The required BFA Seminar gives students an opportunity to consider contemporary and historical issues and allows them to evaluate their work and the work of others within a broader context. BFA students are required to complete a senior project that reflects a personal direction. They exhibit the resulting body of work that is then reviewed by a committee of faculty members.

The overall objectives of the Pictorial Art Area are as follows: Visual sensitivity in the pictorial art is developed in a number of ways. In Beginning Drawing students learn to translate the perceived world into two-dimensional constructs such as line and tone. While formal elements of composition are specifically addressed in 2-D Concepts, they remain an integral part of all pictorial courses. As students progress through more advanced courses, they engage in more sophisticated levels of visual thinking. This will be reflected in their work in the utilization of more complex formal means, both representational and abstract, and to express content. In critique sessions, students are encouraged to articulate visual ideas.

In Pictorial Art, students learn to conceptualize their ideas and execute them. This is true on every level from introductory courses to the most advanced. In some courses, such as Expressive Drawing, the emphasis is on the discovery of personal content through abstraction of the observed world or through the development of non-representational vocabulary. In other courses, such as Representational Drawing and Life Drawing, the emphasis is on perception and learning more traditional methods of rendering and depiction. In more advanced courses students are given the opportunity to choose the stylistic means of expression which best gives form to their visual ideas.

Students in Pictorial Art area are exposed to a wide variety of techniques and technical processes. This ranges from the simple and straight-forward use of pencil and charcoal in drawing through the slightly more complex techniques of watercolor, acrylic and oil painting to the more involved processes of hand-drawn and photo-generated serigraphy, as well as the chemical processes of lithography and intaglio printing. By the time they graduate students will be proficient in several of these areas. The Art History requirements for the major give the students a broad understanding of the major movements of the past and present in both the Western and non-Western worlds. In addition, slide lectures and books presented in the classroom put course work into a historical and cultural context.

The Digital Media Art (DMA) program at San Jose State University is a multidisciplinary degree offering a digital art and design curriculum in the areas of computer graphics, web development, programming, physical computing, fabrication, prototyping, interactivity and computer games. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, the DMA program is dedicated to the advancement of contemporary technologies through research and experimentation at the intersection of art and science.

The BFA Concentration in Digital Media Art teaches technical, creative, and critical thinking skills to empower our students as problem solvers and innovators in the field of digital technology. Students graduating from the program develop real-world skills in graphics, programming, digital video, interaction design, and computer game design using a wide range of tools, technologies, and techniques. Our curriculum is hands-on, providing project-oriented learning in collaborative workshop environments.

DMA operates several labs including the CADRE Physical Computing Lab and the DMA Game Design Lab providing research based pedagogy in microcircuits, fabrication and prototyping, computer games and interactive programming. We offer fabrication facilities through our comprehensive wood and metal shops including laser cutters, CNC routers, and vacuform, in addition to metal and large-scale sculpture fabrication through the Spatial Art Program.