Master of Science, Major in Physics with Concentration in Computational Physics

at San Jose State University USA

The BM concentration in Jazz Studies is a degree tailored for students who are intent on pursuing an active career as a professional jazz musician. Emphasis is placed on jazz improvisation, jazz performance styles, jazz arranging/composition, and jazz pedagogy. Jazz Studies students receive in-depth private instruction on their chosen instrument(s) and also receive opportunities to rehearse and perform with the SJSU Jazz Ensembles: Jazz Orchestra and Afro-Latin Jazz Ensemble. Students in this program must complete a senior recital in addition to the regular course of study.

The MA in Biological Sciences, offered by the Department of Biological Sciences, offers students broad training in areas of science that may include general biology, plant biology, cell biology, ecology, entomology, genetics, microbiology, immunology, systems physiology, toxicology, zoology, or, under special circumstances, marine biology. Students with an MA in Biological Sciences go on to careers in research, biotechnology, medical and health sciences, and teaching.

Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It attempts to answer fundamental questions such as, What is language? How does it work? How is it represented in the mind? What features do all human languages share in common? How do languages change over time?

Within universities, linguistics is often grouped together with other social and behavioral sciences such as anthropology and sociology. However, the concerns of linguistics also overlap with those of English, philosophy, and other humanities, with certain physical sciences such as acoustics, and computer science. And because language is ultimately situated in the brain, linguistics is sometimes considered one of the "cognitive sciences," along with psychology, philosophy, and artificial intelligence.

The linguistics faculty at SJSU offers expertise in many areas within linguistics, including

• Computational linguistics (computer processing of language)
• Morphology and syntax (the structure of words and sentences)
• Phonetics and phonology (the sounds of language)
• Psycholinguistics (language and the brain)
• Semantics (meaning)
• Sociolinguistics (language and society)

Music Composition Majors engage themselves in the study of new music and its construction for traditional ensembles as well as electro-acoustic mediums. Private composition lessons are at the heart of this degree program: each student is given individual time to be mentored by one of our distinguished faculty in the art of composing music. This degree program also offers group composition classes and provides many opportunities for students to hear their own works performed by other students and faculty members. Students in this program must complete both junior and senior recitals in addition to the regular course of study.

• Students will demonstrate a high-level of ability to propose and complete a publishable, full-length work of literature in a primary genre concentration (fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, or scriptwriting).
• Students will demonstrate high-level of proficiency to write works of literature in a secondary genre concentration (fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, or scriptwriting).
• Students will demonstrate an appropriate level of knowledge of literary history, literary theory, and craft and theory of creative writing.
• Students will demonstrate critical and analytical skills in the evaluation and interpretation of literary texts.
• Students will demonstrate a command of written academic English, including the abilities to: a) organize and present material in a cogent fashion; b) formulate and defend original arguments; c) employ effectively the language of their discipline; d) write under time constraints.

The Professional Science Master of Biotechnology Program (MBT) is a formal 2-year degree program that integrates advanced, hands-on training in laboratory-based biotechnologies with MBA-level business courses from the College of Business. Through elective choices, students supplement the core program with additional hands-on science or MBA courses to support their career goals. MBT program graduates are highly trained individuals who have had direct exposure to the biotechnology corporate world and are ready to make immediate contributions to biotechnology companies. Graduates have been hired for research, product development, marketing, regulatory affairs, clinical affairs, project management, quality control, and other types of positions.

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.

Behavioral science majors develop an interdisciplinary perspective on human behavior and an understanding of the psychological, social and cultural dimensions to being human in a complex society. Offered cooperatively by the Departments of Anthropology, Psychology and Sociology, the Behavioral Science Program is housed in the Department of Anthropology, which oversees academic advising. The program prepares graduates for a variety of jobs that require working with social science data and with people. Many of our alumni have pursued careers in human resources, social work, counseling, sales and marketing, and law enforcement. By earning a degree in behavioral science, you'll get the best of three worlds!

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 History Department at San José State University offers a standard M.A. program with specializations, or primary fields of study, in United States history Modern European history, and World history. Many of the faculty hold advanced degrees from the nation's most prestigious universities and have distinguished publication records.

The History Department also offers an M.A. program with a concentration in history education, which is reserved for public and private middle and secondary school teachers, who already are teaching or have entered (or plan to enter) the social science teacher education program at SJSU. This program is specially designed for teachers who have, or will soon have, credentials. Since this is strictly a terminal degree, anyone intending to pursue a higher degree should enroll in the standard M.A. program.

The diverse participants in the M.A. program at San José State University include active and prospective teachers, Silicon Valley business people pursuing a personal interest or looking for a career change, and Ph.D.-bound historians. Because many of the approximately 75 actively enrolled M.A. students are working full-time, graduate courses are scheduled in the evenings (Monday–Thursday), and occasionally on Saturdays or in summer. Usually about five graduate-level courses are offered each semester. Some applicable upper division courses are also offered in the evening, as well as a few during summer sessions.