Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies with Concentration in American Studies

at Shorelight Group - Towson University USA

The Towson University's Master of Fine Arts in Theatre is a two-year, cohort program. 

The MFA cultivates the self-generative artist through an interdisciplinary, process-oriented, collaborative experience. The program is dedicated to educating and invigorating world citizens of theatre who engage deeply in our local and global communities, and who wish to combine the life of an artist with the skills and sensibilities of entrepreneurs, educators and activists. It is for artists who cannot be content working in a single discipline or occupying a single "role" in the creative process.

The program emphasizes practice and community. Over the 24-month program students are constantly creating work which grows out of class exploration. Sometimes these are ensemble projects, but even on individual or solo projects, students work together to support each other. Learning and cultural exchange happens between students as fully as it does between students and faculty or guest artists.  

Every student will engage with a diverse range of practical approaches and theoretical perspectives in order to help develop an individual aesthetic that is expressed through the creation of new work. In support of this, students also pursue serious scholarship and develop a firm grounding in the history of experimental performance in the United States and internationally.

Students are encouraged to explore interests and techniques which reach beyond the curriculum, through self-directed research, independent study with faculty, or through off-campus experiences such as workshops or apprenticeships. Past student explorations have included: Bunraku puppetry; translation of contemporary European drama; object theatre; integration of video with live performance; experiments in autobiographical performance; and community art projects.

• Demonstrate an understanding of the physical, social, economic and political factors that shape the development of metropolitan areas.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the array of current challenges facing metropolitan areas.
• Critically analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of policies designed to address the challenges facing metropolitan areas.
• Conduct and present sound research on metropolitan issues.

The Master of Arts in Professional Studies is an interdisciplinary program that crosses traditional academic boundaries and provides a solid intellectual framework. The core curriculum common to both tracks provides a foundation in research, writing and the liberal arts. A culminating seminar emphasizing a major project provides the capstone for each student’s program of study. A key theme of the culminating seminar is globalization and the changing workplace.

The Mass Communication major consists of three tracks: Advertising, Journalism, and Strategic Public Relations. Students must complete one of the three tracks. Many students complete two of the three tracks and some complete all three.

Students who complete the Mass Communication major will have many career options, especially in the broadly defined fields of print, broadcast and online journalism, advertising, and strategic public relations. Majors are expected to learn how the various fields in mass communication are structured and function.

• Philosophically explain and discuss theories and concepts of the major thinkers of schools in Western philosophy.
• Philosophically explain and discuss culturally diverse philosophical traditions.
• Engage in a philosophical discussion of social and/or political and/or moral issues.
• Think philosophically, i.e., to analyze, articulate, synthesize, and/or creatively develop arguments, concepts and theories.
• Practice inductive and deductive reasoning, the composition of argument and demonstration, and the detection of formal and informal fallacies.

• Students will demonstrate competency in written communication and oral communication.
• Students will use knowledge acquired in family studies and human services courses in field experiences (community service and internship placements) and capstone courses.
• Students will demonstrate comprehensive research skills related to the discipline. Students will demonstrate informational literacy and technological competency.

The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) is designed for individuals with a bachelor’s degree in a field other than education, who have no formal teacher training and wish to enter the teaching profession. It is well suited to recent graduates and to those seeking to change careers.

Graduates of the MAT program are eligible for teacher certification in the general education tracks of early childhood, elementary and secondary education.

• Early childhood education prepares students to teach Pre-K through grade three.
• Elementary education prepares students to teach grades one through six.
• Secondary education prepares students to teach grades seven through 12 in biology, chemistry, earth-space science, English, mathematics, physics, or history/social studies. 
• World Languages prepares students to teach Pre-K through grade 12 in French or Spanish.

The Mass Communication major consists of three tracks: Advertising, Journalism, and Strategic Public Relations. Students must complete one of the three tracks. Many students complete two of the three tracks and some complete all three.

Students who complete the Mass Communication major will have many career options, especially in the broadly defined fields of print, broadcast and online journalism, advertising, and strategic public relations. Majors are expected to learn how the various fields in mass communication are structured and function.

The interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary graduate program in Women’s and Gender Studies provides students with a solid academic foundation to pursue their unique goals. As the only applied master’s program in Women’s and Gender Studies in Maryland and the only Women’s and Gender Studies master’s program in Baltimore, the program emphasizes applied research methods and skills, preparing students for careers in a variety of public and private organizations both national and international, for-profit and nonprofit. It also prepares students to enter doctoral programs in a variety of fields.

In addition to the Core Curriculum requirements, Foreign Languages majors in the French Concentration must complete 30 units with a grade equivalent of 2.00 or higher in French beyond the intermediate level. Of the 30 units, at least 15 units must be taken at Towson University.