Undergraduate Academic Accelerator Pathway (2-Term) - Bachelor of Science in Sociology

at Shorelight Group - University of South Carolina USA

As a religious studies major, you will explore the many roles religion has played and continues to play both in society and in individual people's lives. Whether it is Zen monks, ancient Christian martyrs, Muslim and Jewish women, Hindu saints or Chinese philosophers, our courses introduce you to people and phenomena from all over the world. Learning about religion provides an opportunity to explore different cultures and develop a more global perspective.

Religious studies courses help to develop your critical-thinking abilities, your analytical reading and writing skills and your capacity for interpretation and comparison — abilities that are essential in every field of study. Through Maymester programs and study abroad opportunities, students have been able to travel to India, China, Japan, Greece, Turkey and elsewhere.

Some graduates also go on to receive their Master of Divinity and Doctor of Divinity in theology or pastoral ministry, but there is great need for those who understand the complex meanings of religion in global contexts across many fields.

Economics majors in the College of Arts and Sciences may earn the B.A. by completing the 24-hour major requirement along with the college core, distribution requirements and cultural-awareness and writing-emphasis requirements as described in the basic degree requirements in liberal arts. Bachelor of Arts degrees require an additional nine hours in the fine arts or humanities above Carolina Core requirements.

In addition to courses within your major, students in the College of Arts and Sciences must fulfill a cognate or minor. The cognate is intended to support the course work in the major, and it must consist of 12 hours of courses at the advanced level, outside of, but related to, the major. In place of the cognate, B.A. students can choose a minor consisting of at least 18 credit hours of prescribed courses.

Biomedical engineering is an interdisciplinary program highly focused on the improvement of human health, combining the innovative skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve health care from diagnostics to treatment.

As a biomedical engineering major, you will develop the ability to identify, formulate and solve open-ended problems at the interface of engineering and medicine using skills acquired in mathematics; biological, chemical and physical sciences; and engineering. You will also learn how to communicate technical material, function on a multidisciplinary team, demonstrate professional and ethical responsibility, continue along a path of lifelong learning, and recognize economic, social and global issues related to the profession.

You will enjoy courses with hands-on laboratory components as well as a senior capstone design sequence, during which you will work on problems defined by doctors or biomedical engineering industries. You will also be encouraged to get involved with research opportunities.

As a mathematics major, you will also develop widely sought-after skills, such as the ability to logically and critically evaluate situations including developing and implementing effective problem-solving strategies involving a wide range of ideas and data. You will enjoy relatively small classes with increased interaction with your professors.

We encourage you to take advantage of the Mathematics Library and the Hedberg Student Lounge, complete with a refrigerator, microwave, sink and chalkboard — perfect for studying in groups.

You will choose an area of emphasis from actuarial, education, applied or general. Additionally, the department’s list of Knowles Science Teaching Fellowships in Mathematics recipients is growing very rapidly. These national awards provide funding for the completion of the student’s education as well as the first few years of teaching.

The University of South Carolina School of Music has established a national reputation for artistic and scholarly excellence. One of the school's newest offerings is a Bachelor of Arts in Music with a concentration in musical theatre, designed specifically for students interested in pursuing an outstanding liberal arts music degree with a specific focus on musical theatre.

Music students at South Carolina develop close working relationships with dedicated, world-class faculty members and have opportunities for collaborative learning and performing, in-depth research and travel.

At the School of Music, students benefit from our rich musical resources, including two advanced computer music studios, our extensive music library collection and our state-of-the-art recording studio. Students are encouraged to take advantage of the diverse resources throughout the university and to collaborate with artists in other fields.

As part of the process of building well-informed, flexible artists for the ever-changing industry, the musical theatre concentration immerses students in multiple performance opportunities each semester, involving both cutting-edge contemporary and classic genres of musical theatre. In lieu of a cognate or minor, students will complete 18 credit hours of dance and theatre courses, as well as Musical Theatre Workshop each semester. Students will participate in exciting offerings each year, including guest master classes with musical theatre professionals, collaborations with organizations and fully staged showcase performances each semester.

It takes a lot of expertise to analyze, plan, design and build our modern world. With a master’s degree in civil engineering, you’ll be prepared to work with a range of clients and collaborators, from government agencies to private firms.

Areas of study include:

• Environmental engineering
• Geotechnical engineering
• Structural engineering
• Transportation engineering
• Water resources engineering

If you are interested in research, the University of South Carolina has several research centers and groups available to you, including the Structural Dynamics and Intelligent Infrastructure laboratory, the Berge laboratory for green waste management and the Advanced Railroad Technology Group.

Businesses and organizations need employees who can write and speak clearly, manage and solve problems and function creatively and effectively in the real world. Your liberal studies degree will prepare you for success in these critical areas through a multidisciplinary program you will design with an experienced advisor.

Customize your bachelor’s degree to meet your educational, career, or personal goals by selecting two academic disciplines best suited for you, or from our list of popular emphases. Your degree may combine any two disciplines and one cognate within each emphasis OR you may choose your own emphasis. Below are popular emphases within our program.    

Have you ever thought of pairing linguistics and psychology? How about biological sciences and literature? By studying a broad range of subjects and designing a program that meets your specific needs, you can earn a college degree that can be applied in unique ways.

Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science degree program. The degree program is individually designed by each student along with a committee of at least four faculty members from the student's areas of interest.

Bachelor of Arts students tend to focus within the humanities, social sciences and fine arts. Fields of study might include Southern studies, Middle Eastern studies, performance arts management, environmental studies or linguistics.

Our criminal justice program promotes state-of-the-art research and instruction in subject areas that are crucial to the effective and orderly working of modern society.

You will learn theories of and responses to social deviance, law and the legal system, administration theory and evaluation, law enforcement, juvenile justice systems and procedures, and crime prevention models. You will also be able to attend numerous conferences and lectures to broaden your professional perspective.

As a criminal justice major, you will also have the opportunity to participate in a hands-on internship experience that will add to your educational experience. You can gain additional experience by participating in the Campus Patrol Office program, which offers students who qualify an opportunity to gain hands-on experience as an employee of the University of South Carolina Division of Law Enforcement and Safety. The major also offers a pre-law suggested track for those interested in pursuing a law degree after

Economics majors in the College of Arts and Sciences may earn the B.S. by completing the 24-hour major requirement along with the college core, distribution requirements and cultural-awareness and writing-emphasis requirements as described in the basic degree requirements in liberal arts.  

• Our graduates will understand core microeconomic theories and concepts.  
• Our graduates will understand core macroeconomic theories and concepts.  
• Our graduates will be able to solve basic equations to find equilibrium outcomes and use graphs to understand and interpret economic relationships.  
• Our graduates will be able to demonstrate their understanding of economic concepts and quantitative knowledge and use these concepts and knowledge to analyze real-world problems.