Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies

at State University of New York College at Brockport USA

As the nations of the world become more interconnected and interdependent, proficiency in other languages is a vital skill that allows you to engage with the world in a more immediate and meaningful way. Spanish language and culture studies prepare you for future opportunities to compete and succeed in the global economy. Through interdisciplinary instruction and the development of intercultural understanding, our curriculum is designed to help you become proficient in Spanish and prepares you to reach your career aspirations in your chosen field of interest. We encourage our students to double major and to participate in study abroad programs in Spanish-speaking countries sponsored by the Center for Global Education and Engagement.

The Spanish major consists of 33 credits and enables students to acquire an advanced level of proficiency in the language. Literature and culture courses are designed to provide a historical, political and social overview of the Spanish-speaking world. All courses are taught in Spanish.

Recent Modern Languages and Cultures' graduates have gone on to highly competitive Master's and PhD programs in Higher Education Administration, TESOL, French Literature, and Counseling at recognized research universities. Others have joined the workforce as Bilingual, French, and Spanish elementary and high-school teachers in Rochester and around NY state, ESL teachers for adult learners, translators, interpreters for defense attorneys, social workers, law enforcement officers, and health professionals.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of a baccalaureate degree in Spanish, graduates will be able to:

• Narrate and describe using a variety of time frames, extended discourse, and specialized vocabulary.
• Deliver oral presentations on a wide variety of topics, using a variety of strategies to tailor the presentation to the needs of their audience.
• Narrate and describe in all major time frames with good control of aspect and a range of general vocabulary in writing for personal and professional needs.
• Identify the main facts and many supporting details in conventional narrative and descriptive oral texts.
• Identify some of the essential points of argumentative texts in areas of special interest or knowledge.
• Explain key perspectives of  some Spanish-speaking cultures within a comparative framework and connect them to cultural products and practices.
• Interpret and synthesize ideas and critical issues from a wide range of historical and contemporary cultural artifacts.

With a strong focus in one studio area and opportunities to take courses in many others, students learn to expand their knowledge of what art can be, leading to highly personal and unique senior work. Along the way, students and faculty meet each semester for engaging activities such as group critiques, workshops, field trips, and exhibition opportunities.

The BFA degree allows students to take up to 78 credits in Art, Design, and Art History courses (the more liberal-arts focused BA/BS degree is a 42 credit major)

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Apply technical skills, elements of art and principles of design to achieve basic visual communication and expression in one or more media.
• Identify and holistically discuss major works of art through formal and conceptual analysis, socio-historical contextualization, and interpretation.
• Identify and demonstrate ways to utilize and apply their skills and abilities to postgraduate professional practices.
• Make viable connections between concept and form/media.
• Create works of art and/or design that respond to contemporary, relevant issues inside and/or outside of the discipline.
• Employ professional competence in the major area of specialization, including significant technical mastery; produce work and solve problems independently; and develop a coherent body of work.

This major is designed to prepare students for initial certification (single certification) as a Spanish teacher for grades 7-12 with extension to teach in grades 5 and 6. As with all other undergraduate degrees, students in this major must also complete the General Education program requirements. Students who plan their schedules carefully and take courses that count for general education as well as the major or teacher certification requirements may be able to also pursue a minor or participate in a study abroad program in a Spanish-speaking country. Students may have the opportunity to student teach in Alaska or abroad.

What You’ll Learn

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Narrate and describe using a variety of time frames, extended discourse, and specialized vocabulary.
• Deliver oral presentations on a wide variety of topics, using a variety of strategies to tailor the presentation to the needs of their audience.
• Narrate and describe in all major time frames with good control of aspect and a range of general vocabulary in writing for personal and professional needs.
• Identify the main facts and many supporting details in conventional narrative and descriptive oral texts.
• Identify some of the essential points of argumentative texts in areas of special interest or knowledge.
• Explain key perspectives of some Spanish-speaking cultures within a comparative framework and connect them to cultural products and practices.
• Interpret and synthesize ideas and critical issues from a wide range of historical and contemporary cultural artifacts

Physics is the study of the physical properties of the universe and of the fundamental properties and interactions of matter and energy. Physics has applications in every field of pure and applied science, such as engineering, optics, materials science, space science, and medicine.

The major in Physics Adolescence Education is intended for students who want to become certified to teach high school Physics. It includes 57 credits in the Physics Content Core and 36 credits of Pedagogy Content offered by the Department of Education and Human Development (EHD). Because of the large number of required credits in this major, students should plan their time at Brockport carefully and consult with advisors in both Physics and EHD.

The Physics Adolescence Education major leads to initial certification (see 'Certification' below) under the 'Adolescence Physics Education' category as outlined by the New York State Education Department (NYSED):

• Adolescence Physics, 7-12
• Adolescence Physics, 5-6 Extension

What You’ll Learn

Physics pursues answers to how the Universe works on scales both large and small. High school teachers get to share these answers with their students and spark their curiosity about the natural world.

Your Physics Teacher Education degree will provide you with the content and skills necessary to become an outstanding educator in Physics and prepare you to teach in today's diverse classrooms. You will leave with an initial single certification in teaching Physics.

The BS in Healthcare Administration program prepares students to enter the healthcare field as entry-level healthcare management practitioners. Upon graduation, students are prepared to seek employment in the healthcare field in a variety of settings including, but not limited to hospitals, physician practices, nursing homes, public health institutions, insurance companies, and consulting firms. Students pursue study in a series of well rounded, yet focused healthcare administration courses that include key aspects of business, systems, research, leadership, and relationships with colleagues and consumers across the healthcare spectrum. A management internship is also required. The healthcare faculty create educational experiences that bring students the knowledge and skills needed to prepare them for employment in the multi-faceted healthcare field.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of the Healthcare Administration major, students will be able to:

• Apply knowledge of the healthcare system.
• Communicate clearly with individuals and groups.
• Apply critical thinking skills to deliver written and oral communication.
• Demonstrate accountability behaviors in the healthcare environment.
• Apply effective leadership and management skills.
• Apply financial skills to the creation of sustainable healthcare programming and service lines.
• Apply business principles, including systems thinking, to the healthcare environment.
• Demonstrate the use of information systems, particularly electronic health records.
• Behave in accordance with ethical and professional standards.

The Communication Studies major explores human communication in a variety of contexts, including interpersonal, professional, public, mediated, and cross-cultural settings, and examines the social influence of language and media. Students investigate a variety of communication practices with learning experiences in theory, history, criticism, application, and performance.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of the Communication Major, students will be able to:

• Speak well: Deliver an extemporaneous presentation that meets the needs of a given speaking situation and audience.
• Integrate multiple perspectives: Integrate multiple Communication theories/concepts to analyze and recommend multiple solutions for a socially significant communication problem, case, or situation.
• Advance quality arguments: Advance a sequence of evidence based arguments to support a given position.
• Write well: Write clearly and at a level appropriate to a given audience.
• Critically Evaluate: Critically evaluate a communication message using relevant theories/concepts.
• Demonstrate influence: Demonstrate influence strategies to address relevant social problems.

The undergraduate Interdisciplinary Arts for Children major is committed to teaching, scholarship, creative expression, and service related to the education of children in and through the arts. This interdisciplinary major is unique to the SUNY system and the nation. It fulfills a major need in providing substantive arts-in-education training to prospective classroom teachers and others interested in the arts. Research shows that arts integration has perhaps the greatest potential to positively affect learning across academic disciplines. An interdisciplinary approach to learning helps students leverage new understandings that could not be obtained through singular discipline studies alone. 

Political Science is the study of the state and of power relations within and among states, as they are and as they ought to be. It seeks a better understanding of political and governmental behavior and institutions in order to enable society to use its collective resources more effectively for the general welfare. The principal sub-fields of the discipline are: American politics, comparative politics, international relations and political theory.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Students should have a college level understanding of American Government
• Students should have a fundamental understanding of the politics of at least 1 country/region/ system of government outside of the US
• Students will have a working familiarity with social science methodologies common to PLS/INS (including Theory and Quantitative methods)
• Students should have writing and speaking skills commensurate with BA/BS at SUNY Brockport

The study of History promotes the knowledge, breadth of perspective, intellectual growth, and skills essential to achieving career success, leading a purposeful life, and exercising responsible citizenship. History majors develop strong critical thinking, research, communication and problem-solving skills that prepare them to succeed in a wide range of rewarding careers, including law, teaching, business, entrepreneurship, public administration, journalism, information technology/library science, publishing, urban and regional planning, social work, and government.

The Department of History offers students a comprehensive range of courses that covers the world across all time periods and features a diverse array of topics. In addition, it offers professional development courses that help students reflect on how the study of history can help serve their personal and professional goals after graduation. The History major is flexible, allowing students to select classes that match their interests, and at 36 credits enables students to complete other majors or minors that complement the History degree. This flexibility also allows majors the opportunity to broaden their horizons through study abroad and to explore future career paths through internships coordinated through the Department of History.

Students who want to teach history at the middle or high school level should enroll in the Social Studies Inclusive Education (SSI) major, which leads to certification as both a Social Studies and Special Education teacher, or the Social Studies Education (SSE) major, which leads to certification solely as a Social Studies teacher. 

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Articulate a thesis in response to a historical problem
• Advance in logical sequence principal arguments in defense of a historical thesis.
• Provide relevant evidence in defense of a historical thesis.
• Evaluate the significance of a historical thesis by relating it to a broader field of historical knowledge.
• Express themselves clearly in writing that forwards a historical analysis.
• Use disciplinary standards (Chicago Style) of documentation when referencing historical sources.

The MA in Psychology program is designed to prepare students for further study at the doctoral level and/or for careers in psychology and the helping professions. Students choose one of three tracks that best serves their educational goals:

• Clinical (with applied emphasis): a 48 credit program designed for students interested in developing clinical skills; it emphasizes diagnosis, assessment, and treatment of psychological and behavioral disorders, and it culminates in a semester-long practicum placement in an applied setting. *Please note that this track is currently on hiatus.  No new students are being accepted to this track.*
• Clinical (with research emphasis): a 39 credit program designed for students who want to move on to PhD programs, usually in clinical psychology; it emphasizes diagnosis, assessment, and treatment of psychological and behavioral disorders, but students in this track also engage in research; the culmination is a Master's thesis based on empirical research, rather than a practicum.
• General: a 30-36 credit program designed for students who want to move on to PhD programs, usually in non-clinical areas of psychology; through independent study and active research collaboration, this track provides the most opportunities for working closely with faculty mentors; the culmination is a Master's thesis based on empirical research.

All three tracks share a core set of courses, taken in the first year and building upon students’ undergraduate experiences, that provide advanced knowledge of scientific psychology, often in a seminar format. In the clinically-focused tracks, students are trained as scientists and practitioners, concerned with the application of psychological principles to the treatment and prevention of behavior disorders. Courses provide theoretical and practical training in contemporary methods of assessment, behavioral and cognitive-behavioral clinical intervention, and program evaluation.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Analyze the biological, developmental, and contextual determinants of behavior
  • Analyze the relationship between biological bases of behavior and human functioning
  • Describe the process of human development and acquisition of learned behaviors across the lifespan
  • Analyze how individuals' knowledge exists in the context of their environment (e.g., social, geographical, familial, institutional, cultural, etc.) and how the environment affects their functioning
• Critique and apply principles of research methods
• Apply psychological principles and evidence-based theories to practical problems in the field of psychology
• Synthesize clinical coursework and apply it outside the classroom (Applied Track)
• Produce a substantive research paper describing data that elucidates a psychological topic (Research Tracks)
• Apply ethical and professional standards to relevant research and/or clinical situations
• Explain the role of social and cultural diversity in human characteristics, experiences, and behavior
• Select appropriate intervention techniques, correctly administer tests, and accurately interpret results (Clinical Tracks)