International Year program (3-Quarter) - Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology/Biocultural

at Study Group - Western Washington University USA

Do you find human diversity and various cultures fascinating? If so, you may wish to consider a major in Anthropology, the scientific study of humankind in all the cultures of the world, past and present. Studies focus on human physical development, cultural behavior, adaptation to different environments, and creative expressions of meaning and belonging. Working in partnerships with communities and peoples worldwide, anthropologists help address contemporary human problems, highlighting evidence that points to both past and potential solutions.

Western's Anthropology curriculum reflects a strong commitment to a cross-cultural, comparative perspective. Students work with and take courses from faculty members who are nationally and internationally recognized researchers of Latin America, North America, Asia, The Pacific, and Eastern Europe, and who are dedicated to excellence in teaching.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Chinese Language and Culture with Teaching Endorsement Option
This major is designed to develop advanced proficiency in both Chinese language and culture with the goal of placing students in a competitive position in this increasingly globalized world. The rigorous curriculum of this major focuses on training students in the communicative skills and in cultural awareness that are essential for success in their career pursuits in business, education, public service, and technology related to China, Chinese people and Chinese language. This program also prepares students to become successful language teachers at the secondary education level.

Biochemistry studies the chemical processes of living organisms. Biochemists use chemistry knowledge and techniques to research biological problems. Biochemical research has had a huge impact on biology and medicine in the last few decades. The field has helped us to better understand biological structures like cells, proteins, and DNA.

Biochemistry is an interdisciplinary program established by Western's Biology and Chemistry Departments. The program is specifically designed for students who seek graduate study or employment in biochemistry or molecular biology.

Western's Biochemistry major provides significant lab training, and is designed to meet diverse career goals. There is close student-faculty contact, upper division class sizes are relatively small, and students have direct access to state of the art laboratory equipment and instrumentation.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Humanities: History of Culture
The humanities include the disciplines which study philosophy, religion, history, literature, and the arts. The BA in Humanities: History of Culture serves students who want to major in more than one Humanities discipline, using interdisciplinary methods of investigation.

The department supports study of cultural history on a global level, including Europe and the Americas, East Asia South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and predominantly Islamic areas. Its courses give attention to historical development and cross-cultural interaction, both in the past and in the modern period. Students learn to analyze individual works of the humanities and to relate them to social and cultural developments.  The department’s curriculum includes some courses called “Humanities” (HUMA) and others called “Religion” (REL).  

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Earth Science/General Science — Secondary
Secondary Education offers two teacher preparation programs for those wishing to teach in middle and/or high school and receive certification in Washington State.  Applicants must have academic preparation to teach in a specific content area by meeting the requirements in their endorsement ("content area", "academic subject", "major", and "endorsement" are often synonymous with the middle/high school classroom subject).

The Secondary Education curriculum is carefully sequenced to provide professional, comprehensive, learning and field-focused experiences. To learn about the core values that guide our program, see the department's Guiding Principles. Candidates who successfully complete Secondary Education programs are recommended for residency teacher certification in the state of Washington.

Undergraduate studies in Philosophy fit well into many pre-professional programs, including law school. Emphasizing careful, deep, and critical analysis of concepts and problems, Philosophy is an excellent major for students seeking business and government careers that require a liberal arts background.

Philosophy courses at Western explore traditional areas of focus, such as ethics, epistemology, logic, metaphysics, and the history of philosophy. Through a collaborative study of these topics, the department faculty helps students develop valuable skills, such as critical thinking, critical reading, analytic writing, and effective speaking. Studies consistently show that Philosophy majors do better than anyone else when it comes to verbal reasoning and analytic skills (as revealed by scores on the Graduate Record Exam).

Students in Western's Plastics and Composites Engineering (PCE) program study the relationship between molecular structure, material properties and performance, and the manufacturing of polymers, composites materials, and products. In other words, they either make the products you use, make the materials that are turned into those products, or make the machines that help build those products.

PCE students gain authentic experiences using commercial plastics and composites processing equipment, use advanced materials characterization instrumentation, conduct applied and interdisciplinary engineering research, model technical processes, apply principles of designed experimentation and learn and practice high-level technical and professional communication skills.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

French/Spanish
In keeping with the aim of providing the skills needed to learn about a culture in depth, the Department of Modern and Classical Languages trains in two areas: language structure and literary analysis. Language structure is taught both holistically and analytically. Holistic language learning is facilitated by modern methods and multimedia technology, as well as study abroad opportunities. The department supports the analytical instruction of language skills courses, as well as a significant number of courses in Linguistics. Literary analysis is essential to a student’s understanding of the highest achievements in aesthetic expression of a culture’s values.

The department provides instruction in history and culture, as well as literary theory, with an end to enabling the student to gain access to the intellectual life in the culture. The department imparts skills to future world language teachers so that they may similarly enable high school students to begin the acquisition of world languages.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

German— Elementary
German Studies aims to teach students in depth about the cultures of the German-speaking world. Germany is the United States’ biggest European trading partner, and the German language is the second most commonly used business language in the world. Students who become proficient in German can communicate with about 100 million people living in a number of countries in the heart of Europe. The German program integrates instruction in language studies with studies in cultural and literary history, enabling students to gain access to the intellectual life of the German-speaking countries.

German Studies aims to teach students in depth about the cultures of the German-speaking world. The program integrates instruction in language studies with studies in cultural and literary history, enabling students to gain access to the intellectual life of the German-speaking countries.

The department provides instruction in history and culture, as well as literary theory, with an end to enabling the student to gain access to the intellectual life in the culture. The department imparts skills to future world language teachers so that they may similarly enable elementary school students to begin the acquisition of world languages.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

English - Literature
English is one of the central liberal arts degrees. A background in English provides graduates with a sound basis for pursuing a variety of careers, including law, business, education, publishing and government, as well as graduate work in film studies and media, creative writing, language, literary and cultural studies, and critical writing. English engages students in diverse literary heritages as well as fosters the development of sophisticated abilities in critical analysis, creative inquiry, reflective reading, and effective communication and expression.

The English Literature major focuses on the study of literatures in historical and cultural contexts and includes course work in literary theory, creative writing, and composition and rhetoric.