Selected Studies in Education, BS

Contact:

Linwood Vereen, Lower Level Hoople Building, 315-443-5266, lgvereen@syr.edu

Designed for Syracuse University students who are interested in education careers but not currently pursuing a teaching certificate, selected studies in education offers a path to a bachelor’s degree through a program tailored to a student’s individual interests, skills, and aspirations. Selected studies in education is for students planning to enter fields that contain strong educational components, including educational media, international education, clinical mental health, school, and student affairs counseling, instructional design, development, and evaluation, higher education, child advocacy and youth programming, education and family law, museum studies, disability studies, and related fields.

Program Requirements:

Students must complete the following requirements, including at least 42 credits at the upper-division level:

30 credits in education (including a minimum of 18 credits in one of the four selected studies individual focus areas, outlined below)
a minor or major in a liberal arts field related to the course of study;
liberal arts distribution requirements (the liberal arts major or minor plus distribution requirements and liberal arts electives must total at least 60 credits.);
at least 6 credits in a language other than English (all students are required to take at least two semesters of language other than English while at Syracuse, even if they have previously developed competence in another language through high school preparation or by some other means);
one semester of study abroad or an intensive semester experience in Syracuse or another part of the U.S. that would broaden the student’s experience with diversity in a distinct way;
at least 6 credits in research methods (this requirement can be satisfied with courses taken as part of the required 30 credits in education);
an internship or several intensive experience projects that allow the student opportunities to apply and enhance skills learned in the program (minimum of 6 credits).

Admission:

A 2.8 grade point average is required for admission to this program and to remain in good academic standing in the program.

Core in Education

Students are required to complete the following core courses in education (15 credits):

EDU 221 - Education for Transformation
EDU 310 - The American School
EDU 321 - International Education for Transformation
CFE 444 - Schooling & Diversity
Appropriate research course

Liberal Arts Distribution Requirements

All students in the Selected Studies in Education program are advised to complete a set of liberal arts requirements. These are:

Two mathematics courses (6 credits)
Two science w/lab courses (6-8 credits)
Three writing courses (WRT 105 , WRT 205 , and WRT 307 ) (9 credits)
Two foreign language courses (6-8 credits - same language)
One history course (3 credits)
One multicultural social science course (3 credits)
One multicultural humanities course (3 credits)
Eight liberal arts (Arts and Sciences)courses to bring total liberal arts credits to a minimum of 60 credits

Liberal Arts Majors or Minors

Students are advised to complete a full major or an approved concentration in a liberal arts field as part of their program in selected studies in education. A complete list of available majors, minors and concentrations can be found in the Undergraduate Course Catalog; students may develop their own individualized multidisciplinary majors with the assistance of their advisor and permission of liberal arts departments in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Individual Focus Areas in Education

Students must choose at least 18 credits of coursework from approved courses in education based on their thematic or career focus. Students satisfy this requirement by taking courses related to one of the focus areas below. The five focus areas to choose from are:

Cultural Foundations of American Schooling: Schooling and Diversity

This focus is suitable for students who may want to pursue any of the following career interests: seek a teaching career at a future point; work with youth in non-school settings; enter the educational media field; or work in public policy settings that focus on public schooling. Students interested in this focus area might also want to choose courses from the pre-teaching focus or the education, technology, and media focus.

Pre-Teaching: Study of Teaching, Learning, and Inclusion

This focus is suitable for students who may wish to pursue a career in teaching after completing their undergraduate program. Courses in this focus area may include the study of early childhood, elementary, or secondary education, as well as issues of diversity, disability, regular education, special education, and inclusion within schools. Students in this focus area will have significant experiences in public schools during the course of study. Students interested in pre-teaching may want to consider taking relevant courses from other focus areas.

Education, Technology, and Media

This focus is ideal for students who have an interest in the integration of media and technology in various learning contexts. Students learn media literacy skills and gain an understanding of how popular culture influences the promotion and transmission of cultural values within our society. Students interested in this focus may want to consider taking relevant courses in the cultural foundations of American schooling focus.

Post-Secondary and Human Services Fields

This focus is suitable for students wishing to work in a variety of educational settings, including higher education, international education, and as non-teaching personnel in primary and secondary schools. Whether students are interested in pursuing a graduate degree in a human services field or in seeking employment immediately after undergraduate studies, this focus area will provide an introduction to the general study and provision of human and social services to individuals, families, and communities in public and private human service agencies and organizations. The focus provides a strong foundation for graduate work in such fields as clinical mental health, school, and student affairs counseling, social work, marriage and family therapy, psychology, and higher education. ***This focus also has the “fast-track” option for students to begin graduate study toward an Master of Science degree in counseling during their senior year at SU. See description below.

Physical Activity: Sport, Coaching and Recreation

This focus is suitable for students who may want to pursue any of the following career interests: Coaching athletes with and without disabilities in college, high school, or youth settings ; officiate sports; become a personal trainer; strength and conditioning coach, or group exercise leader; teaching/coaching youth sports and fitness in non-school settings such as YMCA/YWCA’s, Boy’s and Girl’s Clubs, and private and public sport/recreational facilities; sport or fitness entrepreneur; or a teaching career at a future point. Students interested in this focus area might also want to choose courses from the Pre-teaching focus or the Education, Technology and Media.

Fast Track to Instructional Design Development and Evaluation

This dynamic program is best suited for students interested in careers related to instruction and learning outside of the K-12 context. There continues to be a growing demand for instructional designers who are prepared to create educational materials for children through adult populations using a variety of delivery platforms from face-to-face instruction to e-learning. Professionals in this career path may work in business and industry, government and military, healthcare, non-for-profit, museums, Parks and Recreations, higher education, and a variety of other contexts around the world! This option is designed for highly motivated and focused Selected Studies students interested in pursuing a Master of Science in Instructional Design, Development & Evaluation (MS IDD&E) upon completion of their undergraduate degree. Students work closely with their advisor to develop a plan of study that will allow them to complete a majority of their undergraduate degree courses prior to their senior year. This provides an opportunity to take graduate level courses in your senior year.

Students who maintain at least a 3.0 GPA are eligible then to apply for the MS IDD&E during their junior year.

Admitted students, with advisor approval, will take a selection of 12-15 graduate credits toward their Master’s degree during their senior year. Upon bachelor’s degree graduation, students matriculate into the MS IDD&E degree program and complete the final 15-18 graduate credit hours in the next year. By successfully completing a majority of credits and producing a professional portfolio students may be able to complete campus-based activities by December.

Fast Track to Cultural Foundations of Education

This individually designed program fosters and supports fundamental inquiry into the nature of education. Students draw on history, philosophy, sociology and other disciplines to analyze such issues in education as inequality, disability, popular culture, mass media, the philosophy of multiculturalism and racism. Students may build their work around their own research interests and are encouraged to use diverse research approaches. Cultural Foundations of Education supports interdisciplinary work through courses from other Syracuse University departments. Because Cultural Foundations of Education supports interdisciplinary work, students are encouraged to choose courses from across the broad spectrum of Syracuse University’s schools and colleges, including Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and the College of Arts and Sciences. Students may also use diverse research approaches, such as combining philosophical analysis with empirical work or historical research with policy analysis. Selected Studies in Education students may apply from any of the undergraduate focus areas, although coordinated advising will help with undergraduate course selections.

One of the major objectives of Cultural Foundations of Education is to teach students how to bring the critical analytical tools of a foundational approach to issues in education. Such an approach delves into the assumptions and values that lie beneath our taken for granted understanding of education. The program especially attracts students who want to explore the challenges facing urban education and who are open to investigating innovative solutions.

Students choose to Fast Track into Cultural Foundations of Education because they seek a program committed to social justice and academic excellence.

Special Opportunities: The Fast Track Program

Selected Studies students have opportunities to take appropriate coursework that will either meet prerequisites to our School of Education master’s degree programs, or reduce the number of credits needed in the graduate program.

For students with 3.0 GPA or above, and who have room in their last two semesters to take graduate courses, some programs allow petitions to take courses for graduate credit (i.e., courses that will not be used toward the minimum credits required for the Selected Studies degree, but, as long as B or better grades are earned, will be transferred as a block of credits to the graduate record. The grades will calculate in neither the undergraduate nor the graduate GPA).Advisors work with students to develop a plan of study that will allow them to complete the majority of the undergraduate requirements prior to the senior year, allowing room for graduate courses in the senior year.We call this the Fast Track Option.This option benefits students because they may apply their undergraduate financial aid package toward graduate credits during their senior year.

Some master’s degree programs (e.g., initial teacher preparation programs) have particular undergraduate liberal arts or other course requirements that, through coordinated advising, can be included in the Selected Studies program.Early contact with the program of interest in advised.
A few of our teacher preparation master’s degree programs that are greater than 30 credits have limited opportunity for students to include undergraduate courses in their Selected Studies programs that will waive credits from their master’s degree programs.Again, Early contact with the program of interest is advised.

Fast Track to Professional Counseling

This track is designed for highly motivated and focused students interested in pursuing a master’s degree in clinical mental health, school, or student affairs counseling upon completion of their undergraduate degree in Selected Studies in Education, following the ‘post-secondary and human services fields’ track. Students work closely with their advisor to develop a plan of study that will allow them to complete the majority of their undergraduate degree requirements for the Selected Studies in Education program prior to their senior year.

Students in this track who maintain at least a 3.0 GPA, and take the GRE, are eligible to apply for one of the following master’s degree programs during their junior year:

Clinical Mental Health Counseling
School Counseling
Student Affairs Counseling

Admitted students, with advisor approval, will be able to take up to 18 graduate credits toward their master’s degree during their senior year. Admitted students will matriculate into the master’s degree program the semester following completion of their undergraduate degree.

One of the primary benefits of this track is that students save time and tuition costs in two ways:

The ability to apply their undergraduate financial aid package toward graduate credits during their senior year.
Eligible to receive the 33% Graduate Student Tuition Scholarship for the remainder of their full-time master’s program.

Benefits include saving time and the cost of graduate tuition. Students save time by accruing graduate credits during their senior year; they save additional money because they are also eligible to receive the 33% Graduate Student Tuition Scholarship for the remainder of their full-time master’s program.