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 (8 credits)
Three writing courses (WRT 105 , WRT 205 , and WRT 307 ) (9 credits)
Two foreign language courses (6-8 credits)
One history course (3 credits)
One multicultural social science course (3 credits)
One multicultural humanities course (3 credits)
Eight liberal arts (Arts and Sciences) electives (24 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 listed in any of the focus areas below. Students may make substitutions with the approval of their advisors. The four 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.

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.