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Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Undergraduate Symposium

The Undergraduate Student Symposium, sponsored by the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, presents student projects and performances through oral presentations, paper submissions, and poster displays.

APS Major

Description

The Bachelor of Science in Applied Professional Studies (APS) is offered by the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences. The concentrations that comprise this major are available through the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences and the Fischler School of Education and Human Services. The applied professional studies major is available only to students enrolled in the Career Development Program. It offers a flexible program for adults who have gained significant professional experience and/or who have earned a large number of college credits toward their particular career goal. It is designed to allow students to select courses that best fit their career plans. Rather than study in one discipline or area of focus, students focus on applied practical studies that often draw on subjects in two or more divisions. The APS major may be offered to students in all locations subject to course availability.

For more information about the applied professional studies major, contact the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences Office of the Dean at (954) 262-8408. For more information about the applied professional studies major with a concentration in teaching and learning, please contact the Fischler School of Education and Human Services Office of International Affairs at (954) 262-8639.

Admission Requirements

To be eligible for the applied professional studies major, students must:

  1. Have completed a minimum of 45 credits prior to applying to the applied professional studies major.
  2. Have completed an 18-credit concentration before applying to the applied professional studies major.

In addition to the documents described in the Required Documentation section, applicants to the applied professional studies major must complete and provide a portfolio containing the following documents. The assistance of an academic advisor should be sought for advice in the preparation of these documents.

  1. A letter of intent in which the student:
    1. Identifies his/her career goals;
    2. Identifies his/her prior coursework and approved prior learning experiences that comprise concentration I;
    3. Provides a rationale for considering concentration I as a coherent body of work;
    4. Identifies concentration II and explains how concentrations I and II integrate into an academic program focused on his/her career goals;
  2. Copies of transcripts with the 18-credits that comprise concentration I highlighted;
  3. One or more documents such as academic papers, projects, work products, letters of recommendation, written reviews of prior course work, written reviews of relevant professional experience, etc., that demonstrates the student’s competency in concentration I.

The portfolio is submitted to the academic advisor for review by the director of the appropriate academic unit.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this major, students should be able to:

  1. Analyze, integrate, and synthesize information from both concentrations and demonstrate the relationship of the information toward a career;
  2. Demonstrate:
    1. The ability to articulate critically the fundamental theories and principles underlying concentration II;
    2. The ability to articulate critically the relationship of the theories and principles of concentration II to concentration I (where appropriate);
    3. The ways in which the theories and principles of concentration II are operationalized in practice, and;
    4. Preparation for scholarly pursuit;
  3. Communicate the knowledge, skills, and principles acquired through the major in an organized, concise, and grammatically correct form.

Requirements

A minimum of 24 upper division (3000 and higher) credits must be included in the total required 120 credits. Students may apply an unlimited number of prior learning credits toward their applied professional studies degree; a minimum of 30 credits must be completed at NSU. Students majoring in applied professional studies may demonstrate learning competencies for one of their concentrations through NSU coursework, transfer courses from other institutions, prior learning, or testing (e.g., DANTES and CLEP). Specific requirements are:

  1. General Education Framework: 30 credits
  2. Major Requirements:
    1. Concentration I (18 credits prior to entering the major)
    2. Concentration II (number of credits depends on the concentration)
  3. Open Electives 16–48 credits (depending on the concentration)

Total Degree Requirements: 120 credits

General Education Requirements (30 credits)

Students are required to complete 30 credit hours as part of the General Education Program. For specific course requirements, refer to the General Education Program section in the Academic Resources and Procedures segment of this catalog.

Concentrations

Students choose one of the following concentrations after consultation with their academic advisor. Not all concentrations are offered at every location.

Psychology Concentration
Acceptance into this major is determined by the director of the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Major Prerequisites (or equivalents) (6 credits):
PSYC 1020 Introduction to Psychology (3 credits)
MATH 3030 Applied Statistics II (3 credits)

Core Courses (24 credits)
PSYC 2350 Life-Span Human Development (3 credits) OR PSYC 2380 Child and Adolescent Development (3 credits)
PSYC 3000 Psychological Research Methods (3 credits)
PSYC 3160 Social Psychology (3 credits)
PSYC 3210 Personality (3 credits) OR PSYC 3260 Abnormal Psychology (3 credits)
PSYC 3510 Human Learning and Cognition (3 credits)
PSYC 4600 Biological Bases of Behavior (3 credits)
PSYC 4901 APS Capstone Course in Psychology/Substance Abuse Studies (3 credits)
Select one additional 3000- or 4000-level PSYC course, with assistance from academic advisor (3 credits)

Substance Abuse Studies Concentration
Acceptance into this major is determined by the director of the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Core Courses (27 credits)
PSYC 3550 Substance Abuse and the Family (3 credits)
PSYC 3570 Psychology and Physiology of Substance Abuse (3 credits)
PSYC 3580 Rehabilitation Strategies for Substance Abuse (3 credits)
PSYC 3600 Criminal Justice and Substance Abuse (3 credits)
PSYC 3620 Drug Prevention and Education (3 credits)
PSYC 3630 Ethical and Professional Developments (3 credits)
PSYC 3800 Current Psychotherapies (3 credits)
PSYC 4150 Group Counseling in Substance Abuse (3 credits)
PSYC 4901 APS Capstone Course in Psychology/Substance Abuse Studies (3 credits)

The academic program and curriculum requirements listed on this page are from the 2009-2010 edition of the NSU Undergraduate Student Catalog. Students are bound by policies and curricula published in the catalog in effect the semester they enter the university, unless an agreement is made with appropriate NSU administration officials allowing them to abide by policies published in a later catalog.