Scholar Commons

The Child Studies Program offers a degree program leading to the Bachelor of Science in Child Studies. The Child Studies major is designed for undergraduates interested in a career working with children in community or school-based settings. There are two emphases available within Child Studies: Pre-Teaching and Child Studies, each of them leading to a B.S. degree.

The Pre-Teaching emphasis provides a broad liberal arts background related to the elementary school curriculum, as well as a set of courses designed to introduce future teachers to the research foundations of best practices in education, child development, and issues and policies related to the schools. Students with a B.S. in Liberal Studies in the Pre-Teaching emphasis are prepared to go on to post-graduate studies related to their career goals such as teacher credential programs.

The Child Studies emphasis is designed for students interested in careers focusing on children such as, social work, counseling, family law, directing childcare programs, speech and language pathology, occupational therapy, or leading nonprofit agencies that provide community services to children and families. Students with a B.S. in Liberal Studies in the Child Studies emphasis are prepared to go on to post-graduate programs such as master’s degree programs in psychology, social work, or other fields.

Advisors in Child Studies can provide information about teaching credential programs for the Pre-Teaching emphasis and graduate study programs for the Child Studies emphasis students.