Bachelor of Arts in International Studies

at California State University - East Bay USA

The Liberal Studies Major aims to provide a rich liberal art educational experience through selected courses from a wide range of academic disciplines, while at the same time allowing students to select a field for in-depth study of their own interest.  The broad-based, interdisciplinary nature of Liberal Studies provides a solid well-rounded undergraduate educational experience, integrating knowledge from arts and humanities, social science, and natural sciences, with analytical and communication skills well suited for many careers and professions.

The major consists of a common core and a choice from seven concentrations, designed to meet diverse student interests and needs not only for school teaching, but also for leadership in government, non-profit organizations, and business, and for graduate education in law, counseling, social work and services, public affairs and administration, and educational leadership.

The university offers the B.A. degree in English with three distinct concentrations: literature, creative writing, and English language and literacies.  The student seeking a degree must observe the general university requirements stated elsewhere in this catalog as well as the specific departmental requirements stated here.

The Art Department emphasizes study in our Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) Program. This is a professional degree that offers students the opportunity to develop greater expertise through comprehensive and intensive study in a specific area of art or design - a program that leads to successful careers in the visual art and design industries. Students who intend to pursue graduate studies or advanced skills for a professional career typically choose the B.F.A degree.

The B.F.A. professional concentrations require 70 units of study in the Department to complete the major.  There is no application procedure to enter the Bachelor of Fine Arts program beyond declaring as a B.F.A. student with a specific concentration.  The concentrations are listed below under major requirements.

Interaction & Game Design Concentration
Interaction Design focuses on the creation of meaningful experiences expressed as interactive applications and objects. Game Design applies this to entertainment, both experimental and commercial. Students analyze interactivity in art, design, and everyday life, acquire skills and develop prototypes, and work in collaborative teams to produce successful games and creatively solve real world problems.

The Communication Department features the integration of theories and criticism with the essential skills for media production, professional engagement, and meaningful research. Graduates will be able to make a positive, professional, and important contribution in communication theory and research, Strategic Communication, Multimedia Journalism, and Communication and Media Studies. Students will study, research and analyze the perspectives that will lead to their becoming inclusive, ethical, and effective leaders and participants in global and local communities. They will acquire skills in critical analysis, speaking, writing, and visual presentations across all media. They will learn about the changing world of today’s and future media as well as the long history of the relationship between communication, self, and society and they will be prepared for a broad array of careers or graduate studies. All undergraduates must complete 32 units in 8 core courses in communication and elect one of three concentrations: Multimedia Journalism emphasizing digital journalism for social justice that converges print, audio, visual, and video; Strategic Communication that converges the study of Advertising, Public Relations and Organizational Communication; and Communication and Media Studies that is designed to give students maximum flexibility in the 21st century job market while providing ample depth for those wishing to pursue graduate study.

The Recreation degree prepares students for leadership positions in public recreation and leisure services agencies. Such work enhances the quality of life for millions of people each day across the nation. Specializations available in the degree include the Sustainability Concentration, Youth Development Programming Concentration, and a Recreation Therapy Concentration that prepares students to sit for the state RT licensing exam.

Potential jobs in this rewarding field include program coordinators, supervisors and directors in a variety of areas including day camps, sports, youth, teen and older adult activities and classes and naturalist, park ranger positions. Many graduates from our program are leaders in leisure services organizations including Concord, Livermore, Oakland, Pleasanton, San Ramon, and the East Bay Regional Park District.

Geology is the study of the earth and of life and the natural processes occurring on the planet through time. Students learn about the causes of processes such as earthquakes, volcanoes, the formation of mountains, the effect of erosion and deposition, and the formation of rocks and minerals and their uses. Coursework combined with observations on field trips provide Cal State East Bay students with an understanding of natural processes and the human impact on the environment.

The Geology, B.A. program offers the student a greater degree of flexibility and may be more appropriate for those who do not plan to become certified professional geologists or pursue graduate study. (Note: Transfer from the Geology, B.A. to the Geology, B.S. program or vice versa can be accomplished.) Students wishing to do independent geological work professionally or plan on graduate study should enroll in the B.S. program; see the B.S. program in Geology in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences.

The Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences offers undergraduate study leading to the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees in Geology, focusing on developing strong foundational knowledge and a broad set of field and laboratory skills in the Earth sciences.

The Liberal Studies Major aims to provide a rich liberal art educational experience through selected courses from a wide range of academic disciplines, while at the same time allowing students to select a field for in-depth study of their own interest.  The broad-based, interdisciplinary nature of Liberal Studies provides a solid well-rounded undergraduate educational experience, integrating knowledge from arts and humanities, social science, and natural sciences, with analytical and communication skills well suited for many careers and professions.

The major consists of a common core and a choice from seven concentrations, designed to meet diverse student interests and needs not only for school teaching, but also for leadership in government, non-profit organizations, and business, and for graduate education in law, counseling, social work and services, public affairs and administration, and educational leadership.

Through inclusive and rigorous creative inquiry, the Department of Theatre and Dance provides comprehensive training for performance, creativity, reflection, diversity, collaboration, mentorship, community engagement, and social justice.

Through a combination of core classes with a concentration, the program provides comprehensive pre-professional training in the areas of performance (Acting, Dance, Inclusive Performance (Applied Social Justice), and Musical Theatre) and production (Stage Technology and Design). Our primary goal is to develop artists whose performance skills and creativity are supported by a firm background in history, literature, and aesthetics. In an environment designed to encourage creativity and self-expression, students perform regularly in a variety of theatre and dance productions. The culmination requirement offers an opportunity to direct, choreograph, perform, write, intern, or design.

Theatre Arts program encourages majors to acquire a range of skills to expand their career options. Many have entered advanced studies in nationally recognized universities and conservatories. Some have chosen careers in teaching, while others have gone directly into theatre or dance performance. Alumni perform on professional stages around the world, including Broadway and Hollywood, where they have won Tony and  Emmy Awards, as well as other professional recognitions. Employers in business and public service professions desire Theatre Arts graduates for their team skills, their imaginative approach to problems, and their ability to communicate creatively.

The Art Department emphasizes study in our Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) Program. This is a professional degree that offers students the opportunity to develop greater expertise through comprehensive and intensive study in a specific area of art or design - a program that leads to successful careers in the visual art and design industries. Students who intend to pursue graduate studies or advanced skills for a professional career typically choose the B.F.A degree.

The B.F.A. professional concentrations require 70 units of study in the Department to complete the major.  There is no application procedure to enter the Bachelor of Fine Arts program beyond declaring as a B.F.A. student with a specific concentration.  The concentrations are listed below under major requirements.

3D Art & Design Concentration
The 3D Art and Design concentration combines the fabrication skill sets of sculpture and industrial design with digital 3D modeling to enable students to create work at the growing overlap of design and fine arts. Increasingly sculptors need to use state of the art 3D printers and modeling software, and designers need to prototype their ideas in clay or welded steel. The emphasis is on carefully aligning form and concept through agile use of a variety of media and creating objects that speak clearly to their chosen audience, from the fine art gallery to the commercial production line.

The Master’s degree in Interaction Design and Interactive Art is a unique interdisciplinary program at the intersection of interaction design and interactive content development. The program emphasizes the creative and technical aspects of current and emerging technology and its use in creating, controlling, delivering, and presenting compelling content in an interactive form. This degree draws upon elements from many fields, including visual and interaction design, UX/UI, Fine Art, Computer Science, Education, Psychology, Journalism, and Telecommunications.

Our program embraces industry skills and practices by emphasizing teamwork and a project-based, hands-on approach in the creation of interactive applications and objects as part of designed user experience. Instruction focuses as much on the enduring creative process as on the transient technology so that students learn skills needed to adapt quickly to new environments in a rapidly developing and ever-changing field.  

The Interaction Design and Interactive Art, M.A. Program is a two-year degree program, and most coursework is offered in the evening to accommodate working professionals.

During the first year, students develop a theoretical foundation, enhance their creative and research skills, and learn to work effectively in teams. During the second year, small teams of students of various backgrounds and talents create innovative, professional interactive thesis projects. Ideas for projects originate from students, faculty, or external sources.

Students in the Interaction Design and Interactive Art, M.A. Program, enjoy many benefits including small student-teacher ratios and dedicated interdisciplinary faculty. Thesis project students have 24-hour access to a dedicated production studio, maker space, and secure workspaces equipped and maintained with the current technology and support staff.