Bachelor of Arts in Spanish

at Concordia University Wisconsin USA

It is by far the most important skill professionals have in the business world - the ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and accurately. Ironically, it is also the most widely overlooked and underestimated. Give yourself an advantage and pursue a degree in business communication. You’ll build the skills and techniques that can help your organization promote its goals, products, and services.

People think just because they communicate daily – both verbally and in written form – they don’t need to spend the time it takes to truly become adept at communicating. But even naturally gifted communicators can benefit from this program. During your time here, you’ll have the opportunity to study topics such as: public relations and press releases; group dynamics; leadership communication; interviewing strategies; conflict management skills; servant leadership; public speaking; social media theory and history; cross-cultural communication, and more. You’ll also have internship opportunities that will give you real-world experience to bring to your future workplace. Becoming a strong communicator is one of the best ways to ensure that you make a big impact in the world of business.

At the end of this program, you will not only be a stronger communicator, but also a better leader. You’ll know how to work with diverse groups, identify key messages worth sharing, and lead others by example. You’ll join the workforce with the hands-on experience needed to deliver your message -whether you’re communicating in the office, with friends and family, or to the media.

Let’s talk about the long term. Upon graduation you’ll have acquired the skills and knowledge and a year of practice experience to immediately enter into generalist professional practice. So, how do you get there? Everything that you learn will be centered around the Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE) nine competencies. They include: demonstrating professional behavior, advancing human rights, using practice-informed research and research-informed practice, and engaging with a diverse range of people.

What makes us unique? Simple. Our philosophy of education. We believe that Christian service, quality research, and hands-on learning are the best ingredients for your growth as a competent professional. You’ll learn comprehensive methods in providing support and counsel to individuals, families, and groups, communities and organizations in need.
The primary mission of the CUW social work program is to prepare graduates for baccalaureate level, generalist, social work practice, within the context of faith, service and social justice.  To fulfill this mission, the CUW Social Work program is based on CSWE’s nine competencies:

• Demonstrate Ethical & Professional Behavior
• Engage Diversity and Difference in Practice
• Advance Human Rights and Social, Economic, and Environmental Justice
• Engage in Practice-informed Research and Research-informed Practice
• Engage in Policy Practice
• Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities
• Assess Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities
• Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations and Communities
• Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities

This MBA with a concentration in research for business applications is a unique concentration that allows you to take 12 credits from the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) research courses and count them towards the MBA. Saving you time and money for both degrees!

In this concentration, you’ll take four research courses (12 credits) in our DBA program. As a result, you’ll gain knowledge to be a productive researcher in your field. You’ll understand how to collect and analyze data to benefit your organization. Learning the ins and outs of scholarly research, including statistics for research, quantitative research skills, and qualitative research skills. Business decisions should be guided by a strong understanding of the qualitative and quantitative factors that guide strategy and differentiation among multiple alternatives.  While this program allows you to jumpstart your studies in the DBA program, it can also be used to improve your organization and your ability to sift through data driving the complex challenges your organization will face. This concentration will also provide you with the skills necessary to perform solid academic research intended for peer-reviewed publications.

The special education program has a strong liberal arts foundation with a Christian emphasis. Education coursework and fieldwork experiences begin freshman year. It offers a public education track, a Lutheran teacher diploma track for students wishing to pursue education as an LCMS church work professional, and a Christian teacher certification track for students wishing to pursue education in another Christian school setting. This program may be pursued as a special education major only, leading to K-12 certification in cross categorical special education or as a dual major combining special education and general education. Dual majors are available at the early childhood and elementary/middle school levels. The special education program is accredited and approved by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.  Job openings in this field are plentiful, as this is a high-need certification area nationally.

In addition to coursework, you’ll experience firsthand the blessing and challenge of working with special needs children in an actual, real-world setting. You’ll be grounded in a deep understanding of child and adolescent development in mind, body, and spirit, as well as the range of exceptionalities. You’ll work to master content knowledge in addition to a wide range of instructional strategies and learner accommodations. You’ll develop skills in classroom management, curricular design and assessment, and engagement and collaboration with other educators and school stakeholders.

As a working adult, you know that we are living in a data-age, and you see this area as a growth opportunity in your career. Now is the time because the demand for professionals with business analytics skills is growing. Most companies are generating, collecting, and storing information that is used to drive up the value of their business. This fast-growing career path has applications in every industry and companies of all sizes.

Program Outcomes

• Summarize principles of Christian ethics related to business intelligence.
• Apply the principles and techniques of database design, administration, and implementation to enhance data collection capabilities and decision-support systems.
• Describe models for effective decision making to achieve business objectives.
• Compare different organizational behaviors and adapt change management strategies.
• Articulate assumptions, analyses, and interpretations of data in a written and oral format.

The study of biology connects us to the world in which we live and reminds us of the awe-inspiring intricacies of the Lord’s creation. From the largest ecosystem to the smallest microorganism, each organism and system is designed to seamlessly work together. So if you share an appreciation of wonders great and small, a biology major might be right for you.

You can anticipate learning both inside and outside of the typical classroom. Sure, you’ll attend lectures, but you’ll also participate in labs and field research to obtain hands-on experience. Many of the required classes are taken in the Concordia Center for Environmental Stewardship, a LEEDS Platinum facility designed specifically for laboratory courses that emphasize fieldwork and environmental ethics.

Over the course of your studies, you’ll take 49 credits of required coursework and 11 credits of related electives.  The required coursework provides a strong foundation in the biological sciences, while the elective coursework allows you the ability to tailor your major to your specific interests.

You will be well equipped for a wide variety of career choices to include graduate studies in any of the life sciences.  The biology major also serves an alternative to the biomedical sciences major for those of you who appreciate breadth in your biology education as you prepare for professions in the medical field, such as pharmacy or medical school.

In this program, we hold the following to be an unequivocal truth: we’re all created by God. When you’re an individual undergoing treatment in a healthcare facility – whether it’s acute, community, or long-term – it means you should be treated with utmost care and dignity. That’s your role as a healthcare administrator. To help uphold the dignity of each of your patients. It will also teach you how to be an effective healthcare administrator, how to evaluate research results applicable to a healthcare practice, and how to demonstrate effective communication – in writing and presentations.
There are so many intricacies to working in the field of healthcare. This program focuses primarily on working with others in the field of healthcare. It all starts with your ability to recognize every individual as a holistic being created by God – someone whose dignity, worth, and rights deserve to be respected and upheld.

This program will help you grow adept at analyzing different healthcare systems. You’ll grow an ability to synthesize knowledge from the sciences, humanities, and management theories as a basis for problem-solving and decision-making. You will be expected to display a willingness to work cohesively and communicate with members of the interdisciplinary healthcare network.

This program will equip you with the ability to evaluate research results that are applicable to your healthcare practice, and teach you how to create a reflective self plan for personal and professional growth. You’ll discover an ability to recognize and analyze current trends and issues related to healthcare management, which will help you grow throughout your career. And you’ll earn respect for diversity within the healthcare community – for both those who are served and the providers of care.

Exercise plays an important role in a person’s overall health and well-being, but if done incorrectly, it can have unpleasant consequences. An understanding of how the body responds and adapts to exercise can help a person achieve peak fitness, lose weight, prevent disease, and maintain physical wellness. CUW’s exercise physiology program can help you harness the expertise needed to be others’ guide on their path to optimal health.

At Concordia, we’re committed to students’ overall health. In fact, it’s written in our mission statement. So you can expect the groundwork to be laid for you to be able to go out and do the same for others. By choosing to major in our exercise physiology program, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to learn about the human body and how it responds and adapts to the stress of physical exertion. You’ll be exposed to the theoretical knowledge required to conduct safe and effective fitness evaluations for at-risk populations, and you’ll have ample opportunity to put that knowledge into practice through hands-on learning experiences.

In Concordia’s own Exercise Physiology Laboratory, you’ll learn to assess cardiovascular, neuromuscular, and pulmonary responses. And you’ll spend quite a bit of time studying the sciences to develop a broad understanding of the mechanics within the human body. With all of this knowledge, you can graduate well-prepared to sit for the nationally recognized certification exams offered through the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Once you graduate, you can choose to either immediately enter the workforce or pursue professional/graduate studies.

Science aims to understand the incredible intricacies of God's creation. It all starts with a question, which leads to research, forming a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis, and analyzing and communicating the results, which often leads to new questions. This scientific inquiry is what leads to theories and laws that observe and describe the world around us.

In this program, you'll study everything that exists in the earth's environment, from the plants and animals to ecosystems and climate patterns, and how they all correlate. Two concentrations are available; ecology and environmental chemistry. Both tracks take a deep dive into a wide variety of scientific disciplines, with each specialization putting an extra emphasis on ecology or environmental chemistry respectively.

The environmental science major explores the physical, chemical, and biological properties and processes of our world. The program seeks to help students grow in the following six areas:

• Knowledge base: demonstrate an understanding of and an ability to explain major biological and related scientific concepts.
• Laboratory procedures: demonstrate the ability to appropriately collect and analyze data while utilizing laboratory equipment and procedures safely and effectively
• Scientific inquiry: develop investigative and critical thinking skills to explore complex questions and solve challenging scientific problems
• Scientific communication: demonstrate the ability to communicate scientific information effectively to both scientists and non-scientists using oral and written forms of expression
• Vocation and ethics: recognize how vocations in science provide opportunities for service to Christ and others and necessitate ethical behavior in all aspects of science
• God’s design and stewardship: demonstrate an understanding of how/why a Christian sees evidence of God’s design in nature and how to be good stewards of His creation

The Biblical Studies program lays out a good foundation for further work not only in the LCMS but for all Christian denominations. This program offers classes that all Christian students can be prepared for church work or simply because they want to know more about the Bible and the God who is revealed in it. At the same time, this is a great program for Lutheran students who want to focus on the Bible itself.

With this program, students will explain and analyze the basic tenets of the Christian faith and will apply the Christian worldview and doctrines to current situations (personal, professional, and societal) and to historical problems and situations.

Biblical Studies graduates can expect to:

• Develop an understanding of the origin of the Bible, recognize the unique qualities of God's word, appreciate the varied yet unified content of the Old and New Testaments, and use sound principles in interpreting Scripture.
• Recognize the Bible as the authoritative source for knowledge of God and humankind, articulate key doctrines of the Christian faith, especially the gospel of Jesus Christ, and apply the teachings of Scripture to the life of the individual.
• Develop an appreciation for how God has worked in history, recognize key figures and movements in the life of the Church, and identify the state of theology today.
• Grow in their relationship with Christ and put His teachings into practice in their vocations.
• Observe, assess, and interpret today's cultures and world views. Students will be familiar with various methods of delivering and defending biblical truth in a relevant and practical way to diverse groups.
• Demonstrate an understanding of research skills in the discipline.