Bachelor of Arts in Community Advocacy and Social Policy

at Kaplan Group - Arizona State University - Downtown Phoenix Campus USA

The Thunderbird MGM program with a concentration in sustainability solutions prepares students for the professions of the future. In this concentration, students earn a degree that benefits their career and the planet. There is an accelerating demand for leaders with a global mindset who possess expertise in sustainability, understand how to apply its principles and technology in approaching problems, and know how to work with and draw from different disciplines to develop practical solutions to the world's most urgent sustainability challenges.

The World Economic Forum reports that empathy and collaboration are two critical abilities for global manager success. These are equally critical for those seeking careers in sustainability solutions. These abilities rely on the development of social capital. This program is designed to develop a student's social capital through field-based action learning, team-based projects and stretch assignments. Students have the ability to build sustainable trusting relationships --- the basis of social capital ---with others from diverse parts of the world by learning techniques and methods of developing intercultural empathy, the ability to have interpersonal impact, and to act with diplomacy when influencing others. This concentration is offered in collaboration with ASU's School of Sustainability.

The School of Public Affairs offers a concentration in business as part of the BS in public service and public policy.

This concentration establishes a core business curriculum while allowing students the flexibility to pursue their passion, from entrepreneurial opportunities to working for a Fortune 500 company. Coursework teaches lasting business concepts.

The MS program in physical activity and health offers a unique opportunity for advanced training with options to focus on exercise science, fitness and conditioning, or physical activity and health promotion alongside faculty who are immersed in the latest research.

This program prepares students to translate and apply evidence-based exercise science, fitness and lifestyle behavior change approaches to improve health and well-being and prevent chronic disease across the lifespan. It also prepares students to design fitness and conditioning programs for athletes.

Students in the program develop competencies in research design, statistical methods and the ethical conduct of research studies and they have the opportunity to conduct a mentored research project as part of a thesis, if desired. They also learn to apply theoretical models of behavior change for the development and implementation of interventions to facilitate the adoption and maintenance of physical activity and other health and wellness behaviors. Students develop and demonstrate their knowledge of the causes, risks factors and impact of exercise, physical activity and fitness on the disease process in cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, cancer, musculoskeletal health and functional fitness through a critical examination of epidemiological research and exercise intervention studies.

The School of Public Affairs offers a concentration in criminology as part of the BS in public service and public policy.

Criminology continues to be a highly sought-after area and it presents broad policy implications for future public sector professionals. This program introduces students to the fundamental foundations in criminal justice and criminology by preparing them to think critically, contribute to society and enhance public safety.

Learn to understand complex public problems and develop and implement innovative policy solutions. Through coursework and real-world projects, you gain the analytic skills required to address society's most challenging problems.

The MPP program equips students with the analytical tools they need to understand and address public policy issues. Students also develop skills in managing the process of policy development, approval, implementation, and evaluation as well as gain policy-specific knowledge on issues such as poverty, education, the environment and public safety.

Through a focused set of electives, the policy informatics concentration provides knowledge and skills to students seeking careers in which they can use informatics tools, models and simulations to help individuals and groups deliberate and evaluate policy decisions as well as explore new governance infrastructures. Emphasis is placed on theories and research concerning decision-making, complexity theory and visualization of quantitative and qualitative information, collective intelligence, behavioral economics and persuasive technologies.

The MS program in nutritional science prepares students to translate nutrition science into practical use for human health and wellness. Students immerse themselves in the latest nutrition topics and research partnered with accomplished faculty, developing practical understanding through internship experiences and their own guided research. Building on the scientific foundations of human nutrition, students learn strong writing and problem-solving skills, grow computer literacy, and increase interpretive expertise. Students are afforded research experiences grounded in the latest science that can match their own interests and goals.

Sports nutrition, a new track in the program, provides an option for students to select specialized courses in sports nutrition and exercise science and obtain hands-on training and research with sports dietitians and nutrition faculty who are experts in the field. Students in this track complete the same core nutrition graduate cour but take track-specific courses and electives that focus on sports nutrition, hydration, exercise physiology and other vital parts of the discipline. The culminating experience research is under the guidance of sports nutrition professors in the College of Health Solutions.

The BA program in general studies offers students a flexible, innovative path to degree completion. Graduates of the program are informed and effective members of society who are well prepared for a changing global marketplace with its diverse cultures.

The theme of this degree is society and the individual. Students explore the tensions between individualism and collectivism, the public and private selves, domestic and global, and the interplay of culture and identity constructions.

Understanding the intersections between business and politics is more important than ever for managers and executives in the private, nonprofit and public sectors. The World Economic Forum's latest Future of Jobs Report and McKinsey Global Institute's Jobs of the Future report both have suggested that transdisciplinary, virtual collaboration and cross-cultural competence are extremely important job skills for the near future. Thunderbird's MGM program with a concentration in global affairs equips students with the knowledge base and hard skills needed to thrive in the growing job markets at the nexus of global business and international politics.

This concentration is designed for students who aspire to take on management and executive positions in government agencies such as the U.S. Department of Commerce, the State Department and the Treasury Department or similar roles in the government of a student's home country. The global affairs concentration also positions graduates for leadership roles in international organizations such as the World Bank or World Trade Organization and in major companies that require analysts to monitor policy trends, managers to oversee global supply chains and representatives to advance global business interests to governments, both domestic and foreign.

The BA program in journalism and mass communication at ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, widely regarded as one of the nation's premier journalism schools, is a highly professional, hands-on degree program that prepares students for careers in media and communications.

Through access to a world-class faculty of veteran and current journalists, and with prestigious internships and hands-on learning opportunities, undergraduate students learn the values and principles that have long formed the core of the journalism profession, and they master the highly specialized, practical skills needed to succeed in today's digital world.

Topics of study can include unique courses in digital media, broadcast news, innovation and entrepreneurship, audience engagement, public relations and Spanish-language news. The Cronkite School's full-immersion professional programs afford students the opportunity to gain experience in activities like hosting the evening news on AZ PBS and creating digital advertising campaigns.

The School of Public Affairs offers a concentration in emergency management and homeland security as part of the BS in public service and public policy.

This concentration program provides students with the skills and knowledge to manage and assume positions of leadership within the field of emergency management and homeland security. Concepts of public policy and management are blended with emergency management principles to enhance and foster critical thinking within the general field of study. More specifically, the program's focus provides the student with a comprehensive perspective, which is critically important for emerging leaders in disaster management.