Bachelor of Arts, Major in Humanities with Concentration in Comparative Religious Studies

at San Jose State University USA

The BA in Art General Studio Practice Concentration allows students to pursue a general study in the visual arts, or to create their own curriculum combining studies in visual arts with other fields. For students preferring a broad art background instead of an intense specialization, this program provides students with a variety of art experiences.

Students enrolled in the Studio Practice concentration are not necessarily preparing for a career in art or design, although many use the program as preparation for graduate level studies. The required studio work is intended to intensify awareness of visual art forms and introduce a variety of technical processes and theoretical approaches. Concentrations and emphases are designed to offer opportunities to study digital media art, photography, pictorial art and spatial art. Studio Practice also provides a basic program leading to a teaching credential in art.

Our RTVF major program offers training and experience in radio, television, film, and multimedia production as well as courses in history, research, and aesthetics of these media. The department operates a full time 24-hour a day radio station, KSJS 90.5 that provides entertainment, sports and community service to the Bay Area. The department also creates feature films through SPARTAN FILM STUDIO as well as other faculty, staff and student production projects.

San José State University recognizes the need for an interactive and productive education in the field of the arts. RTVF students are given multiple opportunities to perform, write, and direct their own works in preparation for a successful career in the Hollywood arts.

The San Jose State University Human Factors and Ergonomics Master's Degree Program is an interdisciplinary degree program that prepares students for practice in their emerging profession through a course sequence that emphasizes theory,
practical applications, and research.

Human Factors/ Ergonomics students take a group of five core courses from several different San Jose State University departments and elective courses in topics of their choosing. The program culminates in a major project or thesis.

Program Outcomes
The program’s outcomes are expected to provide a firm foundation that enables graduates to achieve the above program objectives. The Human Factors/Ergonomics Program is designed to produce industrial and systems engineering graduates who:

• Have an ability to apply knowledge of the sciences of human factors and workplace ergonomics.
• Have an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data.
• Have an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet accepted human factors and workplace ergonomics standards within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety,manufacturability, and sustainability.
• Have an ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams.
• Have an ability to identify, formulate and solve human factors and workplace ergonomics problems.
• Have an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility.
• Have an ability to communicate effectively.
• Have the broad education necessary to understand the impact of human factors and workplace ergonomics solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context.
• Have a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in, life-long learning.
• Have the knowledge of contemporary issues.
• Have an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern human factors and workplace ergonomics tools necessary for industrial and systems engineering practice.

The written word grounds the Master of Arts in English and Comparative Literature. Its students learn to analyze literature and to write on literary topics at an advanced level. Students complete a rigorous program of courses that introduce them to cutting-edge research while training them to understand a range of theoretical and literary-historical frameworks for understanding literature. Before students earn a Master of Arts in English, they pass a two-part comprehensive exam. They also may choose to write a thesis. Students have the option to engage in graduate study in rhetoric and to train as college-level writing teachers. The program also offers students pathways to prepare for doctoral work.

Program Learning Outcomes

• Students will demonstrate an appropriate level of expertise in literary history, literary theory, and rhetoric.
• Students will demonstrate high-level proficiency in literary research and in the synthesis of research.
• Students will demonstrate critical and analytical skills in the interpretation and evaluation of literary texts.
• Students will demonstrate a command of written academic English, including the abilities to a) organize and present material in a cogent fashion, b) formulate and defend original arguments, c) employ effectively the language of their discipline and d) write under time constraints.
• Students will demonstrate a reading knowledge of at least one foreign language.

The BA in Sociology, offered by the Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, educates students about social processes that create, maintain, and transform social institutions and social identities. Sociology provides a framework for understanding social behavior in groups, social change and inequality in society, and solutions to social problems. Analytical and research skills speak to the needs of a changing world. The degree offers students the widest flexibility in terms of future career choices.

The Organizational Studies major is an interdisciplinary major designed to help students develop skills for careers in a variety of organizations including small businesses, multinational corporations, non-profit organizations, and local, state, and national government agencies. Organizational Studies courses are designed to give students skills for real-world problem solving. Students have the opportunity to take courses across a wide range of social science disciplines including anthropology, communications studies, economics, political science, psychology, and sociology. Organizational studies is ideally suited for students who want careers in business, government, or the non-profit sector, where knowing how organizations work is a key to success.

MS in Artificial Intelligence (AI) program provides students with a state-of-the-art educational experience to become outstanding, socially responsible engineers of AI systems. This program focuses more broadly on building engineering systems powered by advances in machine learning and AI. Students will learn the theoretical foundations and gain practical skills to manage and engineer various data forms, to make predictive analyses, to derive actionable insights, and develop intelligent hardware and software systems and related cutting-edge AI technologies. The program draws on insights from mathematics, statistical analysis, computer science, software engineering, and systems engineering and is, therefore, best suited for students with software/computer engineering, computer science, mathematics, and closely related backgrounds.

Program Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Identify and apply fundamental concepts, algorithms, and methodologies to formulate, analyze, design, and evaluate artificial intelligence and machine learning systems;
• Tackle complex machine learning and artificial intelligence problems using contemporary principles, algorithms, technologies, methodologies, and tools;
• Lead and participate in a team to develop AI and machine learning applications;
• Recognize the ethical, economic and environmental implications of their work, as appropriate;
• Sustain a process of life-long learning in engineering or other professional areas; and,
• Communicate effectively and persuasively with a variety of audiences.

The History Department at San José State University offers a standard M.A. program with specializations, or primary fields of study, in United States history Modern European history, and World history. Many of the faculty hold advanced degrees from the nation's most prestigious universities and have distinguished publication records.

The History Department also offers an M.A. program with a concentration in history education, which is reserved for public and private middle and secondary school teachers, who already are teaching or have entered (or plan to enter) the social science teacher education program at SJSU. This program is specially designed for teachers who have, or will soon have, credentials. Since this is strictly a terminal degree, anyone intending to pursue a higher degree should enroll in the standard M.A. program.

The diverse participants in the M.A. program at San José State University include active and prospective teachers, Silicon Valley business people pursuing a personal interest or looking for a career change, and Ph.D.-bound historians. Because many of the approximately 75 actively enrolled M.A. students are working full-time, graduate courses are scheduled in the evenings (Monday–Thursday), and occasionally on Saturdays or in summer. Usually about five graduate-level courses are offered each semester. Some applicable upper division courses are also offered in the evening, as well as a few during summer sessions.

Learning Outcomes

• Describe and explain how peoples and societies evolve across time and space demonstrating the importance of context (social, political, economic, cultural, environmental, ideological, and technological).
• Illustrate the complexity of historical causality and describe past events from multiple perspectives.
• Analyze the credibility of historical sources and arguments, revising interpretations as new evidence warrants.
• Conceive and carry out historical research, constructing persuasive evidence-based arguments using primary and secondary sources according to recognized standards of the historical discipline.

The MA History, Concentration in History Education is designed for middle and secondary school social science teachers. The curriculum broadens the candidate's knowledge of U.S. and World History. In addition, the program increases the candidate's academic proficiency in history subjects and his/her professional competence in special areas of interest within the field of history and social science education. This is a terminal degree. Candidates who plan to pursue more advanced graduate training in history should apply to the regular Masters degree program outlined above.

The History Department also offers an M.A. program with a concentration in history education, which is reserved for public and private middle and secondary school teachers, who already are teaching or have entered (or plan to enter) the social science teacher education program at SJSU. This program is specially designed for teachers who have, or will soon have, credentials. Since this is strictly a terminal degree, anyone intending to pursue a higher degree should enroll in the standard M.A. program.