Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies

at Shorelight Group - Southwestern University USA

The Southwestern University Music Department combines serious musical education with the depth and richness of a modern liberal arts curriculum.

Southwestern Music students are exposed to a wide range of musical opportunities. Whether it’s the chance to perform as a soloist or in an ensemble, compose and hear your own music, study ancient and modern musical forms, or perform at an international music festival, students can pursue their individual interests and have high impact learning experiences in the field of music.

Our balanced curriculum provides students a wide range of transferable skills that prepares them to succeed in a variety of fields. Many of our students go on to graduate school or conservatories and pursue careers within the field of music, while others enter different fields including law, medicine, education, business, computer science, and more.

Southwestern University has been an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) since 1951.

Education courses are designed to provide both a philosophical and theoretical basis for teaching and other education careers. We expose Education students to teaching methodology that is based on the latest research and emphasize developmental characteristics of the learner, learning theories, diverse learners, and assessment. Our professors teach and model analytic, creative and evaluative thinking skills in order to develop lifelong learners who are skilled in the problem solving necessary for the modern classroom. Strong, early field experiences and a closely supervised student teaching placement are integral components of the program.

After graduation, during the critical first year of teaching, the Education Department provides assistance through the Semester of Support (S.O.S.) program. Graduates return to campus to exchange ideas, receive technical assistance from the Department faculty, and engage in evaluation of the Teacher Certification Program. S.O.S. also provides on-site technical support to graduates during their first year of teaching.

Although Education Degrees are awarded by Southwestern University, certification is awarded by the State of Texas. In completing the requirements for their respective degree programs, students must meet the requirements necessary for Texas teacher certification as well as the requirements of Southwestern. 

The major features courses that present the historical and cultural range of literary production in English, a deliberate encounter with interpretive strategies under the heading of critical theory, and, under “emergent literature,” a set of courses that exceed established, national canons of literature. Special topics courses (10-304) are frequently offered that, where designated, fulfill these requirements.

Education courses are designed to provide both a philosophical and theoretical basis for teaching and other education careers. We expose Education students to teaching methodology that is based on the latest research and emphasize developmental characteristics of the learner, learning theories, diverse learners, and assessment. Our professors teach and model analytic, creative and evaluative thinking skills in order to develop lifelong learners who are skilled in the problem solving necessary for the modern classroom. Strong, early field experiences and a closely supervised student teaching placement are integral components of the program.

After graduation, during the critical first year of teaching, the Education Department provides assistance through the Semester of Support (S.O.S.) program. Graduates return to campus to exchange ideas, receive technical assistance from the Department faculty, and engage in evaluation of the Teacher Certification Program. S.O.S. also provides on-site technical support to graduates during their first year of teaching.

Although Education Degrees are awarded by Southwestern University, certification is awarded by the State of Texas. In completing the requirements for their respective degree programs, students must meet the requirements necessary for Texas teacher certification as well as the requirements of Southwestern. 

French majors and minors tie their language studies to in-depth analysis of literature, culture and film. Our curriculum integrates speaking, writing and culture into all courses, enhanced by faculty mentoring and interdisciplinary opportunities. French students are strongly encouraged to study abroad. Several graduates have won scholarships to teach in France, through the French Embassy’s Teaching Assistant Program.

The French Program also builds diverse perspectives through course materials tailored to students’ needs.

The Capstone provides majors with training in independent research and prepares them for work in many fields. Alumni pursue Master’s and PhD degrees and careers in art, business, international affairs, law, management, public health, and teaching.

Together with its commitment to high-impact learning practices such as faculty-student research, study abroad, internships, and senior honors theses, the Department’s rigorous academic programs represent the best in liberal arts education. Featuring a global orientation and wide chronological scope, our curriculum offers students a wide array of approaches, methods, and themes in their courses while allowing them maximum flexibility to pursue their particular interests and concerns.

Students seeking a major in History must complete nine courses. The major is flexible to allow each student to follow their own interests and schedules while ensuring that all students gain chronological breadth, geographic diversity, and a shared set of historical tools and skills. 

The flexibility of the History major makes it ideal for students seeking a double major. Additionally, the History Department has paired major options with Art History, English, Feminist Studies, and Political Science. (Check your current course catalog for details.)

Although it is a diverse field, sociology is united in (1) its acknowledgment that race, gender and class deeply affect our perceptions and lived experiences, (2) its focus on intergroup comparisons and (3) recognition that the sociological imagination lies at the heart of the discipline. The sociology major is designed to help students critically examine the mutual linkages between daily experiences and larger social structures. Courses address sociological understandings of crime and criminal justice; the centrality of work and issues of inequality in contemporary employment; the ways that race, ethnicity, and gender are constructed along interlocking hierarchies and how they are reproduced and challenged; how social class is reproduced and maintained in the United States; and children’s peer cultures as a site where inequalities are both challenged and reaffirmed. Courses on other topics are often offered.

Students seeking a major in Sociology will complete the requirements for the BA degree. The major in Sociology is built around a cumulative curriculum. SOC34-314 Research Methods, SOC34-344 Sociological Theory, SOC34-394 Qualitative Methods Seminar and SOC34-964 Senior Research Seminar must all be taken at Southwestern to fulfill the degree. Majors considering graduate school or careers in social work or public health are strongly encouraged to register for an academic internship.

Students must have completed at least 90 credits including the general education core courses and the courses required for the Applied Physics major before leaving Southwestern. After completing 30 credits of applicable coursework in an ABET engineering program, students must submit their transcript(s) to Southwestern for review by the Physics Department Chair. Upon the Chair’s approval and satisfactory completion of all BA Degree Requirements as outlined in Southwestern University’s Catalog, students may be awarded a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Applied Physics. The work submitted from the ABET-accredited school will be treated as “in residence” coursework. In order to participate in commencement at Southwestern, students in the Pre-Engineering program must complete an Application for Diploma by the date noted in the SU official calendar for their intended Southwestern graduation semester, and they must have submitted a transcript showing that they have successfully completed at least 15 hours of approved courses with the remainder of courses in-progress. The University degree will be conferred only after the final transcript is submitted and approved.

In the spirit of making connections and supporting innovation and exploration across the disciplines, Southwestern University empowers you to design your own independent major, leading to a bachelor of arts. You’ll have the opportunity to propose your own course of study, choosing classes from various departments to expand your knowledge of a coherent intellectual theme or hone your skills in preparation for a specific career goal. Interested in urban studies? Combine classes in government, sociology, architecture, and design thinking. Pursuing a future in global health? Consider linking an internship shadowing a cardiothoracic surgeon with coursework in cancer biology, gender and sexuality, sustainable food and agriculture, and health psychology.

To design your academic curriculum, which will include a high-impact capstone project, you’ll consult with the chairs of the relevant departments and programs and present your proposal to the Curriculum Committee for final approval. Pursuing a unique field of inquiry requires strong initiative and self-discipline, but by interweaving coursework, research, and internships from a range of subjects, you’ll get to pursue your passions, enhance your creativity, and develop a distinct and wide-ranging perspective on complex real-world problems.

With its wide scope and its status as the foundation for many scientific disciplines, physics enables you to understand all forms of mass and energy and their interrelationships. You will explore how the universe works—from the subatomic and molecular levels to the scale of solar systems and galaxies—through systematic observation, theoretical modeling, and experimentation. And fulfilling Southwestern’s innovative Paideia approach to education, physics gives you the tools to make connections between seemingly unconnected phenomena in technologically innovative and artistically creative ways. How is DNA related to the dust swirling about a star? How does the strumming of a guitar or the darkly dramatic register of a tenor trombone behave like a wave traveling within the depths of the ocean or the tremors of an earthquake? You will develop the intellectual and philosophical curiosity to understand first physical principles—foundational concepts that lead to the scientific discoveries that shape our world and drive the technological advances that help improve our lives.

With specialties in geophysics, atmospheric physics, mathematics, and quantum physics, our award-winning faculty offer a rich array of courses, including earth and climate science, classical mechanics, and quantum physics. If your passion is for engineering, you can explore the field in our three-year, dual-degree Applied Physics Pre-Engineering Pathway. You will also have the remarkable opportunity to use the Fountainwood Observatory for research and coursework. Thanks to a generous gift by Max Allen, a local engineer, builder, and amateur astronomer, our observatory houses a research-quality reflecting telescope complete with a digital CCD camera that enables you to for view and process images on your computer.