International Year program (1-Quarter) - Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education

at Study Group - Western Washington University USA

The Biology—Molecular and Cell Emphasis major is part of an interdisciplinary program between the Biology and Chemistry departments. Cell biology is the study of cells at the biochemical or molecular level. Molecular Biology investigates the interactions among DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis to understand how these interactions are regulated using the tools and principles of genetics and bioinformatics—it is among the most rapidly growing fields, and is making strides with recent accomplishments such as the sequencing of the entire human genome.

The B.S. degree in Molecular and Cell Biology places emphasis on the molecular biology and biochemistry that control cell functions. Students take courses in math, physics, and chemistry, along with the core biology curriculum. Once in 400-level biochemistry and molecular biology courses, students get to pursue their specific interests.

The integrated conceptual foundation in biology, the critical thinking skills, quantitative problem-solving abilities, leadership with team-building skills, and scientific research skills that students obtain from lecture and laboratory courses in Western’s Molecular and Cell Biology curriculum are ultimately critical for post-baccalaureate studies and for future job performance.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Interdisciplinary Concentration
Interdisciplinary Concentration provides an opportunity for developing an individually designed major for the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Arts in Education degrees. It allows maximal flexibility in formulating a program to meet personal and career goals, bringing together each student’s vital interests from more than one discipline into a cohesive whole.

The self-designed concentration process allows students to work with a faculty committee to articulate a sound rationale for their area of study and to develop a plan including courses, independent study projects, senior projects and, where applicable, internships and apprenticeships. Students are assisted in completing the concentration by faculty and other advisors and by the FAIR 303a, Concentration Seminar course. The Concentration Proposal rationale statement and accompanying Concentration course list form the plan of study for the Interdisciplinary Concentration major, after approval by the student’s Concentration Committee and filed in the Fairhaven College Records Office. As part of this plan of study, a minimum of three-quarters of coursework, completing a minimum of 36 credits is required AFTER the concentration filing quarter.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

French/Spanish
In keeping with the aim of providing the skills needed to learn about a culture in depth, the Department of Modern and Classical Languages trains in two areas: language structure and literary analysis. Language structure is taught both holistically and analytically. Holistic language learning is facilitated by modern methods and multimedia technology, as well as study abroad opportunities. The department supports the analytical instruction of language skills courses, as well as a significant number of courses in Linguistics. Literary analysis is essential to a student’s understanding of the highest achievements in aesthetic expression of a culture’s values.

The department provides instruction in history and culture, as well as literary theory, with an end to enabling the student to gain access to the intellectual life in the culture. The department imparts skills to future world language teachers so that they may similarly enable high school students to begin the acquisition of world languages.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Chemistry
Western's Chemistry program provides close student-faculty contact and relatively small classes, direct access to modern laboratory equipment and instrumentation, and opportunities for cutting-edge research under the direction of a faculty advisor.

Within the department, faculty are active in many research areas including biofuels, protein engineering, computer modeling, catalysis, nanomaterials, materials for solar cells, electrochemistry, polymers, thin films, protein structural analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance and x-ray crystallography, and organic synthesis.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Latin American Studies
Latin American Studies major is designed to expand the students’ knowledge and experiences related to Latin America’s histories, societies, politics, political economies, racial relations, class formations, and social movements.

The United States and the different countries of Latin America have shared a critical history since the nineteenth century. Currently, close to 60 million Latino/a/x people are part of the U.S. society. Latino/a/x constitute 18 percent of the nation’s total population. The histories of Latin America are part of the histories of the United States and the histories of the United States are indeed part of the histories of Latin America. Courses in this major help students to develop analytical, interpretive, and evaluative skills. Divided in two concentrations this major seeks to address important themes that pertain to linguistic and cultural diversity, as well as the impact of the ensuing and continued contact among indigenous people, Africans, and Europeans as a result of the encounter, slavery, displacement, and immigration.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

German— Elementary
German Studies aims to teach students in depth about the cultures of the German-speaking world. Germany is the United States’ biggest European trading partner, and the German language is the second most commonly used business language in the world. Students who become proficient in German can communicate with about 100 million people living in a number of countries in the heart of Europe. The German program integrates instruction in language studies with studies in cultural and literary history, enabling students to gain access to the intellectual life of the German-speaking countries.

German Studies aims to teach students in depth about the cultures of the German-speaking world. The program integrates instruction in language studies with studies in cultural and literary history, enabling students to gain access to the intellectual life of the German-speaking countries.

The department provides instruction in history and culture, as well as literary theory, with an end to enabling the student to gain access to the intellectual life in the culture. The department imparts skills to future world language teachers so that they may similarly enable elementary school students to begin the acquisition of world languages.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Exceptionality and Disability
Completion of this major results in a BA in Education. Students who complete this major typically seek employment in non-school settings, such as health and human services and non-profit organizations; they do not qualify for a teaching certificate. With their advisor’s permission and input, students choose an area of emphasis and design a program of study in preparation to work with persons with disabilities across a variety of settings.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Geography
Geography is the science of place and space. Geographers ask where things are located on the surface of the Earth, why they are located where they are, how places differ from one another, and how people interact with the environment. Geography links the social sciences and natural sciences together, studying the relationships between human activity and natural systems.

Students studying Geography at Western choose courses from both the environmental science and environmental studies departments to fulfill major requirements. Prospective Geography majors are strongly advised to take additional preparatory course work that provides a strong background in chemistry, biology, geology, physics, mathematics, statistics, political science, anthropology, and/or history.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Business and Sustainability - Energy Studies
The State of Washington is a leader in responding to the societal imperative regarding environmental issues. This Bachelor of Arts degree in Business and Sustainability is an action component of the state’s initiatives. This degree combines three areas of study that give graduates the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to operate in a changing economic and social environment.

Graduates from this program will possess:

• A fundamental knowledge of economics, giving them the skills to apply economic analysis to problems in sustainable business faced by modern organizations;
• A fundamental knowledge of environmental science and policy, giving them the ability to understand the social and political climate as well as the scientific issues involved in sustainable business;
• An extensive knowledge of business and management in the context of business sustainability giving them the basic skills needed to succeed in organizations.

Why Consider a Business and Sustainability Major?
A Business and Sustainability Major prepares a student to analyze environmental and social issues from multiple perspectives, decide on action steps to deal with those issues, and then implement those action steps successfully. Need for these actions will only grow as environmental issues, including climate change, waste, and pollution become more central in the operations of organizations. This degree compliments the state’s initiative involving private enterprise, not-for-profit organizations, and government.

Energy Studies Concentration:
The transition to a more sustainable energy system is a key to reconciling our economic and environmental aspirations. WWU graduates are finding growing opportunities in the emerging energy economy in Washington and beyond. Today’s diverse energy business demands knowledge of core business skills, understanding of energy policy and management, and broad exposure to the science, environmental, business and policy aspects of the energy system that drive energy-related businesses and their governing policies. The energy concentration in the Business and Sustainability major gives graduates a strong blend of analytic and communication skills, along with energy-related expertise that industry and government experts have identified as essential to workforce needs in the emerging energy economy.

The International Year program is specially designed to prepare international students with the solid foundation needed to succeed in an undergraduate degree at Western Washington University.

You will learn in a supportive environment to develop your academic and English language skills, while adjusting to living and learning in the USA. After successfully completing the program with the required grades, you can continue your undergraduate degree with the confidence to engage and succeed.

Business Administration - Finance
Western's Business Administration majors explore leadership roles in business and the community, providing students with the perceptual and analytical skills necessary to make decisions and evaluate policies in business, and develop an understanding of the social, economic, and regulatory environments in business. All students earning a degree in Business Administration develop significant understanding of management information systems and computing.

The field of finance encompasses many different areas including investments, financial institutions, corporate finance, and real estate. The Finance Concentration includes coursework in each of these areas as well as courses in options and futures, multi-national finance, and insurance. Managing finances requires you to answer intricate questions like: Can we afford to give employees a raise? Is it better to rent or buy office space? How should we finance our business? Typically, a student who pursues a concentration in Finance is good with math, money, inherently a problem solver, and is well organized.