Bachelor of Fine Arts, Major in Animation and Game Art

at University of Massachusetts Dartmouth USA

Centered on studio practice, UMass Dartmouth's BFA in Art Education is a professional degree that will prepare you for elementary or secondary school teaching and for careers in other learning environments.

The BFA is a professional degree with concentrated areas of specialization, so you will take more art courses than you would in a BA program. At UMass Dartmouth, you also have the advantages of a university education where you can diversify your studies and expand your career opportunities.

The BFA is a professional degree that prepares students for licensure in elementary or secondary school teaching or for work in other learning environments and it is founded on studio practice.  Students must complete a concentration in one of the studio areas in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.

Teaching licensure students become Art Education Teacher Candidates after passing the Communication and Literacy Skills portion of the Massachusetts Test of Educator Licensure (MTEL). Teaching licensure students become Art Education Pre-Service Candidates only after passing the entire MTEL, which includes the Visual Arts portion, before the first semester of their senior year, a prerequisite for entrance to the student teaching practicum. Depending upon the level of licensure sought, in consultation with the Art Education faculty advisor, and prior to class registration each semester, the appropriate Art Education courses must be selected and passed.  Students must achieve a minimum GPA of 2.75 and obtain a positive recommendation from the chairperson before permission is granted to the student for entrance in his/her student teaching (Practicum). Student teaching requires a commitment of 400 total hours, earning full-time (12 credits) status. During the pre-practicum field experience, UMD pre-service teachers observe and assist in teaching students at their selected grade level (PreK-8 or 5-12) in public schools. Students must acquire a total of seventy-five hours outside of class during their pre-practicum field work, plus 20 hours observations in Sheltered English Immersion (SEI).

A bachelor's degree in Management Information Systems (MIS) prepares you for a multitude of career paths, including IT consultant, business analyst, e-commerce systems developer, and database specialist.

MIS is about finding answers and leveraging information and communication technology within an organization to increase business value and profits. MIS professionals are in high demand. In fact, the U.S. Labor Department predicts that MIS jobs will continue to have one of the largest growth rates.

The Charlton College of Business’ MIS degree offers 2 study options that enable you to refine your MIS skills in your area of interest:

• Technology and Management: advanced course work includes business intelligence and analytics, database design, enterprise systems, networking and security, systems analysis, management of an organization's information resources and project management
• E-Commerce/Digital Business: advanced course work prepares you for success in the Internet economy through e-commerce development, social media marketing, systems analysis, small business management, and management of an

In our MIS program you will learn how to:

• Employ core technologies such as database, enterprise systems, e-commerce, business analytics, and networking
• Apply information technology to business problems by analyzing, designing, and implementing IT solutions
• Manage IT systems throughout their life cycle

As a political science major, you will receive a BA in Political Science. You'll develop an understanding of political institutions and processes in the local, state, national, and global community. You'll be prepared to think critically and act effectively as an engaged citizen.

UMass Dartmouth's political science program examines the impact of government upon the life of the individual—and of individual citizens upon government. We use scientific, philosophical, and applied perspectives to examine politics in the U.S. and around the world.

We also give you the opportunity to concentrate in one of three particular areas of political science:

• International Politics
• International Security Studies
• Pre-Law

We want to ensure that you acquire proficiency in writing, communication, advocacy, and comparative analysis: all vital skills in today's workplace, which is why we require students to complete an internship. You'll be prepared for a career in local, state, and federal government—as well as in administration, business, corporate management, diplomatic service, public law, social work, urban planning, and many other fields. A major in political science can also be the stepping-stone to law school and graduate study in diverse academic and professional disciplines.

The major in communication provides students with 21st century written, oral, and visual communication knowledge and skills grounded in rhetorical theory and critically engaged with diverse social, environmental, and technological perspectives.

Students develop important skills and gain experiences that will support their learning and professionalization during their time at UMass Dartmouth and beyond. Students will apply communication concepts and theories to real-world problems and issues within one or more communication industries.

Upon completing the degree, students will be able to:

• Create written texts using appropriate supporting materials and theories in communication and rhetoric
• Communicate ideas orally within multiple contexts
• Use information design principles to produce texts appropriate for an audience, purpose, and context
• Summarize and apply key concepts in communication and rhetorical theory
• Evaluate the historical and/or cultural contexts of communication practices and describe their ethical, social, or environmental implications
• Evaluate messages from a variety of media and technologies using methodologies in communication and rhetoric

Money, time, and risk: these are the fundamentals of finance. Finance is the study of funds management, and how money is spent and budgeted. Financial decisions determine the economic viability of any enterprise, whether a corporation, multinational company, limited partnership, private company, or nonprofit organization.

Your professors—leading experts in their field—will introduce you to the discipline's analytical tools, which bring together concepts from economics, accounting, and mathematics. Internships in corporations and financial institutions will help you discover the many career opportunities available in finance.

Finance majors prepare for careers in brokerage firms, corporations, financial institutions, investment banks, and government in positions such as:

• Budget analyst
• Financial analyst
• Financial manager
• Financial planner
• Mortgage officer
• Portfolio & mutual fund manager

As global markets expand, international opportunities for finance professionals will also increase.

As a music major, you'll develop your performance abilities and explore the world's musical heritage from the Americas to Africa, Asia and Oceania, Europe, and the Middle East/West Asia.

The BA in Music program provides opportunities for intensive study in applied music, the history of music, music education, and theory. Grounded in the importance of cultural, geographical, and social contexts, our curriculum is distinguished by its focus on the study and performance of music from diverse cultures, including jazz and world music.

Technology is an important part of the curriculum, emphasizing skills for contemporary music and its integration with time-based arts such as computer music, dance, theater, video/film, and the visual arts.

Your studies in music at UMassD will prepare you for careers in composition, education, performance, recording, and sound design—as well as for advanced study in music and related disciplines.

The English department offers a bachelor of arts degree in English with a concentration in creative & professional writing.

Creative and professional writing candidates demonstrate their ability to analyze context and rhetorical problems with awareness of cultural diversity to create and compose effective, well-formulated written communication for specific audiences across multiple modalities.

Areas of study in this concentration include: fiction; non-fiction; poetry; journalism; digital media production; script, drama, and screenwriting; professional writing; and technical writing.

Creative and professional writing learning outcomes:

• Write and compose original texts
• Apply key concepts in writing analytically, creatively, and professionally across multiple genres and modes based on audience needs and information design principles
• Identify and summarize foundational concepts in creative writing, literary studies, and rhetorical studies
• Understand and apply concepts and ideas related to issues of diversity such as race, class, sexuality, gender, ethnicity and others to texts across multiple genres and modes
• Analyze the compositional and rhetorical strategies used in texts across multiple genres and modes
• Synthesize primary and secondary sources using appropriate research and writing methods across genres and modes
• Evaluate the appropriateness of compositional and rhetorical strategies used in texts

The Sociology and Anthropology Department offers a BA degree in Sociology and Anthropology with a concentration in Sociology: the study of social behavior and the socio-cultural settings in which it occurs.

Sociology and anthropology are closely related disciplines that focus on our social and cultural worlds.  Both emphasize understanding systems of inequality and power, and the interrelationship between global and local processes. We offer an  interdisciplinary major in Sociology and Anthropology; students will select a concentration in Anthorpology or a concentration in Sociology as described below.

A major in this department provides a foundation for social action, a variety of professional careers ranging from community organizing to public administration, as well as for graduate work in a variety of disciplines including policy studies, sociology, anthropology and women and gender studies.

As a photography major, you will gain expertise in both traditional and digital techniques and explore photographic imagery in all contexts. When you pursue your BFA in Art + Design: Photography, you will develop your own photographic vision and deepen your expressive communication.

The BFA is a professional degree with concentrated areas of specialization, so you will take more art courses than you would in a BA program. At UMass Dartmouth, you also have the advantages of a university education where you can diversify your studies and expand your career opportunities.

Your studies will include:

• Black & white darkroom photography
• Color digital imaging & printing
• Large format photography
• Studio lighting
• Video
• The history of photography
• Contemporary practice

Your work will culminate in a gallery exhibition and a portfolio that demonstrates your individual style, technical proficiency, and aesthetic sophistication.

A degree in photography will prepare you for a career as a fine art and commercial photographer, photojournalist, videographer, photo editor, gallery or museum director, curator, image consultant, multimedia designer, photo educator, photo archivist, studio manager, filmmaker, web designer, lab technician, and professional printer.

The BFA in Art + Design: Drawing offers professional, studio-based training in the visual arts with all the advantages of a university education.

The BFA is a professional degree with concentrated areas of specialization, so you will take more art courses than you would in a BA program. At UMass Dartmouth, you also have the advantages of a university education where you can diversify your studies and expand your career opportunities.

You will learn fundamental skills and contemporary drawing practices through a wide spectrum of drawing course offerings such as:

• Representation
• The human figure
• Architecture & perspective
• Concept-development
• Mixed media
• Abstraction
• Time-based media
• Installation

You will develop cross-disciplinary sensitivity—with the possibility of combining drawing with painting, printmaking, photography, digital media, textiles, sculpture, time-based media, installation and other disciplines in contemporary art making. You will also be able to explore fields across the university, such as business, engineering, and science.