Bachelor of Fine Arts, Major in Art Education

at University of Massachusetts Dartmouth USA

Illustration is the interpretation and translation of text and narrative into visual form. As you pursue your BFA in Art + Design: Illustration, you'll explore the art of telling a story through images.

A 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 focus on the understanding and application of meaning as it applies to visual communication. You will be introduced to specialized areas such as book illustration, character development, concept art, and documentary illustration and will gain experience in the fundamental principles of color, composition, drawing, and rendering.

As you develop your own personal style, you'll build a professional portfolio and learn about the business aspects of illustration. A degree in illustration will prepare you for careers in animation, illustration, multimedia design, scientific visualization, as well as for graduate study.

The Computer & Information Science Department offers a bachelor's degree in computer science with an option in software engineering: the systematic approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software.

Software engineers analyze, design, and program software. They are concerned with issues that play a vital role in software development, such as quality, novelty, creativity, standards, teamwork, and professional practice. If you're interested in large-scale commercial software development or in managing software projects, consider software engineering.

The MFA in Sculpture is a 60-credit, 2- to 3-year program of study specifically designed to prepare students for a professional commitment to their art. The goals of the program focus on working toward the evolution of a personal voice, acquiring historical knowledge of sculpture, understanding the art of various cultures, developing critical skills in looking at art and discussing aesthetic issues.

Graduates are prepared for numerous career choices within the field of sculpture. Students who complete the program have developed a clarity of thinking and a process of personal expression that will allow them to assume the roles in society of artist as practitioner, artist as educator, and artist as interpreter of their times.

Academic courses in art history, critical theory, philosophy, and a broad complement of University offerings support the cultivation of the student's intellectual and aesthetic maturation.

Prepare for a career in graphic design by learning how to communicate visually.

You’ll develop your talents and skills to achieve a high level of professional ability, while pursuing your own creative goals. The BFA in Art + Design: Graphic Design will prepare you for the many career opportunities available in contemporary design practice.

The BFA is a professional degree with concentrated areas of specialization, so you will take more art and design 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 by exploring fields such as business, sustainability, writing/communication, computer science, and many more.

Our faculty—who are also professionals in their fields—will teach you how to:

• Research and analyze content as part of the design process
• Work within the context of the message, audience, environment, and technology
• Develop graphic translations such as symbols, books, posters, and interactive media
• Create art with a purpose

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 economics department offers a bachelor of arts degree in economics with a concentration in applied economics. Applied economics uses economic theory and empirical analysis to address real-world problems. You will learn the underpinnings of economic decision-making, identifying and analyzing the costs and benefits of financial and social decisions. You will also be trained in econometrics, statistical methods and software specifically for economic data. With this knowledge and these skills, the concentration in applied economics prepares students for entry-level analytical positions in finance, government, healthcare, consulting, and other fields.

As a student in the applied economics program at UMass Dartmouth, you'll learn how to:

• Collect and analyze micro and macroeconomic data
• Evaluate findings from data analysis
• Formulate recommendations for business decisions and policymakers
• Interpret and forecast market trends
• Research economic issues and evaluate policy solutions

Economists pursue careers in business, economic journalism, finance, government, insurance, management, public policy and real estate. Your studies will also prepare you for graduate study in areas such as business, policy, and law.

Computer engineers apply electrical engineering techniques and computer science concepts to develop dependable, cost-effective hardware and software systems and components.

Computer engineering is a rapidly growing discipline and is also one of the highest-paid engineering fields. Specialty areas within computer engineering include:

• Computer architecture
• Computer networks
• Cybersecurity
• Embedded systems
• Mobile devices
• Wireless sensors
• Internet of Things

As a computer engineering major, you'll be prepared to meet the changing high-technology needs of industry and to continue with graduate studies. Our program prepares you for this evolving field by providing a strong background in science, mathematics, and engineering.

Computer engineers work in a variety of fields such as aerospace, automotive, biomedical, communications, consumer electronics, medicine, power, and space. As a computer engineer, you may work as a designer, researcher, scientist, educator, consultant, entrepreneur, executive, public official, or in the military.

Medical laboratory scientists strive to answer medical questions and solve medical mysteries. When you major in medical laboratory science, you'll learn to analyze blood, body fluids, cells, tissues, and other specimens to determine both the causes of diseases and their appropriate treatments.

Medical laboratory scientists are essential members of the healthcare team who play a central role in the detection, diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of disease with minimal direct patient interaction. Medical laboratory scientists perform and interpret laboratory testing. More than 70% of all medical decisions are based on data that medical laboratory scientists provide to the healthcare team.

Our comprehensive program, one of the largest in the nation, is a university-based integrated clinical medical laboratory science program. Our program is accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences, which makes our students eligible for national certification from the American Society for Clinical Pathology.

Express yourself visually, learn fundamental techniques, and explore contemporary practices with a BFA in Art + Design: Printmaking.

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 program offers professional, studio-based training in printmaking through a wide spectrum of course offerings such as:

• Silkscreen
• Etching
• Lithography
• Relief
• Monotype
• Photo processes

You'll work in our large printmaking studios, with state-of-the-art facilities dedicated to the different printmaking processes. You'll develop cross-disciplinary sensitivity—with the opportunity to combine printmaking with painting, drawing, photography, digital media, textiles, and other disciplines in contemporary art making. You'll also be able to explore fields across the university, such as business, engineering, and science.

English is an exciting discipline that challenges you to explore both literature and writing. Pursue your interest in literature by choosing the literature and criticism option. You'll learn how to:

• Read and think critically
• Engage with literature—and the world—thoughtfully and analytically
• Identify and analyze formal literary genres and schools of literary criticism
• Communicate effectively through literary analysis, persuasive argument, critical exposition, and presentation

Our award-winning faculty members specialize in a wide and diverse range of fields such as creative nonfiction, drama, fiction, poetry, world and British literature, and many more.

The skills you'll develop as an English major are essential in today's competitive job market and can lead to rewarding careers in communications, editing, freelance writing, grants writing, journalism, public relations, publishing, teaching, technical writing, screenwriting, and many other fields. You'll also be prepared for graduate study across many disciplines, such as creative and professional writing, education, law, and library/information science.