Bachelor of Arts, Major in English with Concentration in Journalism and Professional Writing

at University of Massachusetts Lowell USA

The UMass Lowell American Studies Program offers both a major and a minor. It includes faculty from departments such as English, Cultural Studies, History, Psychology, Sociology and Political Science.

Graduates of the program have pursued careers in government and social services; others seek certification to teach elementary or high school. Having developed skills in writing and analysis, American Studies majors have become successful executives, public relations representatives, product managers, speech writers, press secretaries, and journalists. American Studies has proven a strong foundation for students continuing their studies in law or in library and information sciences.

American Studies is a vibrant interdisciplinary field practiced around the nation and world. It examines the intersection between such subjects as globalization and economics, music and politics, history and gender, race and environment, technology and art. This willingness to cross the boundaries of traditional disciplines allows for creative critical thinking and research.

The Analytics & Operations Management Concentration provides students with an understanding of the complex web of activities, people and organizations needed to deliver products and services to customers, from small retailers to large Fortune 500 corporations. Concentration coursework will help you:

• Understand the significance of analytics and operations management in competing in the global marketplace.
• Learn about Six Sigma and other quality tools that have helped the world’s leading companies save millions of dollars and improve customer satisfaction.
• Develop the skills needed to make critical decisions about a company’s supply and distribution networks, warehousing needs and customer service standards.

Analytics and Operations Management is your choice if you:

• Are interested in the details of manufacturing products and delivering services to customers.
• Aspire to meet the challenges managing complex, global networks of suppliers and customers.
• Look forward to fast-paced, dynamic work where your decisions can have an immediate impact.

The Bachelor of Music in Composition for New Media balances established coursework in musicianship, performance, and liberal arts with hands-on contemporary training in music and sound composition for all facets of commercial and artistic media. Students in this program compose, mix, design, and arrange music and sound assets for movies, web, television, animation, mobile and educational platforms, games, artistic installations, advertising, industrial media, interactive live performance, Virtual Reality systems and related outlets.

Like all music major programs at UMass Lowell, this program requires:

• An entrance audition on an instrument or voice,
• The submission of a portfolio of scores/recordings/creative work, which consists of three media excerpts around 90 seconds each of original compositions, with supplemental materials, which may include documentation, scores, etc. as needed.

Students can take courses in the history of philosophy and philosophical movements; political, mathematical and scientific philosophies; metaphysics; linguistics and aesthetics. Students will learn how to analyze, reason, deduct and apply persuasive arguments in a disciplined and systematic way while developing their oral and written communication skills.

The department does not specify particular course work for the major, but recommends that the sequence of courses be designed in close consultation with the student’s faculty advisor. Students who plan to go to graduate school are strongly encouraged to take at least two courses from the History of Philosophy series. They should also consider a second major in a cognate field, e.g., American studies, English, French, history, mathematics, or political science.

The Master of Arts degree in history educates students in the essential skills of analysis, comprehension, critical thinking and public speaking. It develops the ability to analyze large quantities of data, to identify patterns and trends and to write a clear narrative that explains those results. Such skills apply to a wide range of careers, including teaching, gallery and museum work; archive management; government and public service; business and legal research; and consulting.

The M.A. in history is designed for those who:

• Hold a teaching license and are seeking professional licensure;
• Work or want to work in history organizations, museums and galleries;
• Are preparing for doctoral studies in history or
• Seek the additional intellectual challenge of graduate work in history.

The Pharmaceutical Sciences Marketing and Management option prepares you for a career as a pharmaceutical executive in management, sales or marketing. You’ll gain a valuable foundation in health sciences and business, which will prepare you for a variety of job opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry, or continue your degree in the graduate program.  

A unique blend of business and scientific courses, the program prepares you to:

• Be a leader in pharmaceutical project management.
• Market and promote novel therapeutics.
• Develop entrepreneurial skills in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology fields.
• Integrate new technology to promote health for diverse populations worldwide.
• Work in Quality assurance/control (QA/QC).
• Pursue Lab-based research positions.

The Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an Entrepreneurship Concentration prepares students to be an "outside of the box" thinker and innovator in today's complex global economy. Using an interdisciplinary focus, students who complete the concentration will:

• Develop the management skills required to identify and launch new business ventures around innovative products, services and technologies.
• Develop an understanding of the concepts and activities associated with entrepreneurship and innovation.
• Understand the financial aspects of an entrepreneurial venture from start-up to "harvest".
• Discover their individual "entrepreneurial spirit" through experiential learning in interdisciplinary classes and the College's Venture Lab.

As a capstone experience in the entrepreneurship concentration, students will develop the essential components of a new venture/new opportunity business plan.

The required courses within the Entrepreneurship concentration consist of:

• Starting a New Venture
• Corporate Entrepreneurship
• Managing Innovation
• Finance for Emerging Business Enterprises

The Management Concentration focuses on the development of knowledge and skills applicable to professional positions in any functional area of management.

The Management Concentration provides you with the broad range of skills needed to become a highly competent manager in today’s complex global economy. The skills you acquire can be applied in any company and functional area of business. Concentration coursework will assist you to:

• Develop the 21st century leadership skills that are so necessary for company competitiveness and personal advancement.
• Effectively deal with the complex human resource issues that contemporary managers must face every day.
• Develop the team building, project, negotiation and conflict management skills that lead to better problem solving and decision making.
• Skillfully manage your own career by developing strategies that maximize your life-long professional potential.

Management is your choice if you:

• Find challenge in solving the complex organizational issues confronting modern businesses.
• Aspire to lead diverse and often distant business work teams.
• Wish to contribute to the development of competitive and sustainable companies.
• Are interested in combining your studies in one of the School’s other Business concentrations with one that focuses on the key managerial responsibilities necessary for success in any business enterprise.

The Management knowledge and skills you will acquire include: leadership, managing teams and projects, current human resource policies, practices and laws, negotiating, managing conflict, career management and other current and emerging issues in the field.

The Applied Biomedical Sciences (ABS) degree program provides a high quality education in biomedical and laboratory sciences, preparing its graduates for employment in a broad range of laboratory and research work environments, including industry, government, medical diagnostics, forensics, and more. Graduates of the program are also very well prepared for graduate and professional degree programs, including medicine and related fields.

Medical Laboratory Science (MLS) Option - Prepares students for employment in hospital and free-standing clinical/diagnostic and forensic laboratories, as well as biotechnology companies. Students can apply to this option after at least one successful semester in the CS Option.

This program provides students with knowledge of the key issues, research, and theories in the important and emerging field of Peace and Conflict Studies.

Students are challenged to answer the following key content questions:

• How do factors such as poverty, lack of education and social inequity lead to conflict, both internationally and domestically
• What are the causes and conditions which generate and sustain conflict and violence?
• What are the principles and methods for the resolution of conflict and violence?
• What are the norms, practices and institutions for conflict transformation and building peace?