BA in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Career Options
SBS graduates enjoy success in a wide range of professional positions...
While most social and behavioral sciences (SBS) graduates go directly into employment, many have also successfully pursued graduate studies in social work, occupational therapy, counseling, teaching, law, and public policy and management. SBS graduates are working in a wide range of professional positions such as:
- Employment specialist/program development
- Head Start/early childhood education
- Hospice work
- Human services casework (child/family, adoption/foster care)
B.A. Degree in Social and Behavioral Sciences. This baccalaureate program combines perspectives from psychology, sociology, and anthropology as it seeks to enhance students’ understanding of the psychosocial and cultural influences shaping individual lives and social institutions. The curriculum combines interdisciplinary courses in liberal arts with service learning and field experience opportunities to prepare students for careers in social services, mental health, law and public policy, early childhood care, and education. Before taking 300-level courses in this major, students must have completed a100-level college writing course with at least a grade of C. No more than two courses from outside the major may be used as elective courses for the major without permission of the faculty. A critical component of this degree program is the internship, selected with the assistance of the faculty internship coordinator. Students identify an organization that will enable them to evaluate potential career opportunities and develop workplace skills. Prior to the internship students participate in a sequence of two, one-credit hour seminars (LCC 340/400) where they learn aspects of career decision making and launching a successful career.
Courses & Requirements
Prerequisite Courses (12 credits) expected to be taken before 300-level courses
SOC 100J Introduction to Sociology
PSY 101J General Psychology I
PSY 102 General Psychology II
ANT 101J Anthropology: The Cultural View
| Requirements for the Major (33 credits) | Credits |
| LCC 150D Statistics for Informed Decision Making LCC 370EW Toward a Global Ethics (writing instruction) LCC 340 Exploring Careers, Choosing Life Roles LCC 400 Finding Your Calling LCC 450 Internship LCC 480 Senior Seminar (writing instruction) SBS 200J Human Growth and Development SBS 300 Deviance and Social Control Or SBS 310 Childhood and Society (teacher preparation and early childhood studies) SBS 320 Writing in the Social and Behavioral Sciences (writing instruction) SBS 329 Research Methods SBS 430 Applied Social Policy |
3 4 1 1 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 |
Electives (18 credits): Students will complete at least six electives in SBS. They may structure their choice of these electives by picking a Concentration or may instead more fully customize the choice of electives, selecting a minimum of two courses from the first list below, with the remainder drawn from any of the other 300-level SBS electives described in the USM catalogue. Examples of these other electives are also below, in the second list.
SBS 209 Human Genetics
SBS 305 Child Development
SBS 306 Adolescence
SBS 307 Midlife and Adult Development
SBS 311 Theories of Personality
SBS 341 The Family
SBS 342 Gerontology
SBS 345 Race, Class, Gender
SBS 360 Culture, Behavior, and Personality
SBS 390 Brain and Behavior
Second List: 300 - 400 Level Courses
SBS 301 Group Dynamics
SBS 302 Interpersonal Behavior
SBS 303 Abnormal Psychology
SBS 304 Food, Culture, and Eating
SBS 308 Health, Illness, and Culture
SBS 309 The Psychology of Attachment in Early Childhood
SBS 310 Childhood and Society
SBS 312 Crime and Criminal Justice
SBS 313I What is ‘Race’?
SBS 315 The Social Psychology of Disabilities
SBS 316 Diversity in the Workplace
SBS 332 Death, Dying, and Denial
SBS 334 Spirituality
SBS 335 Legal Issues in Health and Human Services
SBS 338 Health Care Policies
SBS 340 Language Acquisition and Literacy Development
SBS 343 Substance Abuse
SBS 344 Violence: Causes and Control
SBS 346 Introduction to Social Services
SBS 347 Youth, Community, and Higher Education
SBS 349 Trauma Social, Psychological and Cultural Dimensions
SBS 350 Psychosocial Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence
SBS 358H Motherhood: Political Institution, Cultural Icon Defining Experience
SBS 361 Psychology and Sociology of Women
SBS 365 Psychology of Dreams
SBS 366 Transforming Words: Poetry and Psychologies of Change
SBS 367 Healthy Learners Project
SBS 375 Infant Mental Health
SBS 381 Introduction to Globalization
SBS 411 Counseling and Psychotherapy with Adults
SBS 435 Children, Policy, and Law
SBS 436 Risk, Public Policy, and Society
SBS 450 Approaches to Assessing Individual Differences inChildren
SBS 470 Study Abroad
There's a great deal of flexibility in how you can sequence your courses for the SBS major, including if you are transferring in credits from other degree programs. It's important to consult with a USM/LAC Student Success Center or faculty advisor to determine what works best for your individual situation. For students entering the program without prior credits, here's an example of how to complete an SBS degree in four years (each course is three credits, unless noted)*:
Fall year 1 (16 credits):
LCC 100 – Profiles, Proficiencies, Portfolios (1 cr)
LCC 110 – College Writing: Language and Literacies
PSY 101
SOC 100
Two general elective courses (GEL)
Spring year 1 (16 credits):
PSY 102
ANT 101
LCC 150 -- Statistics for Informed Decision Making
LCC 200 – Creative Critical Inquiry (4 cr)
GEL
Fall year 2 (16 credits):
SBS 200 -- Human Growth and Development
LCC 130 -- Biology of Human Health w/Lab (4 cr)
LCC 220 – US Democracy: Origins and Development
SBS elective
GEL
Spring year 2 (16 credits):
LCC 340 – Exploring Careers, Choosing Life Roles (1 cr)
LCC 350 – Global Past, Global Present
SBS 300 – Deviance and Social Control
SBS 329 – Research Methods
two SBS electives
Fall year 3 (15 credits):
LCC 230 – Environment Science, Policy, and Sustainabilty, w/Lab (4 cr)
LCC 250 – Thinking About the Arts, Thinking Through the Arts
LCC 370 – Towards a Global Ethics (4 cr)
LCC 400 – Finding Your Calling (1 cr)
SBS elective
Spring year 3 (13 credits):
LCC 310 – Science, Technology, and Society
LCC 320 – Sustaining Democracy
LCC 450 – Internship (4 cr) (Note: Internship requirement is for 3 credits, but a total of six credits
may be taken towards Internship, and Internship hours beyond the minimum are a good idea!)
SBS 320 – Writing in the Social and Behavioral Sciences
Fall year 4 (15 credits):
LCC 410: Aesthetic and Political Dimensions of Language
SBS 430: Applied Social Policy
SBS elective
two GEL
Spring year 4 (13 credits):
LCC 430: Place and Community
LCC 480: Senior Seminar
LCC 490: Portfolio Presentation (1 cr)
SBS elective
GEL
* Assumptions:
No remedial ENG or MAT needed, no transfer credits, no Winter or Summer session courses
Additional SBS electives may be taken in lieu of GEL, but above schedule reflects minimum
requirements for the major.
Students anticipating application to graduate school during Senior year should have Internship
experience during Junior Year; timing Internship during Senior year can work in other situations.
Have you signed up for Fall classes yet? Some SBS classes are filling. Other electives, if continuing with low enrollment by the end of July, could be at risk of being cancelled. So, either way, it makes sense to sign up now!
See http://usm.maine.edu/lac/course-list for information on all courses offered through USM/LAC and how to register. Contact LAC’s Student Success Center or your faculty advisor if you have questions. Please note that all of USM is in the midst of recreating webpages using the new university software. We’re working to get the SBS webpage, including for all of our concentrations, back online as soon as possible!
Some Fall SBS classes to consider include:
** Two new SBS electives:
SBS 399 Trauma: Social, Psychological and Cultural Dimensions, Wed. 9:00-11:30, Rose Cleary (SBS 399 registration #13603)
This interdisciplinary course examines the social and political history of the concept of trauma and how it has come to be treated as a medical problem in recent years. We consider the diagnosis of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder as well as recommended treatments. The cultural and philosophical assumptions within current understandings and treatments of trauma will be explored. (3 cr.)
SBS 399 Resilience in Young Children and Across the Lifespan, Wed. 4:00-6:30, Jayne D. B. Marsh (SBS 399 registration # 13602)
This course covers the theory and research of resilience in young children and beyond with an emphasis on the importance of fostering resilience in early childhood which enables a child to cope with daily challenges as well as with anxiety and stress more effectively throughout their lifespan. Resilient traits, qualities and features will presented as well as the influencing factors of interpersonal relationships, interactions, environment, temperament, and discipline across the lifespan. The importance of parents understanding the resilient traits, qualities and features in raising resilient children who become resilient adults as well as the influencing factors will also be emphasized. (3 cr.)
** Two courses central to SBS’s Public Health Concentration and new Minor:
LOS/SBS 335 Legal Issues in Health and Human Services, Mon. 5:30-8:00, June Zellers
This course examines the legal framework underlying the delivery of health and human services with an emphasis on current socio-legal problems including the rights of clients and the responsibilities of workers. (3 cr.)
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