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Purpose
The Bachelor of Science degree in Behavioral Science helps students understand how individual and group behaviors are affected by social issues, social environments, and cultural influences in their lives. With a Wilmington University Behavioral Science degree, students will gain the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in careers working with adolescents and teens, families, the elderly, the homeless, the court systems, government agencies, addictions, crisis interventions, and more. Upon completion of the program, students seek careers in the human services, government, business, and industry. Students seeking graduate degree options may consider Master’s degrees in social work, sociology, psychology, human services, family science, public administration, criminology, counseling, social work or human resource management.
Program of Study
The Behavioral Science program includes courses in psychology, sociology, cultural anthropology, and philosophy. Course work emphasizes normal and abnormal individual development, as well as family, group, and cultural dimensions of behavior. Ethical and professional issues are also addressed. Skill development in interpersonal relations, problem solving, and evaluation of programs and research are stressed. In addition, General Education courses required of all Wilmington University undergraduates provide a well-rounded academic foundation.
Classroom courses provide a blend of theory and application. Students also have the option to explore internship opportunities throughout the community in a variety of settings which provide experiences in applying knowledge and skills. Internships allow students to apply newfound skills and knowledge in professional internship settings that can be added to their resumes.
The program is offered online and in-person with day and evening classes offered at New Castle and Brandywine.
Program Competencies
Knowledge:
Demonstrate the ability to define and explain theory and application within the Behavioral Science disciplines with regard to:
Skills: Related to the Behavioral Science Disciplines
Personal and Professional Development
Experiential Learning Options
The Office of Experiential Learning takes a 360◦ approach to experiential learning. Whether you come to Wilmington University with a vast amount of professional experience and are awarded Credit for Prior Learning (CPL), or you participate in a Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) opportunity (Internships or Cooperative Education) embedded in your curriculum for credit, we provide a pathway to completing your degree.
Accelerated Options
The Behavioral Science program offers qualified students an accelerated option that allows them to take graduate level courses while completing their Behavioral Science degree. Accelerated options are available for the following programs:
Please contact the Behavioral Science Program Chair for more information.
Elective Guidelines
The College of Social and Behavioral Sciences recommends that students who transfer in six or more core courses and all 18 credits of core electives use any remaining electives to increase their subject knowledge by taking upper level electives in their field. These will include the interdisciplinary electives identified from the other academic colleges.
Minimum Grade Policy
The Behavioral Science program has set a minimum passing grade of “C-” for program core courses. Students receiving a grade lower than “C-” in any required core course must retake that course.
CTA 206 Computer Applications
ECO 105 Fundamentals of Economics
ENG 121 English Composition I
ENG 122 English Composition II
ENG 131 Public Speaking
ENG 310 Research Writing
HIS 381 Contemporary Global Issues
OR
POL 300 American Politics
MAT 205 Introductory Survey of Mathematics
PHI 100 Introduction to Critical Thinking
PHI 302 Ethics and Values in Behavioral Science
PSY 101 Introduction to Psychology
Natural Science Elective with Lab (4 Credits)
HUM Humanities Elective
MAT 308 Inferential Statistics
SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology
SOC 302 Marriage and the Family
SOC 304 Ethnic Groups and Minorities
SOC 306 Cultural Anthropology
SOC 318 Social Change
SOC 331 Research, Writing and Information Literacy in the Behavioral Sciences
PSY 309 Interpersonal Communication Skills
SOC 405 Social Deviance
PSY 305 Abnormal Psychology
SOC 340 Applied Research Design
SOC 409 Seminar in Applied Behavioral Science
SOC 490 Internship in Behavioral Science (Behavioral Science majors)
Upper Level Behavioral Science Elective
PSY 329 Life Span Development
PSY 330 Infant and Toddler Development
PSY 332 Adolescent Development
PSY 336 Child Development
PSY 401 Adult Development and Aging
Courses beginning with the prefix CRJ, PSY, ORG, or SOC may be used as Behavioral Science electives. In addition, the following courses may also be selected as Behavioral Science electives:
POL 326 Public Policy and Social Issues
POL 350 Economic, Welfare and Income Policy
POL 380 Health Care Policy
NOTE: Guided Practicum (SOC 290-SOC 291) as well as Internship (SOC 490) and Co-op (SOC 450) experiences are available.
Case management is an integral part of services provided by direct service providers working across all areas of human services. Through their work on behalf of their clients, Case Managers have a positive impact on the communities they serve. Case managers work as advocates for their clients, assessing needs and connecting clients with available and appropriate services and resources that can facilitate well-being.
Case Managers require specialized skills and knowledge of interventions in the performance of various client-centered functions, such as coordinating clients’ care and following up to ensure that needed services are in place and being utilized effectively. The Case Management concentration builds students’ knowledge and skills in establishing support services, preparing students to excel in a variety of occupational settings, such as social services, community agencies, educational institutions, and government agencies.
SOC 312 Community Health & Social Issues
SOC 464 Working in the Helping Professions
SOC 468 Case Management
SOC 324 Health, Society and Culture
SOC 495 Internship in Sociology– Case Management
The concentration in Emotional Intelligence prepares students to navigate the workplace environment and enhance job performance by maintaining favorable interpersonal relationships. Individuals who possess emotional intelligence skills are better able to collaborate with others while managing conflict within workplace relationships. In addition, they avoid burnout and learn from previous mistakes. Through coursework that covers emotional intelligence, ethics and values, and self and team management techniques, students gain the crucial expertise necessary to face challenges and make a meaningful impact on their environment. This concentration empowers students to leverage their social awareness to improve both personal and organizational performance and avoid the mistakes of those who lack emotional intelligence.
SOC 315 Emotional Intelligence and Leadership
SOC 317 Applied Emotional Intelligence
SOC 463 Social Values & Intercultural Communication
The concentration in Human Services provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to obtain specialized knowledge within the field of Human Services. Students will learn to work across a range of human needs through a spectrum of courses covering current social issues, working in the helping professions, and theories of personality. This concentration will be of great benefit to students who desire to work as a youth worker, minister, family support worker, client advocate, case manager, community organizer, and many other professions.
The concentration in Human Services is designed to provide students with a broad understanding of human behavior and help them develop the skills necessary to function as a human services professional. There is also the added benefit that students who graduate with a concentration in Human Services will be better positioned to begin their master’s degree in the Master of Science in Human Services at Wilmington University.
Overall, students who earn a degree with a concentration in Human Services will distinguish themselves from others in the workplace and will acquire a valuable, competitive advantage in any profession and gain the knowledge and skills to work effectively in their chosen career in culturally competent ways, to communicate effectively both orally and in writing, and to provide specialty services.
Note: The “General Education Requirements” and “Behavioral Science Core” curriculum for the Human Services concentration remain unchanged. The only difference is the SOC electives are limited to courses required for the concentration.
The goal of the Concentration in Human Trafficking Awareness is to provide knowledge and develop skills about the social and criminal impact of human trafficking. Developing greater awareness of the human trafficking problem will enable all those working on the front line and dealing with humans in crisis to know how to respond to and investigate suspected human trafficking cases. Knowledge and skills gained from the human trafficking courses in this concentration program can be put into practice by medical and health professionals, educators, human services and social workers, and law enforcement.
CRJ 101 Survey of Criminal Justice
SOC 404 Human Trafficking
SOC 472 Investigating Human Trafficking
SOC 473 Human Trafficking Advocacy & Change
Examples of continuing social inequities are ubiquitous. Students desiring to effect positive change in any area of inequity will benefit by having the specific theoretical and historical knowledge associated with a social justice perspective, as well as the skills necessary to research the historical causes of injustices, and the critical thinking skills necessary to evaluate possible solutions and to advocate for social change.
Many students in the Behavioral Science program seek to effect positive change in their communities. They often work at non-profit and state agencies dedicated to serving marginalized communities. The concentration in Social Justice Advocacy will offer students who are interested in working to alleviate social injustices the opportunity and guidance to refine their degree focus and to introduce a career path of advocacy in the communities they serve.
SOC 309 Poverty and Welfare
SOC 313 Social Justice Advocacy
As a transfer student who holds an Associate's degree from a partner institution, the following Behavioral Science courses are required.
Dev. Psych Elective
Completion degree students who fulfill all course requirements are eligible to earn one of the Behavioral Sciences concentrations.
The following courses or their equivalents are prerequisites for a degree in Behavioral Science AND require a minimum grade of “C-“for eligibility in this degree program:
This information applies to students who enter this degree program during the 2024-2025 Academic Year. If you entered this degree program before the Fall 2023 semester, please refer to the academic catalog for the year you began your degree program.
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