Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness Undergraduate Program By Virginia Commonwealth University |Top Universities

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness

Main Subject Area

SociologyMain Subject Area

Program overview

Main Subject

Sociology

Degree

Other

Study Level

Undergraduate

This program is designed to give students both theoretical and practical knowledge that will prepare them for private- or public-sector employment in the expanding area of homeland security as it relates specifically to international and domestic security, as well as emergency preparedness for both security and non-security-related incidents and/or; further study in government, international affairs, law enforcement, policy planning or law. Students will study homeland security and emergency preparedness from a number of perspectives: emergency planning/management principles and practicalities; the nature and effects of natural disasters; the nature of the terrorist threat to the U.S. from both foreign and domestic organizations, including terrorist motives, methods and history; counterterrorism policies ranging from law enforcement to intelligence to the use of military force; vulnerability assessment of public and private infrastructure and institutions; critical infrastructure protection; ethical, constitutional, law enforcement and civil liberties issues related to the prevention of terrorist attacks through surveillance, immigration restrictions and detention; public safety legal questions that arise during governmental responses to natural disaster; intelligence analysis of domestic and international threats; and policy-making topics, such as organizational design and management, interagency processes, and intergovernmental coordination and cooperation within emergency preparedness and counterterrorism institutions at the local, state, federal and international level. The knowledge and skills acquired through this course of study will enable students to continue their studies at law school or graduate school in a number of areas: business, criminal justice, geography, international affairs, political science, public administration, sociology and urban planning. Students also will be able to pursue employment opportunities in various fields, such as within the government at the local, state and federal level in homeland security and emergency planning/response; law enforcement; intelligence; for-profit and nonprofit research and consultancy; and private sector employment with any business that requires emergency planning expertise to protect critical infrastructure.

Program overview

Main Subject

Sociology

Degree

Other

Study Level

Undergraduate

This program is designed to give students both theoretical and practical knowledge that will prepare them for private- or public-sector employment in the expanding area of homeland security as it relates specifically to international and domestic security, as well as emergency preparedness for both security and non-security-related incidents and/or; further study in government, international affairs, law enforcement, policy planning or law. Students will study homeland security and emergency preparedness from a number of perspectives: emergency planning/management principles and practicalities; the nature and effects of natural disasters; the nature of the terrorist threat to the U.S. from both foreign and domestic organizations, including terrorist motives, methods and history; counterterrorism policies ranging from law enforcement to intelligence to the use of military force; vulnerability assessment of public and private infrastructure and institutions; critical infrastructure protection; ethical, constitutional, law enforcement and civil liberties issues related to the prevention of terrorist attacks through surveillance, immigration restrictions and detention; public safety legal questions that arise during governmental responses to natural disaster; intelligence analysis of domestic and international threats; and policy-making topics, such as organizational design and management, interagency processes, and intergovernmental coordination and cooperation within emergency preparedness and counterterrorism institutions at the local, state, federal and international level. The knowledge and skills acquired through this course of study will enable students to continue their studies at law school or graduate school in a number of areas: business, criminal justice, geography, international affairs, political science, public administration, sociology and urban planning. Students also will be able to pursue employment opportunities in various fields, such as within the government at the local, state and federal level in homeland security and emergency planning/response; law enforcement; intelligence; for-profit and nonprofit research and consultancy; and private sector employment with any business that requires emergency planning expertise to protect critical infrastructure.

Admission requirements

80+
6+

Tuition fee and scholarships

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More programs from the university

RICHMOND, Va., (Feb. 1, 2006) – Virginia Commonwealth University is one of eight universities nationwide that has earned designation as a National Academic Center of Excellence on Youth Violence Prevention from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The centers serve as models for the prevention of youth violence and foster an environment that encourages collaborations among health scientists, social scientists and the community with the common goal of reducing violence among youth.“VCU’s designation as a Center of Excellence on Youth Violence Prevention is a significant honor that speaks to the expertise, initiative and dedication of our faculty and staff who are committed to addressing youth violence prevention,” said Stephen D. Gottfredson, VCU’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. The VCU center, newly named the VCU Clark-Hill Institute for Positive Youth Development, will provide a basis for extending current efforts in the areas of youth violence research and community engagement. Faculty and researchers from the VCU Center for Promotion of Positive Youth Development and the VCU Center for the Study and Prevention of Youth Violence will be working together to develop and implement community response plans and to evaluate strategies for preventing youth violence.“Given the highly competitive nature of the selection process, the CDC’s selection of VCU represents a strong endorsement of the collaborations that have been established between VCU and the community,” said Albert D. Farrell, Ph.D., professor of psychology at VCU and the institute’s director.The institute also represents the types of efforts that VCU Community Solutions supports in strengthening VCU’s work on critical social issues in the community.The VCU Clark-Hill Institute for Positive Youth Development recognizes the contributions to the field of adolescent development by Maxine L. Clark, Ph.D., a former associate professor of psychology at VCU, and John P. Hill, Ph.D., former chair of the VCU Department of Psychology. Clark, who died in 1995, was involved with research that broadened the understanding of the development of African American adolescents and the role of culture in development. Hill, who died in 1988, was an acclaimed scholar in the field of adolescence. His conceptual and theoretical work shapes much of current teaching and understanding of adolescent psychology. In addition to VCU, the other CDC-funded centers of excellence are at Columbia University; Harvard University; Johns Hopkins University; the University of Hawaii; the University of California’s Berkeley and Riverside campuses; and the University of Illinois’ Chicago campus. VCU psychology, psychiatry, epidemiology and community health faculty involved with the new center include: Robert Cohen, Ph.D., associate director; Kevin Allison, Ph.D., director of community mobilization; Wendy Kliewer, Ph.D., director of training and mentoring; Saba Masho, M.D., director of community surveillance; Aleta Meyer, Ph.D., and Terri Sullivan, Ph.D., research faculty; Torey Edmonds, community liaison; and Anne Greene, director of operations. Elizabeth Erwin, Ph.D., is the director of qualitative inquiry and is from the University of Virginia School of Nursing

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