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Printer-Friendly ModeFuture of academic programs changing
February 8, 2010 —
As demands in the workforce change, so do the popularity of academic programs.
Donald Bachand, vice president of academic affairs, said that when he started at SVSU in 1968, business was the degree to get. Then it became teaching. Now, it’s nursing.
“Five or six years ago, I couldn’t fill the nursing program,” he said. “Now one of the worst parts of the job is explaining why qualified students can’t get in because of limited spots.”
It’s just one facet of the many changes students face as programs shift in their demand. On an economic teeter-totter with widespread changes in popular interest, students feel the ups and downs.
Occupational therapy third-year Shayna Rudel said that limited spots pose harsh realities for students in growing programs.
“Some students might not make it in,” she said, “and that would be disappointing if they took all these classes, spent all that money, and have to wait or choose a new major.”
While health care programs have shot up, the College of Education’s enrollment is dropping off. Bachand said many SVSU students want to stay in the state after graduation. Teaching positions are limited in Michigan, so fewer students here are pursuing that degree.
Seeking innovation, SVSU keeps an open agenda for new programs. Faculty members may propose curriculum changes every year. Newer majors include clinical lab sciences and health sciences, which were created within the past two years, as well as the professional and technical writing degree program, which is five years old.
But so far, none has submitted major proposals for new programs.
The engineering department has been considering alternative energy, but nothing concrete has developed. And despite rumors, no current programs face the chopping block.
The next boom of majors, according to Bachand, will probably be related to alternative energy and sustainability.
“This [environmental awareness] is not a passing fantasy,” he said. “We’ve all now seen $4-a-gallon [gas], and once the economy stabilizes again we’ll have to look at alternative energy sources.”
To accommodate newly booming majors, the Health Sciences building will cater to many student needs. The nursing program will use simulated hospital rooms and high-tech laboratories. Occupational therapy students will have work in rooms designed as realistic working environments such as kitchens and bedrooms.
Other growing fields, including criminal justice and social work, are taught primarily in classrooms. Students gain field experience through internships with external agencies, so the university does not need to provide special equipment.
Because SVSU has a variety of majors, many programs have very few students. Two examples are physics, with 16 students, and English literature. English has 50 students and even fewer literature-focused ones.
Literature junior Miguel Brewer said that frustrations can come with having a unique major.
“If you’re in a degree program that isn’t as popular as others,” he said, “you lose both the elements of having several peers to study and grind with you through your program and an adequate number of professors who truly specialize in that degree program.”
Physics senior Michael Saloka said that smaller programs pose another risk for students.
“There is a minimum amount of people required for each class, and there is always a danger of not meeting that and having the classes canceled because of it.”
At the same time, he added, “SVSU is known for small class sizes, and you can have a oneon- one relationship with your professors — they know you by name. I know all of my classmates, too. It’s nice.”
Some students face a problem when they realize that what they want to do with their lives is not offered at SVSU. Bear Mcbride is a theatre junior who wants to direct.
“I’m the only one interested in it, and I’m the first one,” he said, “and it’s been like that since I got here.”
He is dealing with this problem by studying underneath directors at school and getting as much experience as he can before graduate school.
But Bachand said that despite the slump that graduatesto- be face, circumstances are not as hopeless as they may seem.
“The workforce is changing so much nowadays,” Bachand said, “that it’s people who are well-rounded, good at communicating through many mediums, and adaptable who are going to get jobs.”
THE FASTEST GROWING MAJORSIN THE PAST FIVE YEARS HAVE BEEN:
• Exercise science
• Occupational therapy
• Graphic design
• Criminal justice
• Political science (public administration)
• Administrative science
• Accounting
• Economics
• International business
• Marketing, business
• Instructional technology in education.