TESC BSBA Learner Designed Area of Study

[sanantone]

Has anyone had any luck with this? I tried proposing a security management area of study about a year and a half ago and they said the subject was too close to their Homeland Security program. Actually, Security Management and Homeland Security/Emergency Preparedness have different focuses. Anyway, I couldn't argue with them because I put my criminal justice courses into the plan. They said I had already used them for my Social Science degree, so the Security Management program would have too much overlap with my first bachelor's. Technically, only a few of my CJ courses were used in the major. The rest ended up in free electives.

So, I'm guessing it's not easy to get TESC to approve a proposed area of study for the Learner Designed BSBA. I'm still hoping that some of you might be able to help me come up with some ideas on how to convince TESC to approve a science-related concentration. I guess you could view it as a sneaky way to get out of the liberal arts capstone. Honestly, though, I want three different degrees; but, I'm only allowed one more bachelor's and one more associate's. I want degrees in business, something computer-related, and a science.

These are the options I've come up with:
1. Get the BSBA CIS and the associates in biology. However, I would have to suffer through traditional courses in a semester-based system to complete the 8 credits of biology with lab requirement. I would also have to take a couple of traditional courses in order to complete the CIS concentration. This could become costly and time-consuming.

2. Convince TESC to let me create a science-related area of study within the BSBA and get the AAS in computer studies which I could easily finish up with the DSST MIS, TECEP in Networking, a Penn Foster course, and some kind of certification.

These are the ways I came up with to convince TESC to let me create a science-related concentration within the BSBA:

1. Sustainability or Green-something. I found a couple of business programs with concentrations like this, but I'm afraid TESC will tell me to just get the environmental studies degree or that sustainability programs don't consist of straight science credits.
Baldwin Wallace University Sustainability Program Requirements
Sustainability Management Specialization | DeVry University
Curriculum: Bachelor Of Science In Sustainable Business | Sustainability (Green) MBA Degree Online - Marylhurst

2. Patent or Intellectual Property Agent. Law firms that specialize in patent law hire people with science backgrounds as advisors. I'm afraid a science/law combination would make more sense than a science/business combination in this case.

3. Lab management or something to do with starting/running a biotechnology company. I'm afraid TESC will tell me to get the clinical trials or laboratory degree or to choose a small business or entrepreneurship concentration. They might even point me to the biomedical electronics program.

So what do you all think? Does anyone have any experience with getting a Learner Designed Area of Study approved within the BSBA? I think I have the best chance with the green technology or sustainability proposal. Look at this example plan. How can TESC argue with something similar to an example it created?
http://www.tesc.edu/documents/ldassample.pdf

[defscarlett]

What about Public Health Management, there's plenty of other universities with that major?

It might help if we knew what you actually wanted to do with the degrees.

[Jonathan Whatley]

Honestly, though, I want three different degrees; but, I'm only allowed one more bachelor's and one more associate's. I want degrees in business, something computer-related, and a science.

Of course you could go for a second TESC bachelor's with two areas of study, e.g. a dual major. See "Two Areas of Study Within One Degree" here.

Charter Oak also allows two concentrations within one degree, with separate Concentration Plans of Study and a separate capstone for each (though, yeah, we know how much you love capstones :) ). CO offers customized concentrations routinely under the titles Liberal Studies (drawing from multiple liberal arts fields) and Individualized Studies (drawing from liberal arts and professional studies).

The Areas of Focus within an Excelsior BSLA or BALA seemed flexible, but we might have to establish what's happening to them as Excelsior redesigns all their undergraduate LA programs.

And Excelsior and Charter Oak don't seem to have the absolute published restrictions against a third degree at the same undergraduate level that TESC does…

1. Sustainability or Green-something. I found a couple of business programs with concentrations like this, but I'm afraid TESC will tell me to just get the environmental studies degree or that sustainability programs don't consist of straight science credits. [Great examples, snipped.]

2. Patent or Intellectual Property Agent. Law firms that specialize in patent law hire people with science backgrounds as advisors. I'm afraid a science/law combination would make more sense than a science/business combination in this case.

3. Lab management or something to do with starting/running a biotechnology company. I'm afraid TESC will tell me to get the clinical trials or laboratory degree or to choose a small business or entrepreneurship concentration. They might even point me to the biomedical electronics program.

I love each of these, and I wouldn't sell the latter two short. defscarlett has a good idea too with public health.

You could pitch something in any of these veins as an undergraduate counterpart to the Professional Science Master's. (Wikipedia, sciencemasters.com, National Professional Science Master's Association.)

[sanantone]

Would TESC consider public health management too close to healthcare administration? Not only do I not want to take the liberal arts capstone, but I also do not want TESC's generic BA or BS in Learner Designed Area of Study. I don't want a liberal studies or individualized studies degree from COSC either. I want the BSBA title with the learner designed concentration. What I want is ultimate flexibility. I want to either move up in management, do computer networking, teach science, or to do a biology-related job. I might even start a natural health company. There are only so many degrees I can obtain. LOL. However, if I get accepted into the PhD program of my choice, it'll be in public health and I wouldn't worry about getting another bachelor's. I'll be too busy studying full-time and receiving a stipend. I do, however, need to complete some science prerequisites for this PhD in Neuroscience program I'm planning to apply to in the next couple of months.

Thanks for the ideas. It looks like TESC doesn't have a bachelor's for healthcare management. I could argue that I want to combine business and health since they don't have a public health program at the undergraduate level and their public administration concentration wouldn't suffice. They do, however, have a Health Information program that combines business with health-related courses. It has way too many requirements that can't be tested out of. A lot of these requirements aren't even offered at TESC. I think I might just run with the idea of starting my own natural health consulting company and throw sustainability in there for good measure. I could run with a biodefense company too. After all, my master's will be in security studies. It just doesn't have the bioterroism coursework I need to move into the biodefense field.

Edit: I just saw that they have a hospital healthcare administration area of study for the BSBA, but that's not what I want either. From the link you posted Jonathan, Creighton University does have a bioscience management program that isn't being offered this academic year due to budget constraints. That's another idea.

[Jonathan Whatley]

I think there'd be a good case for public health as a distinctive domain, though of course I can't speak for TESC.

An old thread elsewhere compiling some other sources of green business education online…

[sanantone]

Going through the professional masters programs, I found these:
NC State Course Catalog
BioSciences Management Curricula MBA - NC State Jenkins MBA
F60 - MSc in Professional Science - Open University Qualification

I knew there had to be some programs out there that combine science with business.

I think there'd be a good case for public health as a distinctive domain, though of course I can't speak for TESC.

An old thread elsewhere compiling some other sources of green business education online…

Wow, you're all over these degree forums. I'm surprised I never saw you on eLearners. That's a great link.

[sanantone]

Okay, I went with the public health idea and REJECTED!