Urban and Community Studies (BA)
The undergraduate major in Urban and Community Studies is an interdisciplinary program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences with a focus on educating citizens on the multiple dimensions of urban and community life and preparing students for careers in public and community service as well as graduate study in social work, public administration, law, planning, public health, or other related areas.
The major has three parts. First, students receive a broad education in the study of cities, suburbs, neighborhoods and communities through core courses in three fields drawn from Economics, Geography, History, Political Science, Public Policy, Sociology, and Urban and Community Studies. Second, students acquire a solid foundation in analytical techniques such as statistical analysis, survey research, geographic information systems, qualitative methods, or archival research. Finally, students take additional electives in order to broaden their academic training or to develop a deeper specialization in selected areas.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Core | ||
| URBN 2000/2000W | Introduction to Urban and Community Studies | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Understanding Your Community | ||
| Senior Thesis | ||
| Urban Semester Field Work Seminar | ||
| Core | ||
| Select three of the following with no more than one per department (cross-listed courses count towards the non-URBN department): | 9 | |
| Urban Development and Policy | ||
| Economics of Poverty | ||
| Urban Geography | ||
| Globalization | ||
| Introduction to Sustainable Cities | ||
| Urban and Regional Planning | ||
| The History of Urban America | ||
| Immigrants and the Shaping of American History | ||
| African American History Since 1865 | ||
| History of Latinos/as in the United States | ||
| Public Administration | ||
or PP 3031 | ||
| Urban Politics | ||
| Social Policy | ||
| Urban Sociology | ||
| Sociological Perspectives on Poverty | ||
| Social Welfare and Social Work | ||
| Work and Economic Justice | ||
| Urban Parks and Sustainability | ||
| Methods | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
ECON 2327/2327W | ||
| Introduction to Geographic Information Systems | ||
| Geographic Data Analysis | ||
| Quantitative Analysis in Political Science | ||
| Survey Research Methods | ||
| Methods of Social Research | ||
| Introduction to Statistics II | ||
| Research Methods and Analysis in Urban and Community Studies | ||
| Qualitative Methods in Urban and Community Studies | ||
| Supporting | ||
| Select two additional courses selected from Group 2, Group 3, or the following list: | 6 | |
| Ethnicity and Race | ||
| Migration | ||
ECON 2328/2328W | ||
| Economics of Taxation and Government Spending | ||
| Public Economics | ||
| Urban and Regional Economics | ||
| Introduction to Sport Based Youth Development | ||
ENGL 3235W | ||
| Race, Sex, Space, and Place | ||
GEOG 4200W | ||
| History of Urban Latin America | ||
| Crime, Policing, and Punishment in the United States | ||
| Topics in Public History | ||
| Social and Cultural History of Connecticut and New England | ||
| Asian American Experience Since 1850 | ||
| African American History to 1865 | ||
| Hip Hop, Politics and Youth Culture in America | ||
| Diversity Issues in Human Development and Family Sciences | ||
| Social and Community Influence on Children in the United States | ||
| Planning and Managing Human Service Programs | ||
| Public Policy and the Family | ||
| Child Welfare, Law and Social Policy | ||
| Seminar in Urban Problems | ||
| Sustainable Urban Ecosystems | ||
POLS 3240E | ||
| Latino Political Behavior | ||
| African-American Politics | ||
| Comparative Perspectives on Human Rights | ||
| State and Local Government | ||
| Globalization and Political Change | ||
| American Political Economy | ||
| The Policy-making Process | ||
PP 3020/3020W | ||
| Race and Policy | ||
| Criminology | ||
| Sociology of the Family | ||
| Sociology of Carework | ||
| Sociology of Religion | ||
| Sociology of Food | ||
| Society and Climate Change | ||
| City Life | ||
SOCI 3459/3459W | ||
or HDFS 3245 | Aging in American Society | |
| Sociology of Gender | ||
| African Americans and Social Protest | ||
| Urban Problems | ||
| Sociology of Sexualities | ||
| Urban Semester Field Work Seminar 1,2 | ||
| Internship in Urban Studies: Seminar | ||
| City and Community in Film | ||
| Variable Topics | ||
| Urban Parks and Sustainability | ||
| Foreign Study | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| Senior Thesis 1 | ||
| Independent Study | ||
| Total Credits | 24 | |
- 1
Three credits combined
- 2
INTD 3594 Urban Semester Field Work Seminar and URBN 4497W Senior Thesis can be counted if not used to fulfill requirement number one above.
INTD 3594 Urban Semester Field Work Seminar and URBN 4497W Senior Thesis can be used to meet the Group 1: Core Requirement or as Group 4: Supporting course, but not both. Students must attain their UCS advisor’s consent to use URBN 4497W Senior Thesis for their Group I: Core Requirement prior to enrolling in the course.
In order to assure a breadth of experience, students are encouraged to take courses that include content in each of the following areas: change over time, structural and spatial dimensions, diversity, power and decision-making, and political and social processes. One unique option for students is to enroll in the 15 credit Urban Semester Program, which provides major credit for two courses INTD 3584 Seminar in Urban Problems andINTD 3594 Urban Semester Field Work Seminar.
Students interested in pursuing a program in Urban and Community Studies are advised to complete 1000-level courses in the social sciences, which may be prerequisites for courses in Urban and Community Studies. These include, but are not limited to:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| GEOG/URBN 1200 | Global Urbanization | 3 |
| ECON 1201 | Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| POLS 1602 | Introduction to American Politics | 3 |
| PP 1001 | Introduction to Public Policy | 3 |
| SOCI 1001 | Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
| SOCI 1251 | Social Problems | 3 |
| STAT 1000Q/1100Q | Introduction to Statistics I | 4 |
| URBN 1300/1300W | Exploring Your Community | 3 |
| URBN 1400/1400W | Site and Sound: Understanding Cities Through Popular Music | 3 |
| URBN 1600 | Cities of Imagination | 3 |
They should also plan on enrolling in URBN 2000 Introduction to Urban and Community Studies as soon as possible.
The writing in the major requirement can be met by taking any 2000-level or above W course approved for this major. Students should be aware, however, that availability of specific W courses varies by campus. The information literacy requirements are met by successfully completing URBN 2000 Introduction to Urban and Community Studies.
A minor in Urban and Community Studies is described in the “Minors” section.
University General Education Requirements
Every student must meet a set of core requirements to earn a baccalaureate degree, in addition to those required by the student's major course of study and other requirements set by the student's school or college. For more information about these requirements, please see General Education Requirements.
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Degree Requirements
Students must meet a set of requirements established by the college in addition to the University's General Education requirements. For more information, see the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences section of this catalog.