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Children & Society

The Children & Society BDP offers students the opportunity to explore a variety of disciplinary approaches to the psychology and development of children and the social forces that impact them. The Children & Society BDP is designed to complement a range of majors and to prepare students for careers in fields such as advocacy, health care, research, public policy, and teaching.

For a complete list of courses and requirements, view the Children & Society BDP curriculum sheet.

Students must focus their BDP work on one of eight strands:

  • Adolescence
  • Children and the Family
  • Children and Health
  • Children, Media, and the Arts
  • Children and Public Policy
  • Early Childhood Intervention
  • Education, Language, and Literacy
  • Intervention and Vulnerable Children

To learn more about each strand, download the Children & Society Strand Descriptions (PDF).

Requirements

With 19 credit hours of coursework and Connecting Experiences, students may earn a BDP certificate in Children & Society.

Courses counting toward a BDP in Children & Society may also satisfy core, major, and elective requirements in a student’s degree plan. With planning, the BDP should not add time to students’ UT careers, but instead helps students choose the courses they already have to take in an integrated way.

Foundation Courses [4 hours]

  • Forum Seminar
  • Child Development Course

Courses in a Strand [6-9 hours]

  • Adolescence
  • Children and the Family
  • Children and Health
  • Children and Public Policy
  • Children, Media, and the Arts
  • Early Childhood Intervention
  • Education, Language, and Literacy
  • Intervention and Vulnerable Children

Connecting Experiences [6-9 hours]

BDP advisors assist students in finding meaningful connecting research and/or internship experiences related to Children & Society. For examples of Connecting Experiences Children & Society students have completed in the past, read these Connecting Experience spotlights.

Integration Essay

Students write a three to four-page essay written at the end of the BDP experience, drawing together the different pieces of the BDP.

Faculty Panel

An interdisciplinary faculty panel guides students in choosing courses and identifying connecting research and internship experiences that allow them to explore children’s issues as they relate to their majors and career goals.