Academics

---

e-mail this article    printer friendly page

New major, certificates added to College’s offerings Feb 27, 2008

The Metro State Board of Trustees recently approved one new major and two new certificate programs at the College.

The Department of Health Professions is adding a bachelor of science degree in human nutrition – dietetics that seeks to meet future demand for nutrition professionals who are prepared to address such issues as food-related disease prevention and treatment services.

The new major will allow graduates to become registered dietitians, a field forecasted to grow more quickly than the average for all occupations through 2014.

Department Chair Nancy Shanks sees the program as a great opportunity for the College to meet the needs of students she says have consistently inquired about a human nutrition major at Metro State.

“The new major will be a ‘win-win-win’ for the students, for Metro State and for the community at large,” Shanks said.

Nutrition Program Coordinator Christina Reiter says she is energized about the expansion of service-learning opportunities fostered by the new program.

“[Opportunities] include participating in outreach to the area public schools, high school athletic teams, agencies serving the elderly and underserved groups, and other organizations such as government agencies, foundations and health care providers,” Reiter said. “We are also hopeful that the new major will provide the impetus for the nutrition faculty to provide nutrition counseling and services to Metro State students, student-athletes, faculty and staff.”

Space commercialization
The Department of Aviation and Aerospace Science will offer a 15-credit certificate in space commercialization that addresses such topics as payload and spacecraft design, bioastronautics, spacecraft control systems and launch vehicles.

Department Chair Jeff Forrest says that part of his professional and academic background is related to commercialized space ventures.

“I have had as a long-term goal to see the Aviation and Aerospace Science Department enter this very exciting and challenging new field,” said Forrest. “Metro State can be a leader in offering programs to prepare our students for careers in commercialized space operations. Denver and the Front Range are geographic centers for many commercial entities seeking ways to conduct business via space operations.”

Speech, language and hearing sciences
The speech communication program in the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences will offer a leveling certificate in speech, language and hearing sciences (SLHS) to permit students who have completed a bachelor’s degree in another field to complete eight foundational SLHS classes in preparation for graduate studies and employment in speech-language pathology or audiology.

The certificate is designed to put a student on a level playing field with students who already graduated with a bachelor’s degree in SLHS from Metro State.

Jean Lundy, associate professor of SLHS, says that approximately 25 percent of SLHS students already have a degree and are seeking a career change to become speech language pathologists and/or audiologists. Lundy adds that many graduate programs recommend that students complete Metro State’s new certificate program prior to applying.

“Students with bachelor’s degrees in any field are eligible to apply to graduate school,” Lundy said. “However, acceptance is competitive. One hundred plus applications are received annually by CU and UNC graduate programs. Admission is enhanced if students applying with a bachelor’s degree in a field other than speech, language, hearing science can demonstrate success in ‘leveling’ coursework.”

 © Copyright 2008 by Metropolitan State College of Denver.
 All rights reserved. Metropolitan State College of Denver Office of College Communications, 303-556-2957.