2024-25 catalog edits in-progress
The demand for professionals with training in Aging Studies is high. Resources from the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE) clearly show how this demand translates into career options.
Many of these careers are possible for our students in multiple majors or advising tracks on campus, including but not limited to: Pre-Medicine, Pre-OT, Pre-PT, Nursing, Pre-Music Therapy, Communication Sciences and Disorders, Psychology, Social Work/Welfare, Sociology, Public Health and Business.
The administration of the Aging Studies experiential minor is coordinated by Sangeetha Rayapati, who is responsible for applications, advising, and assessment of completion of program requirements, with support from CORE.
Program requirements
Two core courses, and an additional eight credits, plus an internship (credit or non- credit bearing) or significant volunteer experience with aging populations.
Core courses
PSYC 216: Human Development, 4 credits
SOAN 326: Social Gerontology (PS, D), 4 credits
Internship or Volunteering, 0-4 credits
Total core credits 8-12
Additional 8 credits, taken from two different departments:
MUSC 344: Creative Therapies, (PH) 4 credits
CSD 315: Audiology, 4 credits
CSD 405: Aural Rehabilitation, 2 credits
PSYC 228: Psychology of Prejudice 4 credits
COMM 250: Intro to Health Communication 4 credits
RELG 370: Suffering, Death, and the Vitality of Hope, (PH) 4 credits
PHIL 105: Life and Death, (PH) 4 credits
Total credits for experiential minor 16-20
Experiential component
Students in this minor program will be expected to spend significant time with the aging population or agencies that serve them. A minimum of 100 hours of volunteer or internship experience is required. Those hours may be spread out over two or three terms, but they must occur at one site or with one partner facility or program.
Students may use hours completed in a Senior Inquiry internship experience in their major toward these 100 hours. If fewer than 100 hours were completed for the SI experience, the remaining hours should still occur with the same organization, however. The goal is consistency in the experience.
Students who work with elderly populations, for example as a Certified Nursing Assistant, may count their work hours toward the total required but they do not begin to accrue until the student has declared the minor.
If a student chooses to complete these hours for credit, they will be administered through CORE policies regarding internships. Students must log 40 work hours for a 0, .25, and 1 credit internship. Internships for more than 1 credit require an additional 35- 40 hours of student work for each unit of credit awarded. (Register for 3 credits of INTR for the 100 hours) Students must also complete several assignments including an internship reflection. Students must register for internships through the Assistant Director of Internships in CORE/Career Development with approval from the minor adviser.
| Credit hours | Minimum hours interned |
| 0 | 40 |
| 1 | 40 |
| 2 | 70 |
| 3 | 105 |
Assessment
Standards of minimum success include successful completion of courses in the program with a GPA of 2.0 or higher. Students in this Experiential Minor program will communicate the impact the courses and internship/volunteerism had on their educational development and plans for the future through an exit interview and survey to be administered by the minor advisor.