Child and Youth Studies (B.S.)

Program Overview

A degree in Child and Youth Studies (CYS) prepares tomorrow's leaders through community-based teaching and learning. Authentic learning takes place with our extensive range of partners who facilitate students to be agents of change in our community and beyond. With over 400 hours of field experience upon graduation, students receive firsthand preparation in a variety of settings from non-profit organizations to child development centers. This program prepares human services, community development, and other Child and Youth professionals for employment in public, private, nonprofit, and for-profit organizations.

CYS Handbook

FAQs

Information for Current Students

Field Experience Information

Concentrations Overview

Community Engagement Concentration

Prepares graduates for leadership roles in informal learning environments such as youth organizations, clinical work with children with disabilities, museums, non-profit organizations, parks and recreation, and other community agencies.

Education Studies Concentration

Prepares graduates for teaching in childcare or other educational settings by providing them with the fundamentals of teaching, classroom management, and learning.

Career Paths

Community Engagement Concentration

Child Advocate
Outdoor and recreational education providers (counselors, coaches)
Youth Program Coordinator
Human services professionals, case managers, and counselors
Outreach workers
Residential care treatment providers
Child welfare workers
Disability advocates
Juvenile corrections staff
Non-Profit Organizations

Education Studies Concentration

Child Life Specialist
Applied Behavior Analysis (RBT)
Paraprofessional
Family Life Educator
After School Programs
Children’s Museums
Preschool Teacher

Information for Current Students

CYS Internships

In CYS, an internship is a two-semester long mutually beneficial relationship between a student and a selected agency. In both semesters, students gain valuable hands-on experience in their CYS fields of study while earning academic credits.

The Field Experiences and Practicum in the CYS Program at Florida Gulf Coast University are two separate one-semester internship experiences that occur during two periods in the student’s program, one prior to their final semester, the “Field Experience” and one during the end of a student’s senior year, which is the “Practicum”. These two experiences are often referred to as “Internships”.

During the semester long “Field Experience” program (Block 4 internship), each candidate will be placed at a site, where they log 160 hours of work. During the semester long student “Practicum” (Block 5 internship) each candidate will be placed at a site, where they log 320 hours of work. In both cases, the student is expected to report regularly to an assigned site. The dates and times of the internship are mutually agreed by the student, site supervisor and university supervisor. In order to ease their load in the second part of the internship, students may roll-over a maximum of 100 hours from Field Experience to Practicum.

If you have any questions, contact CYS Block 4 and Block 5 Experiences at 239-745-4336 or ewreynolds@fgcu.edu

Concentrations

Community Engagement Concentration
Education Studies Concentration

Accreditation
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Admissions Information
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Admissions Information for the 2024-2025 Catalog Year
If you are not yet an FGCU student, visit the Admissions Office Website
If you are a newly-admitted FGCU student please be sure to sign up for an Eagle View Orientation session. As part of this session you will be meeting with an academic advisor who will assist you in registering for classes for your major.
Admission Deadlines
Visit the Admissions Office Web site for information on admission deadlines of the university.
Program Requirements
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Program Requirements for the 2024-2025 Catalog Year
The General Education Program Website is located at https://www.fgcu.edu/academics/undergraduatestudies/generaleducation/
Program Progression and Additional Graduation Requirements
Degree-seeking students are classified as pre-majors prior to formal transition into a College of Education (COE) major. In order to transition from a COE pre-major to a major, students must (a) earn an overall GPA of 2.0 on all credits attempted, and (b) see an academic advisor/student success counselor for an approved plan of study. To be placed in a (Block Five) Final Internship, students must have passed all program courses except EDG 4936 which must be taken concurrently with EDG 4940.

In addition to the program requirements, students must complete:
- Complete a minimum of 120 credits.
- Complete a minimum of 48 of the 120 credits at the upper division (3000-4999 level).
- Earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 for all coursework attempted at FGCU.
- Satisfy the College-Level skills and foreign language requirement.
- Satisfy the Service-Learning requirement.
- Satisfy the Civic Literacy requirement.
- Satisfy the residency requirement: 30 of the last 60 credits must be completed at FGCU.
- Complete the summer course enrollment requirement.
- Submit an Application for Graduation by the deadline listed in the FGCU Academic Calendar.
The COE limits the transfer of coursework into its upper-division, undergraduate programs. To be considered, courses must have been completed with a minimum grade of C and no more than five years prior to the date of entry into the COE undergraduate program.
Program Requirements
1. FGCU General Education Program (https://www.fgcu.edu/academics/undergraduatestudies/generaleducation/)
  
  To prevent or minimize excess hours, select general education courses that satisfy common prerequisite requirements for your intended major.
2. Common Prerequisites
  None
3. Required Courses in the Major (24 credits)
  A minimum grade of C in each course and a GPA of 2.0 is required
  
  EDF 4112 Child Growth and Development (3)
  EDF 4424 Youth Focused Evaluation (3)
  EDG 4936 Seminar: Child/Youth Studies (3)
  EDG 4940 Practicum: Child/Youth Studies (9)
  EDG 4942 Field Experience: CYS (3)
  TSL 3080 Foundations of ESOL (3)
4. Restricted Electives in the Major (3 credits)
  Select one of the following:
  RED 4344 Methods of Teaching Reading (3) or
  RED 4310 Early Learning Literacy (3)
5. Concentration (18 credits)
  Complete one of the following concentrations:
  
  Education Studies Concentration
  EDF 3253 Learning Mgmt Inclusive Class (3)
  EDG 3323 Professional Teaching Practice (3)
  EDG 4371 Creative & Affective Develpmnt (3)
  EEC 3268 Play Development & Assessment (3)
  EEC 4307 Cognitive Exp for Yng Children (3)
  EEX 4201 Young Children with Spec Needs (3)
  
  Community Engagement Concentration
  EDF 4650 Youth & Community Resilience (3)
  EDF 4731 Youth & Community Leadership (3)
  EDF 4810 Intro to Comparative Education (3)
  EDG 4077 Informal Learning Environments (3)
  EEC 4404 Family & Comm Partnerships (3)
  ENT 3503 Social Entrepreneurship (3)
6. University Requirements (3 credits)
  Select one of the following:
  IDS 3920 University Colloquium (3)
  Or at least 3 credits in sustainability coursework (SCGR Attribute)
7. Additional Electives - as needed to reach total credits required for the degree
Total Credits Required: 120
Degree Map
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Course Description
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Official Course Descriptions

Search for official course descriptions by using the Course Description Search utility.

Go to the Course Descriptions Search Web page, then follow these steps:
1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select a course prefix from one of the SUBJECT dropdowns (required)
3. Enter search words in the TEXT field (optional, but will narrow the search results)
4. Press Search
Course Schedule
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Getting started with the Course Schedule Search

Search for program courses by using the Course Schedule Search utility.

Go to the Course Schedule Search Web page, then follow these steps:
1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select one or more of the search options to narrow your results (for example, CAMPUS, COLLEGE, DEPARTMENT, LEVEL, PREFIX*, COURSEATTRIBUTE**). For virtual or web courses, select VIRTUAL in the CAMPUS field.
3. Press Search.
*A course prefix is a three-letter designator for a major division of an academic discipline (for example, ACG for Accounting , BSC for Biological Science, ENC for English Composition). See the Degree Requirements page for a list of courses (with prefix and number) that can be used to fulfill degree requirements.

**A course attribute identifies specific characteristics of courses that can be used in a Degree Evaluation to satisfy a degree requirement. (Course attribute examples are Humanities courses - GEHM and Social Science courses - GESO.)
Learning Outcomes
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Academic Learning Compact

Consistent with its mission and guiding principles, Florida Gulf Coast University is committed to academic excellence and continuous quality improvement, as supported by a sound teaching-learning process. Within this process, students and instructors share responsibility for learning that is a movement from the simple to the complex, the concrete to the abstract, and the dependent to the independent. The Academic Learning Compact (ALC) initiative supports the teaching-learning process by clearly identifying expected core student learning outcomes in the areas of content/discipline knowledge and skills, communication skills, and critical thinking skills; aligning curricula with expectations; and using assessment to guide continuous improvement.

Content/Discipline Knowledge and Skills
Graduates will be able to:
- Integrate learning experiences for children and youth of all ages.
Content/discipline knowledge and skills are assessed at the program level through assignments, journals, senior seminar action research projects and self-evaluations in the following: EEC 4307 Cognitive Experiences for Children, EDG 4936 Senior Seminar in Child and Youth Studies, and EDG 4940 Child and Youth Studies Practicum.
Communication Skills
Graduates will be able to:
- Develop ability to communicate effectively with colleagues, school/communicate with specialists, administrators, and families.
Communication skills are assessed at the program level through assignments, projects, and senior research project in the following: EEC 3268 Play Development and Assessment, EDG 4936 Senior Seminar in Child and Youth Studies, and EDG 4940 Child and Youth Studies Practicum.
Critical Thinking Skills
Graduates will be able to:
- Analyze situations to guide planning for and addressing activities for diverse populations of children and youth
Critical thinking skills are assessed at the program level through assignments, journals and senior research projects and self-evaluations in the following: TSL 4520 Second Language Acquisition, Communication, and Culture, EDG 4936 Senior Seminar in Child and Youth Studies, and EDG 4940 Child and Youth Studies Practicum.
Tuition, Fees, and Financial Assistance
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Tuition and Fees

Information on Tuition, Fees and estimated total Cost of Attendance is available on the Student Account Services website.

Financial Aid Opportunities

Visit FGCU's Financial Aid Web site for information about grants, additional scholarships, loans, and student employment.
Destination FGCU Transfer Program
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Getting Started

If you are not yet an FGCU student, visit FGCU's Admissions Office Website.

If you are already an FGCU student, and are interested in applying for this program, visit the College of Education's Admission page to find out more information on how to apply.

FGCU ADMISSIONS COE ADMISSIONS

Program Overview

Concentrations Overview

Career Paths

Information for Current Students

Experience FGCU