Courses

The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.

  • MET PS 512: Sexual Violence
    This course will engage the topics of sexual deviance and sexual trauma through multiple lens. These lenses will include psychological, sociological, criminal justice, public health and social justice perspectives. The course will explore multiple facets of understanding sexual deviance and sexual trauma including legal and philosophical perspectives, historical activism, understanding and treatment of sexual offending, and survivor responses. The roles of multiple systems including the media, mental health organization and the criminal justice system will be taken into account. This course includes ongoing group work that will engage critical inquiry, addressing relevant topics in sexual trauma in practical ways. Students will utilize knowledge of theory and research methodology to pursue real world responses to issues of sexual violence and trauma.
  • MET PS 515: Introduction to Forensic Psychology: Methods, Practice, and Theory
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: (METPS371) - The field of forensic psychology lies at the crossroads of psychology, the law, and the criminal justice system. This course presents upper-level undergraduates and master's level graduate students with the scope of forensic psychology practice and research. First, the course focuses on the scope of the field: what forensic psychologists do, the ethical conflicts they encounter, and the field's special methodology (e.g., assessment of malingering and deception). The use and function of expert witness testimony is reviewed and critically evaluated. A range of civil and criminal psychological issues is addressed including eyewitness memory, sexual offenders and battered women.
  • MET PS 520: Violence and Trauma
    Violence and Trauma examines the psychological impact of crime, terror and disasters on society and the individuals who are members of it. The class is geared toward students in the social sciences including Psychology, Urban Affairs, Criminal Justice, and Sociology. A variety of traumas will be examined (e.g., childhood abuse, domestic violence and crime, war combat, terrorism, and natural disasters). The course examines the social, cultural and political environments in which trauma, trauma research and treatment occur. This course provides an introduction and overview of the field of traumatic stress studies including the nature of trauma, responses to trauma and treatment for disorders of traumatic stress.
  • MET PS 592: Positive Psychology
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: (METPS101) - Positive Psychology is the scientific study of what makes it possible for human beings to lead happy, meaningful and productive lives--sometimes despite formidable odds. This course offers an introduction to the discipline's methods, empirical findings and theory.
  • MET PS 599: Capstone in Applied Social Science
    This course engages upper level undergraduate Department of Social Science majors in a capstone experience through applied research. It focuses on integrating competencies gained through the student's major and BU Hub requirements with specific focus on applied theory and research. The capstone integrates the principles and applications of the major areas of study in Applied Social Sciences, including criminal justice, psychology, sociology and urban affairs. The course will specifically address questions of public policy, social justice, and mental health. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • The Individual in Community
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • MET PY 105: Elementary Physics
    Assumes a knowledge of algebra and trigonometry. Satisfies premedical requirements. Principles of classical and modern physics: mechanics, heat, light, electricity and magnetism, and atomic and nuclear physics. Fundamental concepts of energy; conservation laws, energy sources, and transformations. Lectures, discussions, and laboratory. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry I, Quantitative Reasoning I, Critical Thinking.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Quantitative Reasoning I
    • Scientific Inquiry I
  • MET PY 106: Elementary Physics
    Assumes a knowledge of algebra and trigonometry. Satisfies premedical requirements. Principles of classical and modern physics: mechanics, heat, light, electricity and magnetism, and atomic and nuclear physics. Fundamental concepts of energy; conservation laws, energy sources, and transformations. Lectures, discussions, and laboratory. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Quantitative Reasoning II, Critical Thinking.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Quantitative Reasoning II
    • Scientific Inquiry II
  • MET PY 211: General Physics
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: (METMA124 OR METMA123) MET MA 124, or MA 123 with consent of instructor. For premedical stude nts desiring a more analytical course than MET PY 105, PY 106, and for science concentrators who require a one-year physics course. - For premedical students desiring a more analytical course than MET PY 105, PY 106, and for science concentrators who require a one-year physics course. Basic principles of physics, emphasizing topics from mechanics, thermal physics, electricity and magnetism, and optics. Lectures, discussions, and laboratory. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry I, Quantitative Reasoning I, Teamwork/Collaboration, Critical Thinking.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Quantitative Reasoning I
    • Scientific Inquiry I
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • MET PY 212: General Physics II
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: (METMA124 OR METMA123) MET MA 124, or MA 123 with consent of instructor. For premedical stude nts desiring a more analytical course than MET PY 105, PY 106, and for science concentrators who require a one-year physics course. - For premedical students desiring a more analytical course than MET PY 105, PY 106, and for science concentrators who require a one-year physics course. Basic principles of physics, emphasizing topics from mechanics, thermal physics, electricity and magnetism, and optics. Lectures, discussions, and laboratory. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Quantitative Reasoning II, Critical Thinking.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Quantitative Reasoning II
    • Scientific Inquiry II
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • MET SO 100: Principles of Sociology
    This course introduces students to the basic theories and concepts associated with the study of society. Within this framework students will explore the following questions: Why are people poor' What are the dynamics of group behavior' Has modern society lost its traditional values' Do men and women think differently' What is environmental racism' What explains the achievement gap in American education' These questions and more will be discussed and analyzed through a sociological lens.
  • MET SO 201: Sociological Methods
    Scientific method, measurement, experimentation, survey research, observational methods, projective techniques, and content analysis used in social science research.
  • MET SO 203: Sociological Theories
    An introduction to the major theoretical perspectives used in sociological inquiry and how they apply to contemporary social life. Special emphasis on nineteenth-century European theorists such as Marx, Weber, and Durkheim.

    This course may not be taken in conjunction with METSO300. Only one of these courses can be counted towards degree requirements.
  • MET SO 300: Applied Social Science Theory
    Applied Social Science Theory introduces students to major authors and seminal works that continue to inform theory and research in social sciences. The focus is on reading primary source materials to examine not only the major conclusions of these authors, but the arguments they use to justify those conclusions. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry II, Critical Thinking, Research and Information Literacy.

    This course may not be taken in conjunction with METSO203 or MET CJ300. Only one of these courses can be counted towards degree requirements.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Research and Information Literacy
    • Social Inquiry II
  • MET SO 302: Women and Health in the Twenty-First Century
    Examines current issues directly related to the health experiences of women in America and around the world. Topics include an historical overview of women's health and examine in depth issues such as: gender specific medicine; puberty, body image and eating disorders; contraception and the abortion issue; infertility and technology; pregnancy, childbirth and breast feeding; violence against women; incarcerated women and the female brain. Provides a framework to integrate the social variables involved in exploring the roles played by men and women as medical consumers and its affects on overall health and attitudes.
  • MET SO 310: Business and the Social Environment
    The role of business in the world of politics, economics, and society.
  • MET SO 311: Religion and Society
    The interrelationships of religious and social structures: denominations and social institutions, secular and sacred cultures, group behavior, ideology, and religious beliefs.
  • MET SO 335: Technology, Environment, and Society
    Relationship between technology, environment, and social life. Impact of actual cases of technological development and environmental degradation. Emergence of social problems, and strategies for their solution.
  • MET SO 501: Special Topics in Sociology
    SO501 is the designation for "Special Topics in Sociology". The subject matter for SO501 courses changes from semester to semester, and more than one SO501 can be offered in a given semester. For additional information, please contact the MET Applied Social Sciences Department.

    Fall 2018, SO501 D1: "Developing Sustainable Communities." This course is designed to explore the many challenges of achieving sustainable development through a coherent and thought provoking overview of moves towards developing sustainable communities. The course will focus on improving the quality of people's lives, on disinvested communities and on the inequitable distribution of income, wealth, and environmental hazards. It will investigate the theory of sustainable development and ask about the principles, tools, and techniques, of moving towards the ecological integrity, economic security, empowerment, responsibility and social well being characteristics of sustainable communities. Case studies will be drawn from around the world.
  • MET SO 511: Understanding Moral Panics
    Introduces students to the concept of Moral Panics. Moral panics are a social phenomenon triggered by an incident or series of incidents that appear to threaten a society's culture or way of life. Policymakers, legislators, and prosecutors react to these fears despite a trivial or non-existent threat. In this course we analyze in detail five moral panics to advance our understanding of the theoretical framework and the media's role in their construction.
  • MET UA 300: Applied Social Science Theory
    Applied Social Science Theory introduces students to major authors and seminal works that continue to inform theory and research in social sciences. The focus is on reading primary source materials to examine not only the major conclusions of these authors, but the arguments they use to justify those conclusions. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry II, Critical Thinking, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Research and Information Literacy
    • Social Inquiry II