Two new undergraduate programs in criminology and game design will be available to current and prospective Bridgewater College students beginning fall 2024.
Both programs will be offered in the Bonnie Forrer and John Harvey Rhodes School of Arts and Humanities.
Bridgewater will build from its existing crime and justice minor in the Department of Sociology with a new criminology major to prepare students for careers in the American criminal justice system. In the required 37-38 credit hours of coursework, students will learn about crime, its causes and ways to respond.
The major’s core courses are almost exclusively based in the field of sociology, although students may explore crime through other disciplinary lenses via electives in fields like human development and family science, political science and communication. A required senior capstone course will prepare students for employment by providing practical experience in their desired profession.
Criminology students who are specifically interested in law enforcement may take a professional practicum taught at the Central Shenandoah Criminal Justice Training Academy. According to Dr. Betsy Hayes, dean of the Rhodes School of Arts and Humanities, the practicum “offers students an opportunity to gain training and acquire professional certification in law enforcement as they are completing their bachelor’s degree.”
The Game Design major will be a new offering from the Department of English and consist of 39 required credit hours of coursework that will equip students for a variety of careers in the growing gaming industry. Games explored within the major include video games, mobile games, tabletop role-playing and board games and card games.
The major takes an interdisciplinary approach to the process of designing games, with course offerings in fields ranging from English to political science. Students will develop a foundational knowledge of games by considering their historical and ethical aspects before approaching advanced elements like narrative design, visual design and, ultimately, game development.
According to Hayes, required courses for upper class students in the major will “provide students with the time, tools and mentorship to develop their own games and game features, including a ‘shipped title,’” meaning a game that is market ready. Students will gain experience with game development tools such as Godot, Roblox and InDesign.
Founded in 1880 Bridgewater College provides a private, four-year liberal arts education in the Central Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Bridgewater College is home to approximately 1,450 students in more than 60 undergraduate majors and minors and four graduate programs housed within three distinct schools.
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Rebecca Barnabi
