HUMAN SERVICES MAJOR

OVERVIEW

The field of Human Services continues to be one of the fastest growing employment fields in Massachusetts and the nation. Human service providers work in a diversity of settings from state agencies to substance abuse programs to counseling and educational programs. Within these areas, human service workers carry out many different roles from counseling and intervention to management or program development. The Human Services program at the College of Public and Community Service is designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills they need for employment in a wide range of social and government agencies, or for graduate study in social work, sociology, psychology, education and other related fields.

The CPCS competency-based program is ideal for students considering entering the field, as well as for students who already have experience in human services. Students new to the field will gain an excellent foundation in theory and practice related to human services and will have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience through practicum, internships and field-based learning options. Students already experienced in human services can use and build upon their work experience while acquiring new knowledge, skills, and direction necessary to move into new or more advanced positions in the field of human services.

The content of the major has been carefully constructed to meet workforce needs. It is designed to provide professional orientation to the context and core values of human services practice and to the theoretical models and knowledge about individuals and society that form the foundation for human service education and work. As students progress through the curriculum, they will build on this foundation by integrating and applying these theories to work with individuals, groups and agencies and by developing knowledge of issues in human services.

REQUIREMENTS

Students may select Human Services as a major or a concentration linked to another major at CPCS. Majors in Human Services complete 6 of the following competencies:

• Human Development
• Delivery of Services
• Development of Human Services
• Life Stages: Issues and Challenges
• Professional Responsibility and Ethics in Human Service Practice
• Social Construction of Relationships
• Human Service Intervention: Individual or Group

Students in other CPCS majors, including Community Planning, Gerontology and Legal Education, who select Human Services as concentration, complete 4 of the competencies from this list.