A Special Online Degree Completion Program For caring students with unique needs

Studying Hard

Figure 1.1
Students find a really, really great place to study.

The distance education-delivered "Bachelor of Human and Community Services" is ideal for those whose schedules would interfere with their pursuing day-time courses. This degree completion program is designed to offer students a competency-based curriculum that builds upon prior academic course work. This prior course work may include any previously obtained associate degree or general studies courses completed at an accredited two-year college or institution of higher education.

All courses offered in the degree completion program will use a combination of distance education modalities, including web-based instruction. Access to the World Wide Web is required. Students are expected to have a working experience with the Internet and with email-based communication prior to any work on the Bachelor of Human and Community Services degree. Students are also expected to be highly motivated to succeed in a non-traditional instructional environment.

Prior Course Work: General studies courses that are listed in the NM Commission on Higher Education (CHE) Core Course Matrix will be accepted toward this degree. Other courses completed that are not included in this Course Transfer Guide may be counted as elective credits.

In the event a student seeks this degree concurrently while completing lower division general education course requirements, the student must comply with the NMSU General Education course requirements as listed in the latest version of the NMSU Undergraduate Catalog. Students who have not earned a two-year degree will be required to follow New Mexico State University’s General Education requirements.

Competencies addressed by this degree will provide participants with an understanding of the following:

1. The human services industry, including an overview of public health, community health education, nursing, and social work
2. The history of health care and human services
3. Ethical issues commonly faced by workers in the human services industry
4. Research skills typically used by administrators and others employed in this field
5. Management skills applied to the human services industry
6. Human behavior and how it is influenced by the social environment
7. Social welfare policy as developed and implemented in the United States

Degree Requirements for the Bachelor of Human and Community Services include:

1. Preferably, students will have completed and then transferred the first 64 semester credit hours. These will include all lower division General Studies requirements as outlined in the NM Commission on Higher Education Core Course Transfer Matrix. Please visit http://hed.state.nm.us/colleges/matrix.asp for more detailed information.
2. Students must complete Core Upper Division (300- and 400-level) courses meeting specific program requirements, totaling 23 credit hours.
3. Students must complete two minors, one from each of two approved lists, from across the various colleges at New Mexico State University. Options from List I currently include Community Health, Environmental and Occupational Health, US-Mexico Border Health. Options from List II include Counseling and Ed Psychology, Education (non-teacher training), Family and Consumer Sciences, Gerontology.


Options may be added to both lists as additional minors become available.

Note: In addition to the above, obtaining this degree requires a minimum of 129 semester credit hours, of which at least 55 must be from upper division course work.