Public Heritage and Community Engagement (Cultural and Natural Landscapes Concentration), Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies
Program Overview
The Public Heritage & Community Engagement degree combines the fields of Public History, Critical Cultural Heritage Studies, and Museum Studies to investigate the development, contestations, and implications of shared interpretation, valuation, and appreciation of places, buildings, natural landscapes, traditions, and objects. Program emphasis is placed on the critical role of community partnerships in these endeavors, helping students build the skills and networks that they will need for employment in multiple sectors after graduation.
Specific graduation requirements for this program beyond university bachelor's degree requirements.
A student graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Public Heritage and Community Engagement is required to demonstrate proficiency (beginning, intermediate or advanced) in a foreign language. Proficiency can be demonstrated by:
- Earning 6 credits of foreign language through successful completion of coursework
- Earning 6 credits through a foreign language college credit exam (e.g., AP, CLEP, International Baccalaureate)
- Demonstrating proficiency by meeting the WebCAPE scores approved by the Department of Writing and Language Studies
- Demonstrating proficiency by an exam approved by the Department of Writing and Language Studies
Core Curriculum - 42 hours
The Core Curriculum serves as a broad foundation for the undergraduate degree. All candidates for a bachelor’s degree must achieve core student learning outcomes, including communication, critical thinking, empirical and quantitative skills, teamwork, personal responsibility and social responsibility, by completing courses within each category or component area of the Core Curriculum as outlined below.
The University has approved specific courses that satisfy Core Curriculum Requirements. Approved courses can be found on the Core Curriculum Page. Students seeking the most efficient way to complete the core curriculum and major or minor requirements are advised to take approved courses that can fulfill both requirements. Although core curriculum courses can also be used to fulfill major or minor requirements, earned credits hours are only applied once.
The courses listed below fulfill core curriculum and major requirements. Students who have completed a core curriculum category with courses other than those listed below will still be required to take the listed course(s) to meet major requirements.
090 Integrative and Experiential Learning - 3 hours
Major Requirements - 48 hours
Required Courses - 21 hours
Complete all of the following:
| PHCE 1301 | Introduction to Public Heritage and Community Engagement |
| ENVR 2302 | Environment and Society |
| LDST 2335 | Leadership for Community Engagement |
| ARTS 3380 | Museums, Museology, and Museography |
| ANTH 4377 | Global Cultural Heritage Issues and Debates |
Internship
Choose one:
Capstone
Prescribed Electives - 15 hours
Choose at least 15 credit hours from the list below. A minimum of 6 credits must be advanced. Students may also choose from Leadership Studies, Marketing, and Statistics courses.
Public Heritage Applications
Upper division ARTS courses have prerequisites, COMM 3307 has a prerequisite of COMM 3303, Upper division ENTR, HOST, MGMT and MARK courses require admission to VCoBE. Students will need to seek departmental approval to enroll.
Leadership Studies
Three credit hours from the list below can be applied towards the 15 credit hours of Public Heritage Applications prescribed electives.
| LDST 2334 | Personal and Organizational Leadership |
| LDST 3325 | Leadership, Diversity and Culture |
Marketing
Six credit hours from the list below can be applied towards the 15 credit hours of Public Heritage Applications prescribed electives.
Statistics
Three credit hours form the list below can be applied towards the 15 credit hours of Public Heritage Applications prescribed electives.
Cultural and Natural Landscapes Concentration - 12 hours
Complete 12 credit hours from the following courses of which 6 credits must be advanced.
Free Electives - 30 hours
Free elective credit hours at the advanced level may be needed to achieve the institutional minimum of 42 advanced hours.
Total Credit Hours: 42
Total Credit Hours: 120
View this program’s recommended roadmap to graduation.
UTRGV Roadmaps are a suggested sequence of courses designed to assist students in completing their undergraduate degree requirements. This is a term-by-term sample roadmap of courses required to complete the degree. Students must satisfy all requirements in their catalog including, but not limited to course prerequisites, grade point average and course grade benchmarks, progression requirements, and graduation requirements.
Students should meet with their academic advisor every semester to discuss their individualized path toward completion. Degree progress within this roadmap depends upon such factors as course availability, individual student academic preparation and readiness, student time management, work and personal responsibilities, and financial considerations. Students may choose to take courses during summer terms to reduce course loads during long semesters.