DePaul’s Applied Behavioral Sciences (ABS) program is a two-year program for adult students who have an associate’s degree and would like to pursue a career in human services, social work, nonprofit management and other related fields.
The ABS curriculum combines courses from the Department of Psychology, the College of Communication and the School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Courses will provide you with perspectives on human behavior, interaction and communication.
Students attend one class per week at DePaul’s Loop campus, as well as take courses online.
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Program Requirements
There are 94 quarter hours required for this degree, as follows:
Understanding Human Behavior (4 courses equaling 16 credit hours)
- CMNS 329 PERSUASION
- PSY 347 SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
- PSY 363 ALCOHOLISM, DRUG ADDICTION AND RECOVERY or DCM 333 ADDICTIONS AND RECOVERY
- DCM 307 ANALYZING HUMAN BEHAVIOR
Life Cycle in Context (2 courses equaling 8 credit hours)
- DCM 323 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF AGING AND THE AGED
- PSY 302 PERSONAL ADJUSTMENT AND MENTAL HEALTH
Community and Social Justice (3 courses equaling 12 credit hours)
- DCM 304 EVOLVING PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
- DCM 325 WORK & SOCIETY
- PSY 354 COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY or PSY 353 ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY
Methods (3 courses equaling 12 credit hours)
- DA 200 DATA ANALYTICS or DA 233 APPLIED INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
- DCM 308 INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS
- DCM 309 APPLIED RESEARCH
Effective Workplace Dynamics (3 courses equaling 12 credit hours)
- ORGC 316 COMMUNICATION AND GROUP DECISION-MAKING
- ORGC 353 COMMUNICATION AND ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
- DCM 324 EFFECTIVE GROUP AND PERSONAL DYNAMICS
Leadership Theories and Skills (3 courses equaling 12 credit hours)
- LL 270 CRITICAL THINKING
- DCM 311 CONFLICT MANAGEMENT AND NEGOTIATION or CCH 299 ASSESSING AND MANAGING CONFLICT
- DCM 303 LEADERSHIP MODELS FOR STRONG ORGANIZATIONS
Adult Learning Seminars (10 courses equaling 22 credit hours)
- DCM 313 LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE AND SELF-ASSESSMENT
- DCM 314 LEARNING AND TRANSFORMATION
- DCM 315 EXPLORING THE FIELD
- DCM 316 WORK IN A GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT or FA 117 WORK IN A GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
- DCM 317 ETHICS IN THE PROFESSIONS
- DCM 318 SOCIAL JUSTICE IN THE PROFESSIONS
- DCM 319 CREATIVITY AND INNOVATIVE THINKING
- DCM 320 PROFESSIONAL PORTFOLIO DEVELOPMENT
- DCM 321 CAPSTONE PLANNING
- DCM 322 CAPSTONE PROJECT/PORTFOLIO REVIEW
Open Electives
Additional Open Electives credit may be required to meet the minimum graduation requirement of 192 credit hours. Open Electives can be fulfilled through courses offered by the School of Continuing and Professional Studies and other DePaul colleges, transfer courses, assessment of prior learning (PLA), and independent studies.
Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to:
- Analyze and apply knowledge and theories of behavioral sciences.
- Investigate problems using qualitative and quantitative methods.
- Apply ethical principles in context.
- Explain the value of social justice in behavioral settings.
- Utilize principles of reflective practice in behavioral science.
- Analyze and apply different liberal arts perspectives.