Bachelor of Arts in Family Studies – Concentration in Marriage & Family

Why Marriage and Family at ACU?

In addition to a faculty-to-student ratio of 17:1 and a rigorous and biblically-integrated curriculum, ACU’s Family Studies program offers several unique advantages:

• Our unique department is staffed with clinically-active faculty, who are able to provide insightful information based on their vast professional experiences.
• Students will graduate as provisionally Certified Family Life Educators by the National Council on Family Relations.
• This is a terminal degree, therefore students are prepared to enter the workforce or their graduate studies with significant confidence in their educational experiences.
• For over 20 years, many of our graduates have continued their studies to pursue careers as licensed marriage & family therapists, counselors, and social workers.
• Marriage and Family Practicum, Family Counseling, Human Sexuality, Psychology of Marriage.

What will I study?

Following completion of a Bachelor of Arts in Family Studies – Marriage and Family from ACU, students will:

• Be able to identify and evaluate psychological, spiritual, physical, and social contributors to optimal human development
• Be able to evaluate families and their functioning using research and systemic theories
• Be able to design, implement, and evaluate family life education programs
• Explore and evaluate societal issues that impact families
• Explore career options

Undergraduate students are introduced to fascinating topics through mandatory and elective courses that are often preserved for graduate studies, including:

• Trauma and families
• Play therapy
• Family structure and dynamics
• Parent/child relations
• Gender studies
• Family resource management
• Grief and loss in families
• Public policy
• Transformational marriage
• Early learning environments
• Poverty

Academic Major Courses

Core requirements accumulate 30 credits, 15 credits of General Biblical and Theological Studies courses, and 8 credits of foreign language courses. 3 credits of Upper Division Biblical and Theological Studies electives are required.

• FAM 200 Family Resource Management 3
• FAM 316 Family Structure and Function 3
• PSY 320 Cross-Cultural Counseling 3
• FAM 332 Public Policy and the Family 3
• FAM 425 Parent/Child Relations 3
• FAM 435 Family Life Education 3
• FAM 490 Family Studies Capstone 3
• PSY 202 General Psychology 3
• FAM 312 Human Development 3
• FAM 400 Human Sexuality 3
• FAM 430 Principles of Family Counseling 3
• FAM 440 Gender Studies 3
• FAM 497 Internship 3

Choose One

• FAM 420 Psychology of Marriage
• FAM 421 Transformational Marriage 3

Graduates are well-equipped to continue their education to become licensed marriage and family therapists, and children’s counselors, pursue family law careers or advance their careers in social work, child life, or ministry. This is perhaps the broadest of the three programs, preparing students for careers in child protective services, public policy lobbyist, community organizer, family intervention, parent aid, family and children’s ministries, and victim-witness advocate.

• Marriage and Family Therapists
• Children’s Therapists
• Trauma Therapists
• Social Workers
• Child Behavioral Specialists
• Case Managers
• Ministries (Family, Children’s, Women’s)
• Motivational Speakers
• Victim Witness Advocates
• Child Protective Services
• Public Policy and Lobbying (i.e., sex trafficking, child protection)
• Coaching

Graduate education preparation for programs such as Marriage and Family Therapy, Family Law, Health Care Administration, Ministry, Public Policy, Counseling, and Family Studies.