School of Professional Studies

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High quality, flexible courses that meet the needs of the current workplace and helps students to compete successfully in the global marketplace.

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The School of Professional Studies supports the University's mission by expanding access to higher education through student-centered professional and general education programs that promote the values of life-long learning and social and professional responsibility.  Through close interaction with faculty and professional staff, SPS students develop a foundation for professional success or graduate study by cultivating critical thinking, empathy, creativity, and the practical skills necessary to build a more just and sustainable world.   

Features of Our Programs

  • Intensive and continuous advising and support to students as they pursue their degree. 
  • Small classes taught by faculty with academic and professional expertise .
  • The Bachelor of Professional Studies degree can now be completed entirely Online!
  • Innovative courses and programs that meet the needs of anyone seeking a bachelor's degree to enhance their ability to compete in the marketplace or become more promotable within their current company.
Undergraduate Degrees
Majors

Bachelor of Professional Studies in Professional Studies
The BPS in Professional Studies prepares students to operate in professional settings by providing a set of skills-based classes that cultivate the knowledge and abilities needed to succeed in the white-collar world.  Note: Coursework does not count toward School of Business requirements. 

Bachelor of Science in General Studies
The B.S. in General Studies allows you to take an active role in creating your educational experience. Through a flexible curriculum that maximizes your ability to transfer previously earned credit, you can develop an educational learning path custom to  your interests and areas of study. 

Minors

Congregational Leadership
Offered in collaboration with the History & Philosophy Department, the minor in Congregational Leadership is designed for clergy, administrators or others aspiring to holding leadership positions in religious or spiritual organizations. Students who complete the Congregational Leadership minor in conjunction with either B.A. in Philosophy and Religion or the B.P.S. in Professional Studies will be eligible to transfer 12 credits toward the New York Theological Seminary’s M.A. in Religious Leadership and Administration or its M.Div. degree programs.

Entertainment and Sports Management
New York is a hub of the Entertainment Industry and the home of a wide variety of professional, semi-professional, and organized amateur Sports organizations. The minor in Entertainment and Sports Management is designed to give students knowledge and skills to help them enter and succeed in the leadership of these sports enterprises at the professional, semi-professional, and organized amateur levels or to ensure you can deal with leaders in those fields effectively as an agent, player, creator, or in some other capacity.  

microcredentials

Professional Skills for the Workplace
The Professional Skills for the Workplace Microcredential conveys a basic knowledge of how economic enterprises manage their internal operations and market the goods or services they offer.  It is designed to help students preparing to enter the workforce and workers needing to upgrade their skills secure and succeed in positions in the emerging economy.  It consists of one course in management and one in marketing.  Both focus on the applicability of theoretical knowledge to practical situations encountered in the workplace.  Students completing the Microcredential’s requirements will be equipped to contribute useful insights and operational capabilities to the enterprises that employ them.

Workplace Communication and Information Technology
The Workplace Communication and Information Technology Microcredential conveys a basic knowledge of information technology and business communications to help students preparing to enter the workforce and workers needing to upgrade their skills secure and succeed in positions in the emerging economy.  This Micro will consist of one course in communications and one in information technology, which together will give students a theoretical and practical introduction to how to acquire, analyze, and utilize information and communicate with management, peers, and customers. Students completing the Microcredential’s requirements will be equipped to contribute useful insights and operational capabilities to the enterprises that employ them.  

Foundations of Nonprofit Management
The Microcredential in Foundations of Nonprofit Management is designed for students holding or aspiring to leadership positions in nonprofit organizations. It consists of two courses, one on the managerial and the other on financial issues that leaders of nonprofit organizations face. Students successfully completing the requirements of the Microcredential will be prepared to help manage a nonprofit organization’s operations, finances, and planning.

    Bachelors of Professional Studies Now Online!

    Courses offered by the School of Professional Studies are scheduled Online, either Asynchronously (no meetings) or with live lectures through Zoom in the evenings!  

    Courses offered by other schools in the University utilized by programs in the School for Professional Studies may not be available in these ways, but the Liberal Education Requirement can be completed through classes offered online.  

    Most majors offer some courses online that can be taken as general electives.  The School of Professional Studies will advise students on the most efficient way to complete their degree, and appropriate course substitutions can be made with permission of the Director.

    Transfer Students

    Students can apply up to 80 credits earned at other accredited institutions of higher learning toward their Old Westbury degree.  Transfer credits will be applied to degrees offered by the School of Professional Studies based on their appropriateness as determined by the Director, subject to the policies of the University specified in the “Transfer Credit” section of the undergraduate catalog and existing equivalencies and articulation agreements. 


    Credit for Prior Learning

    Credit or prior learning can help students advance as quickly as possible in their studies. The college offers students the opportunity to count credits for prior learning through credit by examination, credit for military training, and credit for experiential learning.

    Credit for prior learning is included in the 80 credit maximum for transfer students. Students must take at least 40 of the 120 credits required for a bachelor’s degree at Old Westbury.

    Non-Credit Professional Development Courses

    Non-credit professional development courses on Paralegal and Legal topics are available in partnership with the Center for Legal Studies.  Students are awarded an Old Westbury Certificate of Completion for each of these courses completed. 

    Professional Studies Inquiry Form

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