Program Requirements
Typical Program
Degree/Certificate:     Associate in Arts
HEGIS Code:             5649
SUNY Code:              1120
Major Code:              LAHS
The NCCC Approach
The Humanities and Social Science curriculum at Niagara County Community College includes the foundation courses for many college majors. The information, concepts and attitudes conveyed in these courses are easily applied to any career goal.
The Humanities and Social Science curriculum is designed to allow maximum flexibility in creating a program. Such a broad-based liberal arts curriculum is appropriate for students who plan to transfer into a bachelor’s degree program in fields such as anthropology, economics, English, history, modern languages, philosophy, psychology, social sciences, sociology or international studies. The majority of graduates from this curriculum transfer to complete a bachelor’s degree.
The Humanities and Social Science curriculum is also appropriate for students with a more specific career direction. Careers such as architecture, childhood education, chiropractic, exceptional education, government or legal studies, management science, occupational therapy, physical therapy and secondary education begin with a liberal arts base.
The flexibility of the Humanities and Social Science curriculum is also appropriate for students who are undecided on a career pathway and who wish to explore several academic areas.
Suggested Associate in Arts Study Areas or Fields of Academic Interest
By appropriate course selection in consultation with an academic adviser, a student pursuing the Liberal Arts and Sciences: Humanities and Social Science degree may prepare for transfer to upper-division study in subject areas such as those listed below:
	
		
			American Studies 
			Anthropology 
			Childhood Education 
			Criminal Justice 
			Dance 
			Economics 
			English 
			Exceptional Education 
			Health Education 
			History | 
			International Studies 
			Management 
			Modern Languages 
			Philosophy 
			Physical Education 
			Pre-Law 
			Psychology 
			Secondary Education 
			Sociology 
			Urban Planning | 
		
	
These study areas are provided as examples of ways in which a student can pursue individual academic interests in a variety of fields. The student’s choice of study within the Liberal Arts and Sciences: Humanities and Social Science degree is not restricted to the interest areas listed. Individual plans of study can be constructed in consultation with the student’s academic adviser. In addition, the student should meet with his/her academic adviser with regard to course sequences, prerequisites and completion of degree requirements.
Admission
Students admitted in fall, spring and summer.
The Liberal Arts and Sciences: Humanities and Social Science (LAHS) program is offered as a full-time day program, part-time evening program or online program. Because of the sequencing of courses, it may take longer than eight semesters to complete the part-time evening program or four semesters to complete the full-time day program if a student begins in a spring or summer semester. The LAHS program is also available as a degree that can be completed through distance learning.
Dual Admissions
SUNY College at Brockport
SUNY College at Buffalo
SUNY College at Fredonia
SUNY at Buffalo
SUNY Institute of Technology at Utica/Rome
Niagara University
Articulation Agreements
	
		
			SUNY College at Brockport 
			SUNY College at Buffalo 
			SUNY College at Cortland 
			SUNY College/Empire State 
			SUNY College at Fredonia 
			SUNY College at Oneonta 
			SUNY College at Oswego 
			SUNY at Buffalo | 
			SUNY Institute of Technology at Utica/Rome 
			Canisius College 
			Hilbert College 
			Medaille College 
			Niagara University 
			Palmer College of Chiropractic Medicine | 
		
	
Program Goals and Objectives
	- While pursuing the AA degree, students achieve a general knowledge of the liberal arts by taking a variety of courses from several Liberal Arts disciplines. LAHS students have opportunities to develop their abilities to think critically, to learn research methods using a variety of data bases, to work cooperatively with others and to synthesize and communicate the knowledge and skills they have acquired in their study of the LAHS.
 
	- Students are given the opportunity to receive in-depth instruction in a specific discipline within LAHS. Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences provides students with a wide range of opportunities for understanding and analyzing human behavior and individual experiences. In this manner students may grasp the inter-connectedness of these disciplines while investigating the perspectives of their chosen field of study. Such study embraces past, present and future human societies as legitimate objects of inquiry.
 
	- Graduates are prepared for acceptance as transfer students into a bachelor’s degree program.
 
	- Students have the opportunity to meet all of the SUNY General Education Requirements through careful advisement and choice of electives.
 
Program Learning Outcomes
	- Students will demonstrate a capacity for critical response to texts and for reasoned analysis and logical thinking. Students will recognize arguments supported by observation and experience. They will recognize and use the fundamental methods of the disciplines, including application as well as analysis and synthesis.
 
	- Students will demonstrate effective communication skills. They will assimilate ideas and shape them clearly and accurately, so they are appropriate for the audience and purpose. Effective communication includes the use of spoken and written Standard English. This goal presupposes effective listening and reading–skills that are included under the outcome of critical thinking.
 
	- Students will demonstrate research skills. They will be proficient in the library and with the online techniques of the Information Age. They will be able to locate relevant information and be able to evaluate their sources.
 
	- Students will demonstrate an appreciation of cultural diversity. The LAHS curriculum is designed for the study of diverse cultures and subcultures within American Society as well as cultures throughout the world.
 
	- Students will demonstrate an appreciation for an historical perspective. History is an essential component of a liberal arts education because the ideas and events of the past determine to a large extent how people think and live today.
 
	- Students will demonstrate aesthetic appreciation and development. Students will find new avenues for self-expression and a richer understanding of the human condition by exploring the artistic dimensions of life. The comparative study of the fine arts and literature yields deep and useful insights into cultural patterns and diversity of expression.
 
	- Students will demonstrate an integrated perspective on mathematics and science. Mathematics and scientific advancement has been a cornerstone of Western Civilization since the Renaissance. They are rapidly becoming a hallmark of a larger World Civilization.
 
	- Students will demonstrate an appreciation for physical health and well being. Since ancient times, there has been an appreciation of the necessary link between a healthy body and an active, inquiring mind. LAHS students will develop this appreciation through course work that extends their understanding and practice of techniques promoting personal well-being and a healthy lifestyle.
 
Transfer
To promote smooth transfer to bachelor degree programs, faculty members at NCCC have consulted with faculty at colleges to which our students transfer. Together we have identified courses which meet the requirements of the Liberal Arts and Sciences: Humanities and Social Science (associate in arts) degree at NCCC and which are parallel to required courses at the transfer college.
Graduates of the Liberal Arts and Sciences: Humanities and Social Science curriculum have transferred to a wide range of programs to pursue a bachelor degree. A sample of the colleges and programs to which they have transferred, based on follow-up studies of recent graduates and information from SUNY, is listed below.
Academy of Art College
Fine Arts
Art Institute
Interactive Media Design
Buffalo State College
	
		
			Childhood Education 
			Communication 
			Criminal Justice 
			Education 
			Elementary Education 
			English 
			Exceptional Education 
			Geology/Earth Science 
			Graphic Design 
			Health and Wellness Education 
			History 
			Mechanical Engineering Technology | 
			Political Science 
			Psychology 
			Public Communication 
			Radiology 
			Secondary Education 
			Secondary English Education 
			Secondary Social Studies Education 
			Social Studies Education 
			Sociology 
			Speech Pathology | 
		
	
Canisius College
English
Christ The King Seminary
Youth Ministry
D’Youville College
History Education
Daemen College
Childhood Education
Psychology
Empire State College
Social Science
Ithaca College
English
Medaille College
Business Administration
Health and Human Services
Veterinary Technician
Mountain State University
Administrator of Criminal Justice
Niagara University
	
		
			|   | 
			Liberal Arts 
			English Education 
			Psychology 
			Math Education 5-12 
			Business Administration 
			Education 
			Elementary Education | 
			History/Social Work 
			Special Education 
			History Education 
			Accounting 
			Secondary Education 
			Political Science 
			Tourism | 
		
	
Sacramento State College
Early Childhood Development
SUNY at Brockport
Business Management
Journalism
English/Elementary Education
Physical Education
Communication
SUNY at Buffalo
	
		
			|   | 
			Speech Therapy 
			Business Administration 
			Philosophy 
			Anthropology 
			Math 
			Psychology 
			English | 
			Sports Medicine 
			Sociology 
			History 
			Social Sciences-Legal Studies 
			Political Science 
			Secondary Education | 
		
	
SUNY at Cortland
Early Childhood Education
Elementary Education
SUNY at Geneseo
Elementary Education
SUNY at Oswego
Adolescent Education
Trocaire College
Registered Nursing