AUS Undergraduate Studies

Undergraduate Studies

Undergraduate Studies at AUS encompasses two upper division/ transfer degree completion programs for adult learners, plus a lower division certificate for early childhood educators. It also houses the Clemente Veterans Initiative. All AUS undergraduate programs share a passion for personal growth combined with discerning and enacting one’s place responding to societal needs, a dynamic integration of experience with theoretical analysis, a progressive commitment to racial, economic and environmental justice, and pathways to further education. In Undergraduate Studies we form learning communities to pose questions, explore different perspectives and dialog together; to listen to, challenge and bear witness to one another as we further our own educational and career goals.  

BA in Liberal Studies, with concentrations

The BA in Liberal Studies degree offers a great deal of flexibility to learners who want to combine a meaningful academic education with personally and socially relevant studies that further educational and career goals, providing a pathway to life dreams.  Liberal Studies builds from current life experience and college credits, to help you refine competencies that will support you to be successful in whatever field you choose for future work and/or graduate school. 

For most students, the area of academic concentration is the most important part of this degree, the place where head meets heart meets your future.  The area of concentration is what speaks to you by way of passionate interest.  It is what calls to you by way of vocation. It is an essential aspect of your identity. The Liberal Studies degree offers 8 academic concentrations, plus an individualized option:

• Arts & Literature: Whether it be through creative writing, visual arts or another creative discipline, you will gain a critical understanding of creative expression in historical, societal, cultural and contemporary context.
• Communication & Media: Envision media as an agent of change to understand the profound effect that media of all forms have on today’s society.
• Education: This area emphasizes models for transformative education, and the need for equity, justice and systems reforms throughout all forms and levels of education.
• Global & Social Justice Studies: This concentration highlights the crucial role social movements play in creating a more equitable and peaceful world, while preparing students to more effectively shape the world we live in today.
• Leadership & Sustainable Business: Emphasizes adaptive leadership, entrepreneurial innovation, social responsibility and financial resilience within a just global economy.
• Psychology & Counseling: Learn how mind, body and emotions interact and how you can help others while pursuing a meaningful career.
• Spiritual Studies: Designed for those who want to study a variety of religious traditions and engage spiritual questions about our contemporary world.
• Urban Ecology: A highly interdisciplinary concentration that engages students in the study of food systems/urban agriculture, environmental justice, political economy, cultural studies, education, urban policy studies and social change. 
• Individualized: Develop an individually-tailored curriculum that fits your particular passions.  We will work with you to develop a specific degree concentration that achieves the learning necessary to accomplish your goals.

The Liberal Studies degree invites students to explore themselves, their communities, and the broader world. It requires a minimum of 36 quarter transfer credits; a total of 180-quarter credits; a minimum of 60 upper division credits (maximum 120 lower division credits). A minimum of 45 residency credits must be earned at Antioch. Degree requirements include liberal arts coursework, and an academic concentration of at least 40 credits, which can be met with a combination of transfer credits, prior learning credits and current Antioch University credits. Successful applicants to an Antioch MA program may overlap 12 credits of their BA with the first 12 credits of their masters degree. 

Applicants to AUS BA degree completion programs are expected to have the following:

• A minimum of 36 transferable quarter credits
• Upper division writing and critical thinking skills
• Strong aptitude to work collaboratively with others in an interactive learning environment

BA in Health Counseling & Psychology (HCP)

Health Counseling & Psychology is designed for those interested in working at the intersection of wellness and mental health. It prepares students to meet the growing need for integrated healthcare and mental health workers. The Health Psychology and Counseling major offers evidence-based, wellness-focused, applied education that interweaves theory with solid experience in the field to prepare students for new work possibilities and/or graduate school. 

Embedded in the liberal arts, the HCP degree invites students to explore themselves, their communities, and the broader world. It requires a minimum of 36 quarter transfer credits; a total of 180-quarter credits; a minimum of 60 upper division credits (maximum 120 lower division credits). A minimum of 45 residency credits must be earned at Antioch. Degree requirements include liberal arts coursework, as well as a minimum of 54 credits in the major (27 of which must be upper division), which can be met with a combination of transfer credits, prior learning credits and current Antioch University credits. Successful applicants to an Antioch MA Psychology program may overlap the final 12 credits of their BA with the first 12 credits of their masters degree.

Applicants to AUS BA degree completion programs are expected to have the following:

• A minimum of 36 transferable quarter credits
• Upper division writing and critical thinking skills
• Strong aptitude to work collaboratively with others in an interactive learning environment
• Demonstrated interest in wellness and mental health

Certificate in Culturally Responsive Early Childhood Education 

This lower division certificate program supports early childhood education professionals to advance toward a 4 year degree using knowledge and expertise they already possess. The six-month program combines four current learning courses in reflective practice and writing with earning credit for work experience learnings, also known as prior learning credits. Participants grow their professional networks, expand their repertoire of teaching strategies, and enrich their childhood-learning environments.

Students attend eight, full-day class sessions each quarter, held on weekends, forming a dynamic learning community. Class sessions use the Adult Dual Language Model developed by the Center for Linguistic and Cultural Democracy. For the 22-23 academic year cohorts, half the instruction will be in Spanish and half will be in English. These cohorts are appropriate for both English and Spanish speakers. Bilinguals of other language groups are also welcome. Somali and Cantonese cohorts are planned for the future.

Graduates with this certificate will earn up to 57 credits: 12 current learning credits in writing and reflective practice, plus up to 45 prior learning credits in culturally relevant early childhood education.

Applicants to the Certificate in Culturally Responsive Early Childhood Education are expected to have the following:

• A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in the field
• Evidence of ability to do lower division (100 and 200 level) college courses, which could include any of the following: high school diploma, GED, home school certificate or successful completion of CLEP tests, a college course, or continuing professional education credits.

Clemente Veterans Initiative

The Clemente Veterans Initiative offers classroom learning in the humanities that explores military culture and the experience of war through moral philosophy, U.S. history, and critical writing. In Clemente, participants engage in a learning community that understands veterans’ unique experiences and supports the journey home. Clemente Veterans Initiative is invested in helping veterans continue their education by using the Humanities to achieve both skills and confidence, and is open to all US veterans from all branches, regardless of discharge status, gender, or deployment. The course is free through a selective application process.

Using the Socratic method, Clemente Veterans Initiative emphasizes critical conversations about duty, freedom, honor, glory, grief, and other meaningful aspects of the military experience. In this exclusive program, you will:

• Learn in a community of veterans who understand and support you.
• Experience a college classroom without grades, tests, or prejudice.
• Get one-on-one support from professors who care about your experiences. 
• Earn college credit without using your VA benefits.
• Develop your skills in academic writing and critical thinking

Applicants to the Clemente Veterans Initiative must be active service personnel, or veterans, or veteran-affiliated. 

Current Tuition and Fees

University Tuition and Fees