Minors

Minor in Childhood Studies

The interdisciplinary minor in childhood studies is designed for students who have a child-related focus in their major and for those who want to explore the topic of childhood. This minor focuses on the study of issues concerning children and their representations, including their experiences in society within historical and contemporary cultures and global contexts.

Minor in Leadership

The interdisciplinary minor in leadership prepares students for transformative leadership in campus, local, national, and global contexts. Interdisciplinary and integrative classes examine leadership from multiple perspectives and disciplines, offering an understanding of socially-responsible leadership with an emphasis on community action.

Minor in Nonprofit Studies

The interdisciplinary minor in nonprofit studies is designed to introduce students to the theoretical foundations and practical skills needed to be successful in this sector. Through heavy emphasis on experiential learning with the many excellent nonprofit organizations in our region, students learn to apply theory within the context of today's complex and rapidly changing environment.

Minor in Social Justice and Human Rights

The minor in social justice engages students in both a critical examination of various forms of injustice (such as poverty, racism, and speciesism, and environmental degradation) and an exploration of strategies for creating and sustaining an equitable and just world. The minor is interdisciplinary in nature, drawing on disciplines as distinct as critical race studies, critical animal studies, and environmental science. It is designed particularly to help students consider the intersectional nature of all types of exploitation and their related movements for liberation.

Minor in Well-Being

The minor in well-being provides students with a comprehensive exploration of the science and personal practices that cultivate enhanced self-awareness, resilience, mind-body wellness, the regulation of stress factors, and an emerging sense of meaning for their lives.

Minor in Human Development and Family Science (CHSS)

This highly relevant and contemporary minor is a 15-credit interdisciplinary program designed especially for students who are interested in how individuals develop and how to improve the quality of life for families and communities. You’ll explore the psychological, social, cultural, and biological development of individuals from conception through adulthood and aging, within the contexts of their families, communities, and the broader society. This is a joint minor in the College of Education and Human Development and the College of Humanities and Social Science. 

Minor in Conservation Studies (CHSS)

The Minor in Conservation Studies is designed for undergraduate students who wish to augment their main academic program with conservation studies taught in an experiential manner.

All requirements for this minor can be fulfilled by successful completion (C or higher in all courses) of any one of the three, semester-long residential programs at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA.  Students choose between:

  • Conservation, Biodiversity and Society is offered both in the Spring and Fall and explores the ways that science, management and policy address current conservation issues in and out of the field.
  • Wildlife Ecology and Conservation is offered every Fall and helps students apply cutting-edge field techniques to survey species in the wild and investigate ecological patterns and processes from local to global scales.
  • Endangered Species Conservation is offered every Spring and enables students to evaluate vulnerabilities of small populations and develop successful conservation actions to save them from extinction.

The semesters are offered jointly by the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the College of Science under the auspices of the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation and students are taught by GMU faculty, Smithsonian scientists and other practitioners.