- Students learn the issues and challenges of aging while providing care and support for older adults and coordinating their events and activities.
- Students will join a Program of Merit, designated by the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, and the only gerontology program approved by the Coordinating Board of Higher Education in Missouri.
- Students will be prepared to work in a variety of industries serving the diverse, growing demographic of older adults.
- MSU’s small, student-centered environment fosters valuable faculty-student mentorship.
- Students can earn a double-major in gerontology and psychology with no additional coursework, increasing their marketability.
- Aging is natural. Faculty in the gerontology program at Missouri State delivers a comprehensive and applied program focusing on the study of aging and age-related issues.
- This interdisciplinary program prepares students for work in diverse areas, including education, social services, and business, and for further graduate studies.
- Learning outcomes:
- An understanding of human aging as a combination of psychological, social, and biological processes.
- Sufficient familiarity with the methods of gerontological research, the ability to apply research methods in a concrete setting, and the knowledge to evaluate their use by others in the field of gerontology.
- Knowledge of the different theories and principles within gerontology as an interdisciplinary science and the ability to apply this knowledge in a setting working with older adults.
- An awareness of the historical record of gerontology's development as an interdisciplinary science devoted to an understanding of the issues affecting the aging process.
- A recognition of the practical and ethical issues involved in studying gerontological phenomena and working with older adults.
- An ability to express and communicate gerontological knowledge to others in both written and oral form.
- A recognition of how gerontology can inform analysis of social policy and is applied in the public and private sectors.
- The academic background necessary to practice in the field of aging or to pursue graduate work in gerontology.
- Ability to communicate effectively with older adults and professionals in the field of aging.