COURSE CURRICULUM

The Emergency Management bachelor’s program is a multidisciplinary degree designed to prepare students for leadership roles in disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation across both natural and human-made hazards. The program requires completion of 40 credits of University Core Curriculum, which includes foundational courses in writing, communication, mathematics, laboratory science, psychology, historical and cultural studies, creative arts, and interdisciplinary learning through the UNCommon Course, along with advanced writing for business and industry and additional Tier 2 electives that strengthen analytical and communication skills. The major curriculum builds professional expertise through a combination of criminal justice, public administration, homeland security, emergency response, and disaster science courses, starting with foundational subjects such as introduction to criminal justice, media and technology, emergency scene operations, and the National Incident Management System. Students then progress into specialized areas including hazard mapping and modeling, infrastructure protection, technology in emergency management, hazard risk management, emergency planning, disaster recovery, and the disaster lifecycle. Advanced coursework focuses on breaking the disaster cycle, response to complex emergencies, emergency management leadership, building emergency exercises, and the economics of disasters, providing both strategic and operational understanding of how disasters impact societies and how recovery systems are designed. The program also includes critical security and homeland defense components such as introduction to homeland security, problem solving and critical thinking in national security, and pre-internship professional preparation, along with public administration foundations that support governance and policy understanding. Practical experience is emphasized through an internship requirement and leadership seminar that prepares students for real-world emergency management roles. Students are also required to complete 18 credits of free electives, allowing flexibility to explore related fields. Overall, the program equips graduates with the ability to analyze complex incidents, coordinate multi-agency responses, design emergency plans, assess risks, and lead disaster response efforts in government agencies, public safety organizations, and homeland security environments.