Major Requirements (52-56 units)

Child Development Core (40-42 units)

Core coursework is organized into three levels - Introductory, Foundational, and Specialized. Courses within each level may be taken concurrently. All courses in a level are prerequisites for the courses in the subsequent level (e.g., all Foundational courses must be completed before taking courses in the Specialized level). Students typically complete a capstone course in their final semester in the program.

Introductory Level

• CDV 150 Introduction to Child Development (3)
• MAT 131 Elementary Statistics & Probability (3) or
• MAT 132 Elementary Statistics & Probability with Algebra Review (4) or
• PSY  230 Elementary Statistical Analysis in Psychology (3)

Foundational Level

• CDV 320 Methods & Analysis in Child Studies and Lab (4) - Prerequisites: CDV 150 & Statistics 
• CDV 325 Infancy and Early Childhood (3)
• CDV 330 The School-age Years (3)
• CDV 360 Adolescence (3)

Specialized Level

*Prerequisites: CDV 320, CDV 325, CDV 330 & CDV 360

Required Core

• CDV 366 Parenting (3)
• CDV 380 Stress, Risk, and Resiliency (3) - Prerequisite for CDV 423 

Diversity Elective (select one course)

• CDV 363 Development in Diverse Contexts (3)* or
• CDV 440 Becoming American: Immigrant Children and Families in the U.S. (3)* or
• CDV 450 Development in Poverty (3)

Specialized Electives (select three courses)

• CDV 370 Jumpstart: Enhancing Literacy in Early Childhood (3) (only available to students who are Jumpstart Corps members)
• CDV 372 Social Development and Interpersonal Relationships (3)
• CDV 423 Child Development and Social Policy (3)
• CDV 442 Marriage, Family, and Community (3)
• CDV 444 Cognition, Language and Schooling (3)
• CDV 462 Atypical Development (3)

* Students may select one additional diversity elective – CDV 363, CDV 440, or CDV 450 as a specialized elective.

Capstone Level (select one course)

• CDV 490 Senior Seminar (3) or
• CDV 492 Seminar in Child Development Research (4) or
• CDV 496 Directed Field Experience (3)* or
• CDV 498 Directed Research (3)

* CDV 496 requires 90 hours of volunteer work at their fieldwork site. 

Concentrations in Child Development Electives (12-14 units)

Students can select one of the following four concentrations

1. Counseling and Family Services
2. Juvenile Delinquency
3. Management and Administration
4. Early Development and Learning

OR Students can choose the General Elective Option. This gives you the most flexibility.