Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) is an integrated discipline that serves families and individuals by providing holistic, interdisciplinary, integrative, and preventative perspectives in addressing the needs of individuals and families as consumers.
FCS views families as the fundamental social unit and understanding individuals and families is central to each FCS major offered. Specifically, the mission of Family and Consumer Sciences is 鈥渢o prepare students to engage the culture and offer solutions to problems faced by individuals, families, and communities that involve food, clothing, shelter, and relationships. Our graduates become scientists, designers, merchandisers, counselors, leaders, and educators in the apparel, interiors, and food and nutrition fields.
Find out more about this department鈥檚 mission, vision, and learning outcomes.
Individual and Family Development (BA)
The Individual and Family Development major is intended to prepare you to understand individuals and families, and to use your knowledge to affect the direction of our culture through human services in business, social service, and educational settings.
- A minimum 66 credits are required for this major, including 25 upper-division credits.
- This major includes elective upper-division coursework in sociology, psychology, and health sciences.
- This major requires completion of the Family and Consumer Sciences Core, which includes:
- FCS 1050 鈥淚ntroduction to FCS,鈥 completed in your freshman or sophomore year. (If you are a transfer student, you may complete this in your junior year.
- FCS 3240 鈥淚ndividual and Family Development,鈥 completed after FCS 1050.
- FCS 4899 鈥淪enior Capstone,鈥 completed after FCS3240, and during your senior year.
- You may combine this major with the FCS Secondary Education major.
- A minimum of 30 credits are required for the minor, including 15 upper-division credits.
Family and Consumer Sciences Secondary Education (BA)
The BA in Family and Consumer Sciences Secondary Education prepares you to teach individual and family life skills 鈥 including personal finance, health, human development, fashion, and nutrition. When you complete required courses in the major, you also meet endorsement standards in Secondary Certification, and Career and Technical Secondary Certification.
- A minimum 75 credits are required for this major, including 25 upper-division credits.
- Prior to applying for this major, you must complete at least three FCS courses.
- When you complete the required courses in this major, you also meet state standards for certification in FCS Career and Technical Education.
- If you are seeking Certification With Secondary Education Endorsement in Family and Consumer Education, you must meet the requirements of the teacher education program. Review the School of Education鈥檚 complete FCS Secondary Education Requirements.
- This degree requires completion of the Family and Consumer Sciences Core, which includes:
- FCS 1050 鈥淚ntroduction to FCS,鈥漜ompleted in your freshman or sophomore year. (If you are a transfer student, you may complete this in your junior year.)
- FCS 3240 鈥淚ndividual and Family Development,鈥 completed after FCS 1050.
- FCS 4899 鈥淪enior Capstone,鈥 completed after FCS 3240, and during your senior year.
- You will have met endorsement standards in Secondary Certification, and Career and Technical Secondary Certification when you complete the required courses in the major.
- You may combine this major with the Individual and Family Development major.
Food and Nutritional Sciences (BS)
- A minimum 88鈥115 credits are required for this major, including 25 upper-division credits.
- You must complete one of the three emphases for the BS degree in Food and Nutritional Sciences:
- Dietetics Emphasis; Food and Nutritional Emphasis; or Sports and Exercise Emphasis.
- This major requires completion of the Family and Consumer Sciences Core, which includes:
- FCS 1050 鈥淚ntroduction to FCS,鈥 completed during your freshman or sophomore year. (If you are a transfer student, you may complete this in your junior year.)
- FCS 3240 鈥淚ndividual and Family Development,鈥 completed after FCS 1050.
- FCS 4899 鈥淪enior Capstone,鈥 completed after FCS 3240 and during your senior year.
- For admission to the Food and Nutrition major, you are required to complete the following courses with a grade of C- or higher:
- BIO 2129, BIO 2130; CHM 1310, CHM 1330, CHM 1360; FCS 1050, and FCS 2365 or FCS 3340.
- An overall GPA of 3.0 or higher is required for application to the Dietetics emphasis.
- An overall GPA of 2.5 or higher is required for application to the Food and Nutritional Sciences emphasis.
- An overall GPA of 2.5 or higher is required for application to the Sports and Exercise emphasis.
- You should complete the prerequisite courses in chemistry, biology, and Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS 1050 and FCS 2365 or FCS 3340) by your junior year.
- A minimum of 30 credits are required for the minor, including 15 upper-division credits.
Dietetics Emphasis
The Dietetics emphasis, also known as the Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD), is approved by the (ACEND). After you complete the DPD and the baccalaureate degree, you are awarded the DPD Verification.
If you intend to become a registered dietitian (RD), you must also complete a dietetic internship and pass the national registration examination for dietetics offered by the .
Appointments to dietetic internships are awarded on a competitive basis. Additional information on educational requirements, the RD credential and a listing of dietetic internships is available from the .
Dietetics Emphasis for Post-baccalaureate Students
If you are a post-baccalaureate student seeking DPD Verification, your course requirements are identical to those of the Dietetics emphasis, except that a 5-credit course of introductory psychology, sociology, or anthropology must also be completed. FCS 1050 鈥淚ntroduction to FCS鈥 and FCS 3240 鈥淚ndividual and Family Development鈥漚re not required.
If you are a post-baccalaureate student who鈥檚 seeking a second bachelor鈥檚 degree in addition to DPD Verification, you must complete the requirements listed above, as well as the following:
- At least 45 credits from SPU as a matriculated student.
- At least 15 upper-division credits in the major.
- Five credits in Christian Scriptures or Christian Theology
Your previous academic work, if completed within the last seven years, will be considered for meeting DPD requirements. A transcript review by the DPD director will determine the courses that you must complete to fulfill requirements.
If you are completing the requirements for a second baccalaureate degree, you may be eligible for federal student financial aid; non-degree students are not eligible for financial aid.
Apparel Design (BA)
This major is designed to train you for a broad range of careers, such as apparel designer, fabric coordinator, apparel/textiles quality control manager, art director, pattern-maker, costume technician for films and plays, curator, and entrepreneur.
- A minimum 75 credits are required for this major, including 25 upper-division credits.
- You may apply to the Apparel Design major upon completion of at least three FCS courses with an overall GPA of 2.5 or higher.
- This major requires completion of the Family and Consumer Sciences Core, which includes:
- FCS 1050 鈥淚ntroduction to FCS,鈥 completed in your freshman or sophomore year. (If you are a transfer student, you may complete this in your junior year.)
- FCS 3240 鈥淚ndividual and Family Development,鈥 completed after FCS 1050.
- FCS 4899 鈥淪enior Capstone,鈥 completed after FCS 3240 and during your senior year.
- In FCS 4846 鈥淐AD for Apparel Portfolio,鈥 you will have the opportunity to create a professional apparel design portfolio through CAD.
- A minimum 31 credits in FCS courses are required for this minor, including 18鈥23 upper-division credits.
Apparel Merchandising (BA)
This major is designed to train you for a broad range of careers, such as retail buyer, entrepreneur, sales manager, marketing director, fashion coordinator, production manager, visual merchandiser, image consultant, business owner, fashion stylist, and store manager.
Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)
If you are majoring in one of the Clothing and Textiles programs and have maintained a minimum 3.0 GPA, you may select from nine additional specializations if you are accepted into the liaison program with the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.
Specializations offered through the liaison program with FIT include these:
- Accessories design
- Advertising and communication
- Advertising design
- Manufacturing management
- Fashion design
- Fashion buying and merchandising
- Jewelry design
- Textile/surface design
- Textile development and marketing
If you are considering this option, speak with your academic counselor and faculty advisor early in your academic career in order to meet the requirements of both FIT and SPU.
Interior Design and/or Interior Merchandising (BA)
You may earn a BA in Interior Design and/or Interior Merchandising.
Curriculum for the Interior Design major educates and trains you for a variety of entry-level positions in interior design such as residential, commercial, and hospitality design, and in specialization areas such as lighting.
Curriculum for the Interior Merchandising major educates and trains you for a variety of entry-level positions in retail or wholesale operations, sales, and promotion components of merchandising products used in interior spaces such as furniture, textiles, and lighting.
- A minimum 91鈥110 credits are required for these majors, including 25 upper-division credits.
- In either major, your courses will involve interdisciplinary courses with art; business; and family and consumer sciences.
- These majors require completion of the Family and Consumer Sciences Core, which includes:
- FCS 1050 鈥淚ntroduction to FCS,鈥 completed in your freshman or sophomore year. (If you are a transfer student, you may complete this in your junior year.)
- FCS 3240 鈥淚ndividual and Family Development,鈥 completed after FCS 1050.
- FCS 4899 鈥淪enior Capstone,鈥 completed after FCS 3240 and during your senior year.
- You can apply directly for admission into either Interior majors, but a maximum of 16 students will be accepted into the Interior Design major each year.
- Principles of universal design and sustainability are integrated into all your studio courses.
- A student Interior Design Club is on campus to assist you as you prepare for entrance into the professional design community.
Apply聽to the聽Major or Minor
- You should apply for a major or minor by your junior year.
- Your application is due on or before the first Friday of Autumn, Winter, or Spring quarter.
- Applications for all majors and minors, except Interior Design, are reviewed once per quarter.
- Interior Design major applications are reviewed only once per year. This application is due on or before April 10.
- Faculty must approve all admission to the majors and minors.
- Your overall GPA must be a minimum of 2.5 for admission to the major for Apparel Design, Fashion Merchandising, Individual and Family Development, or Family and Consumer Science Secondary Education.
- In the Food and Nutritional Sciences major, your must have a minimum overall GPA of 3.0 for admission to the Dietetics emphasis; for the Food and Nutritional Sciences emphasis and the Sports and Exercise emphasis, your must have a minimum overall GPA of 2.5.
- Application to one of these majors or minors may be made through the . You must complete the major or minor requirements in effect when you are admitted to the major or minor.
Certification With Elementary Education Endorsement
- If you plan to teach in an elementary school and are interested in teaching health and fitness, you must major in the Integrated Studies major with a concentration in Health and Fitness.
- The concentration consists of courses in nutrition, health, and physical education.
- You can (PDF) through the advisor for the Health and Fitness Concentration, Dr. JoAnn Atwell-Scrivner (jaas@spu.edu).
- Further information about the Elementary Certification Program is available in the School of Education.