Department of Consumer Sciences

Welcome to the Department of Consumer Sciences. The Master of Science in Consumer Sciences is a 30-credit-hour degree program that offers advanced study in two complementary concentration areas: Consumer Economics, and Family Financial Planning and Counseling.  A 15-credit-hour Conflict Resolution certificate is also offered.

​Family Financial Planning and Counseling

The Family Financial Planning and Counseling concentration focuses on the knowledge and skills necessary for a career in financial planning and related careers. The curriculum fulfills the educational requirements to sit for the CFP® certification exam that leads to the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification registered with the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. Students who successfully complete the concentration may sit for the CFP® certification exam that leads to the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification.  The concentration also fulfills the educational requirements to sit for the Accredited Financial Counselor® (AFC®) exam offered by the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education®. Successful completion of a capstone project, practicum, or portfolio is required.

​Consumer Economics

The Consumer Economics concentration offers an applied microeconomics approach to understanding consumers in home and market environments.  This concentration prepares students to continue in a doctoral program or employment in a research-oriented setting investigating consumer decision-making, personal finance, and related family and consumer policy. Successful completion of a thesis is required.

Conflict Resolution Certificate

The 15-credit hour certificate program teaches ways to manage consumer, workplace, and personal conflict through effective communication, emotional intelligence skills, and cooperative problem solving. From a foundation in conflict theory, students learn strategies to prevent, reduce, and resolve conflict with the goal of preserving, and in many cases improving, relationships in home and workplace environments.  

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