A new credential helps students build and highlight focused expertise
Key points:
The first three Intensives are Writing and Responsible AI, Survey Design and Data Analysis, and AI for Molecular Biology.
Each Intensive is earned by completing three courses in a focused area of study.
Completed Intensives appear on a student’s diploma and transcript.
Whatever their major, students often think about how to strengthen their work in a field or broaden their knowledge in a new one — and how to demonstrate that focused work to others. Now they have a new way to do that: by building practical knowledge and skills while earning a credential that appears on a diploma and transcript. This opportunity is available to students throughout the university as USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences introduces its first Intensives.
Each Intensive is earned through a sequence of three courses in a particular area of study. Open to all undergraduates, regardless of major or school, the new credentials give students a way to build knowledge and skills in specific areas of academic and professional interest and demonstrate that focused work to prospective employers or graduate schools.
The first three Intensives are:
- Writing and Responsible AI
- AI for Molecular Biology
- Survey Design and Data Analysis
More information about Intensives, including course options for the first three, is available at dornsife.usc.edu/intensives.
The new credentials give students a powerful way to connect their academic work to areas of growing importance in research, industry and public life, said James Bullock, USC Dornsife’s dean.
“A USC Dornsife education already gives students the ability to think critically, communicate clearly and engage with complex problems,” said Bullock. “Intensives build on that foundation by giving students a focused undergraduate credential in areas that matter right now — and to have that expertise recognized on their diploma and transcript.”
The first three Intensives are only the beginning, said Emily Hodgson Anderson, college dean for undergraduate education.
“We’re excited to expand the program in the next academic year,” said Hodgson Anderson. “We see this as the start of a growing set of opportunities for students across USC to pursue focused study in areas that connect academic depth with the world they’re preparing to enter.”
For students planning their fall schedules, Intensives offer something new to consider: how a set of courses can add up to a credential with lasting value in an increasingly competitive market.
Editor’s note: Jim Key contributed to this article.