Bachelor of Social Sciences in Environmental & Development Studies (General) External Degree

THE BACKGROUND TO THE PROGRAM

Since the existing external degree program conducted by the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences is mainly focused on a common B.A. general degree incooperating all subjects offered by the individual departments, a huge number of students are awarded only one common degree annually. It was explored that those external degree holders are not in keeping with the national requirements as well as their individual performance in higher studies and in the competition of job market. Therefore the Department of Geography has decided to improve the quality and relevance of external degrees by introducing new inter-disciplinary degree programme with the coordination of multiple disciplines. It is believed that external students would be enhanced effectively in keeping the contemporary requirements for the developing process of Sri Lanka. It will enhance the prime essentials in relation to Sri Lankan developmental activities such as the inter-sectoral coordination and sustainable development.

RATIONALE

With the culmination of North and East war, Sri Lanka is progressing towards rapid development process and there is an immense social, economical environmental and cultural transition in Sri Lankan setting due to this development process. In this context, requirement of capable human resources who will assist and contribute to this regional and national development process is an essential prerequisite in order to have an efficient and sustainable development. Therefore, this degree program expected to contribute to the current rapid development process in Sri Lanka through capacity building of Sri Lankan human resources who will ensure the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of such development projects. This course is focused on theoretical background of environment and development studies and provides knowledge of application of these concepts in related and diverse fields.

OBJECTIVES

The main objectives of introducing this degree program are as follows:

• To provide basic theoretical background of environment and development.
• To guide prospective external graduates to gain skills of practical application of above fields that will assist the formulation of planning of development activities.
• To provide guidance to combine regional development and environmental sustainability in the development planning and implementation processes.
• To give an insight on value of inter-sectoral co-ordination in development planning and implementation processes.
• To develop positive attitudes of prospective external graduates who will enhance their contribution to development process of Sri Lanka.

COURSE OUTLINE

The Graduate Profile is a description of the personal qualities, skills and attributes a student is expected to obtain by the end of an undergraduate degree programme. The FHSSs intends to equip the students with the following skills and attitudes in order to build up a productive graduate. Such students will have both specialist knowledge and general intellectual and life skills that equip them for employment and lay the foundations for a lifetime of continuous personal development which is necessary for national development.

• Intellectual skills through the main subjects offered by the degree programme.

• Practical skills in the application of theoretical knowledge for various purposes.

• Communication skills required for being effective employers, employees, social worker or as a responsible citizen.

• ICT skills required for research, project planning and implementation.

• Analytical skills to identify and deal with problems and solving problems effectively.

• Other soft skills required for working and living in a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and international communities.

• Attitudes required for working with people and organizations in a humane, innovative and sociable manner.

GRADUATEPROFILE

The Graduate Profile is a description of the personal qualities, skills and attributes a student is expected to obtain by the end of an undergraduate degree programme. The FHSSs intends to equip the students with the following skills and attitudes in order to build up a productive graduate. Such students will have both specialist knowledge and general intellectual and life skills that equip them for employment and lay the foundations for a lifetime of continuous personal development which is necessary for national development.

• Intellectual skills through the main subjects offered by the degree programme.
• Practical skills in the application of theoretical knowledge for various purposes.
• Communication skills required for being effective employers, employees, social worker or as a responsible citizen.
• ICT skills required for research, project planning and implementation.
• Analytical skills to identify and deal with problems and solving problems effectively.
• Other soft skills required for working and living in a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and international communities.
• Attitudes required for working with people and organizations in a humane, innovative and sociable manner.

Entry Qualifications 

Click here to view / download entry qualifications