Gerontology Degrees in New Jersey - NJ

Gerontology is the interdisciplinary study of the social, physical and biological attributes of aging in humans, focusing on ways to create environments that allow those growing older to main quality of life. In addition to being an academic discipline, gerontology degree programs in New Jersey can also encompass public policy issues and issues related to providing services to elderly clients. As such, this is a far-reaching field of study that touches many professions. The gerontology degree programs in New Jersey offer those who are interested in the elderly or who already work in this field ample opportunity to enhance their knowledge and skills. A gerontology program in New Jersey is designed to introduce students to the biology of aging, the psychology of the elderly, sociology of the aging population and issues and challenges surrounding death and dying. Students explore issues related to the identity change, caregiving, the right to die, and the bio-psychological-social changes that affect the body and the mind of all of us and how these changes can lead to a loss of independence, and sometimes, role reversals between parent and child and how this can impact a family unit.   Specific courses such as the psychology include a chronological, cross-cultural study of life stages--middle age, old age, and death--as experienced in terms of crises in life patterns and changing social institutions. In addition, students studying gerontology are mandated to work with the elderly under the supervision of a qualified supervisor, obtaining hands-on field experience in a practicum.