SMC to Add Three New BA Options in Fall 2026

Criminal Justice, IT, and Education Join Curriculum

Jeremy Handel

Staff Writer

Spartanburg Methodist College continues to grow its curriculum, adding three new degree options this fall to address in-demand career needs and student desires.

A Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice and two new concentrations for the college’s customizable Bachelor of Arts in Multidisciplinary Studies (BAMS) program – Information Technology (IT) and Education – will be added to the college’s degree mix.

“We are being very deliberate in our growth at SMC, adding programs that our students are asking for and the community is in need of,” said Dr. Curt Laird, Provost and Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs at SMC. “Criminal justice, information technology, and education are three areas we feel we can make a difference in developing more workplace-ready graduates.”

The criminal justice degree will be offered exclusively online and will provide an in-depth understanding of the world of criminal justice. From law enforcement to investigation to the history of criminal justice, students will dive into the law and how to apply it. The degree expands on the criminal justice concentration the College currently offers in the BAMS program.

The two new concentrations will both be a part of the customizable BAMS programs, which offers students a broader education with specialization in two chosen topics. The IT concentration will be available online and will teach graduates the basics needed to pursue an IT career. The education concentration will be offered on campus and give students a start toward pursuing a career in education.

“It’s important to us to meet our students where they are to take them where they want to be,” said SMC President Scott Cochran. “That starts with providing the nurturing, supportive environment they need and ends with providing them with the degree programs they want combined with the professional skills they need to confidently move into the workplace. That’s the way college should be.”

All three degree options will join the SMC line-up starting with the fall 2026 semester.