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Articles by NU Editorial Contributors
September 12, 2023Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month
As a military-friendly, working, military, and nontraditional student serving institution that has been around for more than 50 years, National University is proud to celebrate the many ways the Hispanic community has enriched our culture at large, and our school in particular. This year, we’re spending National Hispanic Heritage Month reflecting on how we support ...
September 9, 2023Everything You Need to Know About Counseling Psychology
Counseling psychology is a general practice and health service provider specialty that focuses on how patients function in their personal lives and relationships, helping individuals, couples, families, and groups address mental health concerns, relationship issues, career challenges, and life transitions through strengths-based, holistic approaches. Unlike clinical psychology, which tends to concentrate on psychopathology and severe mental illness, counseling psychology emphasizes healthy functioning, personal growth, and the social and vocational dimensions of wellbeing.
September 6, 2023Cybersecurity vs Computer Science: Which One to Choose [Updated 2026]
Computer science is the broad study of algorithms, software development, data structures, and computational theory, equipping graduates to build and create technology across virtually every industry. Cybersecurity is a specialized discipline focused on protecting networks, systems, and data from unauthorized access, attacks, and breaches, equipping graduates to defend technology once it exists. Cybersecurity draws heavily on computer science foundations, but adds specialized knowledge in network security, cryptography, ethical hacking, incident response, and risk management that a general CS degree does not typically cover in depth.
August 25, 2023How to Get into Data Science
Data science is an interdisciplinary field combining mathematics, statistics, computer science, and domain expertise to extract actionable insights from data, powering predictive machine learning models, personalized recommendations, and strategic business decisions across every industry.
August 17, 2023Behaviorism in Education: What Is Behavioral Learning Theory?
Behaviorism in education is a learning theory that explains learning as a change in observable behavior shaped by environmental stimuli, reinforcement, and punishment, focusing on measurable actions rather than internal mental states. Developed in the early 20th century, its key figures are B.F. Skinner, whose operant conditioning framework showed how consequences shape voluntary behavior, Ivan Pavlov, whose classical conditioning work explained learned associations, and John B. Watson, who established the foundational principle that only observable behavior, not mental processes, should be studied.
August 14, 2023Constructivism in Education: What Is Constructivism? Updated 2026
Constructivism is a learning theory that holds that individuals actively construct their own knowledge through environmental and social interactions, rather than passively receiving information, with prior knowledge serving as the foundation on which new understanding is built. The theory has two primary strands: cognitive constructivism, pioneered by Jean Piaget, which focuses on how learners adapt their cognitive structures through assimilation and accommodation in response to new experiences; and social constructivism, developed by Lev Vygotsky, which emphasizes the critical role of social interaction and cultural context in knowledge construction, most notably through the Zone of Proximal Development.
August 10, 2023Computer Science Skills: Definitions and Examples
The most in-demand computer science skills in 2026 combine a technical foundation with rapidly evolving competencies in AI, cloud, and cybersecurity. According to CIO's analysis of Indeed job posting data, AI skills appeared in just over 9% of tech job postings in 2025, up from 5% in 2024, making AI fluency the fastest-growing skill requirement in the field, while Python appeared in nearly 18% of all job listings, driven by its utility across data science, machine learning, web development, and cybersecurity.
August 3, 2023How to Prepare for College
Preparing for college requires balancing academic readiness, logistical coordination, and practical life skills, with the transition being most successful for students who address all three areas before classes begin rather than discovering gaps after arrival.
July 29, 2023Early Childhood Education vs. Elementary Education
Early childhood education (ECE) focuses on the holistic developmental growth of children from birth through age eight, with a strong emphasis on play-based, social-emotional, and sensory learning in settings such as daycares, preschools, and Head Start programs. Elementary education focuses on structured academic instruction in core subjects, reading, math, science, and social studies, for students in kindergarten through fifth or sixth grade within public and private school systems.
July 18, 2023How to Become a Human Resource Manager
A Human Resources (HR) Manager plans, coordinates, and directs an organization's workforce functions, serving as the bridge between executive leadership and employees by overseeing recruitment, compensation and benefits, employee relations, compliance with labor law, and workplace culture. HR managers held approximately 221,900 jobs in 2024 and typically require a bachelor's degree in human resources, business administration, or a related field, along with several years of progressively responsible HR experience.
July 14, 2023Cybersecurity vs. Data Science
Cybersecurity and data science are both high-demand, high-paying technology fields, but they serve fundamentally different purposes. Data science extracts actionable insights from large datasets using mathematics, statistics, machine learning, and programming to drive business strategy and innovation. Cybersecurity protects digital systems, networks, and data from unauthorized access, breaches, and attacks using networking, ethical hacking, encryption, and incident response skills.
July 5, 2023Public Health vs. Epidemiology
Epidemiology and public health are closely linked but serve distinct functions: epidemiology is the foundational science that studies the patterns, causes, and effects of disease in populations, while public health is the broader, applied field that translates that scientific evidence into community programs, policy, and prevention strategies. The CDC defines epidemiology as the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states and events in specified populations, and the application of this study to the control of health problems, making it, at its core, the investigative science that identifies who is affected by disease, where, when, and why.
June 29, 2023What Is Marriage and Family Therapy?
Marriage and family therapy (MFT) is a branch of psychotherapy that addresses mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders within the context of relationships and family systems, treating individuals, couples, and families with the understanding that personal wellbeing is deeply shaped by interpersonal dynamics, communication patterns, and family structure. Unlike therapists who focus solely on individual symptoms, LMFTs view mental health within the broader context of family systems, recognizing how relationships both shape and are shaped by mental health challenges.
June 21, 2023Criminal Justice Careers [Updated 2026]
A criminal justice degree prepares graduates for diverse career paths across law enforcement, legal and court services, corrections and rehabilitation, and private sector security, with roles available at local, state, federal, and corporate levels depending on education level, specialization, and experience.
June 16, 2023What Is a Capstone Project?
A capstone project is a culminating academic assignment that typically takes place at the end of a course or degree program, allowing students to apply the knowledge and skills gained throughout their studies to a real-world problem or comprehensive research project. The goal is to integrate and apply knowledge, skills, and experiences from the entire degree program to solve a real-world problem or address a significant challenge in a given field, developing critical thinking, research, and problem-solving abilities while fostering collaboration and professional readiness.
June 12, 2023The Wedding Cake Model of Criminal Justice
The wedding cake model of criminal justice is a theoretical framework developed by criminologist Samuel Walker that illustrates how the justice system treats criminal cases differently based on their perceived seriousness, not uniformly as formal law might suggest. The model is a four-tiered pyramid that challenges the popular assumption that all defendants receive a full trial: the vast majority of cases are resolved quickly and informally through plea bargains and administrative procedures, while only a small fraction receive the extensive resources depicted in media coverage.
- May 30, 2023
Can You Get a Bachelor’s Degree Online?
Yes, accredited universities now offer 100% online bachelor's degree programs that result in the same diploma as an in-person degree, with most diplomas not specifying whether the degree was earned online or on campus.
May 29, 2023Criminology vs. Criminal Justice [Updated 2026]
Criminology and criminal justice address the same subject, crime, from two fundamentally different perspectives. Criminology is a social science that studies the causes, patterns, and consequences of criminal behavior, drawing on psychology, sociology, and biology to understand why people commit crimes and how societies respond. Criminal justice is the operational field that focuses on the institutions, policies, and processes through which society enforces the law and administers justice, encompassing policing, courts, and corrections.