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MASTERS
OF EDUCATION
(M.Ed.) PROGRAM
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The
Master's Degree in adult and higher education is designed to
prepares professional to (1) assume administrative roles in
adult and higher education; (2) become more competitive candidates
for leadership positions in adult and higher education; and
(3) conduct inquiry which contributes to the practice of adult
and higher education. The master's program is comprised
of a comprehensive curriculum (no master's thesis is required)
and practical experiences designed to prepare students for professional
positions in a variety of education and training organizations
including colleges and universities, governmental agencies,
educational planning agencies, and business and industry.
The master's
program offers a variety of emphases designed to prepare graduates
for 21st century education and the diverse student population it
will serve. Program emphases include:
- Adult
and Continuing Education
- Higher
Education Administration
- Institutional
Research
- Student
Personnel Services
- Intercollegiate
Athletics Administration
- Community
College Administration
- Distance
Education
- Training
and Development
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ADULT
AND CONTINUING EDUCATION
The Adult
and Continuing Education emphasis prepares professionals for work
as administrators, program planners, and adult education specialists
in a variety of organizations including universities, colleges,
community colleges, vocational schools, business, industry, and
government. The program is designed to provide students with
the competencies necessary to develop and administer successful
educational programs for adults based upon the literature in adult
learning, program planning, and administration.
HIGHER
EDUCATION ADMINISTRATION
The higher
education concentration focuses on topics related to general administration
in colleges and universities. In this concentration, students
will be introduced to theories, issues, and research related to
organizational behavior, academic administration, financial management,
and planning in higher education. This concentration enables
students to become competitive candidates for entry-level general
administrative positions in higher education, intercollegiate athletics,
and institutional development.
INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH
The institutional
research concentration focuses on the utility of data and information
in decision making, planning, and management in colleges and universities.
Students will be introduced to management and decision support systems
and the types of research that should be undertaken on various institutional
aspects (students, faculty, staff, facilities, capital and finance,
curricula, programs, internal and external environments) which can
yield important findings and implications for planning and management
purposes. This concentration prepares students to assume institutional
research positions in higher education. Institutional research
is an emerging specialty within higher education.
STUDENT
PERSONNEL SERVICES
The
student personnel services administration concentration focuses
on administration and research related to college students.
In this concentration, students will be introduced to concepts
and theories related to the administration of student services,
and to critical research topics dealing with college students
(such as factors related to college choice, persistence, and
student outcomes). This concentration prepares students
to assume entry-level administrative student services positions
in higher education, in such areas as residence life, financial
aid, counseling, placement, student development, union programming,
student leadership, and tutoring.
COMMUNITY
COLLEGE ADMINISTRATION
The community college concentration focuses on administration
and research related to the community colleges. In this concentration,
students are introduced to the unique role that community colleges
play in the American higher education system, concepts and
theories related to the administration of these institutions,
and to critical research topics dealing with their constituents.
This concentration prepares students to assume entry-level
to mid-level administrative positions in the community colleges
or related agencies.
INTERCOLLEGIATE
ATHLETICS ADMINISTRATION
Intercollegiate
athletics is increasingly becoming an important and complex
administrative function in higher education. The intercollegiate
athletics administration concentration focuses specifically
on organizational, administrative, managerial, financial, marketing,
and legal issues related to intercollegiate athletics. This
concentration prepares students for careers in higher education
and other related organizations. Click here
for curricular details. If you need to discuss this concentration
with a faculty, please contact Dr. Jerry Weber either via email
or telephone (405-325-3629).
DISTRIBUTIVE/DISTANCE
LEARNING AND EDUCATION
The
emphasis in distributive/distance education and learning prepares
professionals for work in the field of distributive learning
as administrators, planners, instructors, and telecommunications
specialists in a variety of education-related organizations
including universities, colleges, state and federal agencies,
business and industry. The distance education emphasis
offers concentrations in administration and program design.
The administration concentration is designed to provide professionals
with the competencies required to plan and administer distance
learning systems. The distance education design concentration
prepares instructors with the competencies required to teach
students who study at a distance. The focus of this program
is upon the application of telecommunications technologies in
educational settings.
TRAINING
AND DEVELOPMENT
The training
and development emphasis prepares professionals for work as trainers,
directors of training programs, and human resource professionals
in a variety of training organizations including business, industry,
government, and education. Adult learning theory, instructional
strategies, and evaluation provide a basic foundation for the study
of training and development. The American Society of Training
and Development HRD competencies are analyzed in a survey activity.
Personnel issues that often require HRD personnel participation
are reviewed in a special topics setting. Students enter the
Training and Development program from a variety of backgrounds.
CURRICULUM
The program
is a 36-hour program which includes a core of 12 hours, 15 hours
of course work in the selected area of emphasis, and 9 hours of
graduate electives. Students who have not had the equivalent
of 1 year of experience working in the field of higher education
administration will be advised to enroll in 4 hours of practicum
in higher education.
CORE
(12 HOURS)
EDAH
5013 The Adult Learner
EDAH 5023 Administration of Adult and Higher Education
EDAH 5033 Critical Literature in Adult and Higher Education
EDAH 5043 Introduction to Research in Adult and Higher Education
Each
emphasis includes a specific sequence of courses on the basis of
the program emphasis selected. Students should consult with
their assigned advisors regarding emphasis requirements.
Electives
should be chosen to supplement your program. With the approval
of your advisor, you may select from any University of Oklahoma
graduate course.
Practical
experiences (practica) are designed to provide students with opportunities
to explore possible areas of professional interest. In addition,
practica provide students with applied, specialized experience in
one of the following areas: (1) Adult and Continuing Education;
(2) Higher Education Administration; (3) Institutional Research;
(4) Distance Education; (5) Student Personnel Services; (6) Intercollegiate
Sports Administration; and (7) Training and Development. Unpaid
practica are strongly recommended for students who have not had
at least one year's experience working in the field of adult and
higher education.
MASTER'S
COMPRHENSIVE EXAM
In lieu
of a master's thesis, all students are required to take the master's
comprehensive exam at the end of their program of study. Students
will be allowed to take the comprehensive exam only after they have
completed all four core courses (waivers can be granted by
the EDAH Curriculum Committee based on reason and how the students
proposed to make up for the content area).The master's exam will
consist of three questions to be written over a four-hour proctored
time period, usually on a Saturday (for Norman campus students).
Failure to provide plausible answers to all
three questions will result in a failure for the exam. The
questions will be based on contents from the four core courses.
Students must be registered for at least two credit hours to take
the exam--this is a Graduate College requirement and no exception
can be granted. This exam is not offered during the summer term
on the Norman campus. Please contact Shirley Hodges or Trudy Rhodes
in the departmental office (325-4202) for the date of the exam and
also to get an application form to take the exam.
A
master's exam study guide and some previous exam questions are here
(PDF).
GRADUATE
ASSISTANTSHIPS
A limited
number of graduate assistantships are available to students in the
program. Graduate assistantships offer a $7,500-$9,000 stipend
for the 9-month academic year. Some summertime employment
may be available depending on available funding. Employment
as a graduate assistant for a minimum of two consecutive semesters
will substitute for the practicum experience.
FEE
WAIVER SCHOLARSHIPS
A limited
number of fee waiver scholarships are available from the Department.
Tuition waivers of approximately $100 to $300 can be obtained if
the student is not currently receiving other forms of scholarships
from the University. Students who are serving as graduate
assistants or research assistants are eligible for tuition waivers.
Please contact the Graduate Liaison (Dr. Grayson Noley) in the department
prior to the semester in which you wish to request funds.
ADMISSION
INFORMATION
Admission
into the master's program is continuous. To qualify for full admission
status, applicants must meet the following minimum criteria:
- Bachelor's
Degree
- 3.0
GPA in the last 60 hours of undergraduate coursework
(Note: The GRE is not required for admissions into
the master's program)
Applicants
who do not meet the second requirement but have a minimum GPA of
2.75 over the last 60 undergraduate hours may be granted conditional
admission status pending review by the program faculty.
Applicants
interested in applying to the program must provide the following:
The OU
Graduate Bulletin provides information about graduate study
at the University of Oklahoma including degrees, program, admissions
information, tuition and fees, financial assistance, housing,
student services and general rules of graduate study.
Departmental
application information may also be obtained by contacting:
Graduate
Programs Admissions
Ms. Trudy Rhodes
Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies
College of Education
Collings Hall, Room 227
University of Oklahoma
Norman, OK 73019-0260
(405) 325-4202
(405) 325-2403 (fax)
Graduate
College Application and a copy of the Graduate College Bulletin
may be obtained by contacting:
Graduate
College
Robertson Hall Room 100
The University of Oklahoma
Norman, OK 73019-0430
(405) 325-3811
ACADEMIC
MISCONDUCT
The
EDAH faculty take acts of academic misconduct seriously. All
students are advised to familiarize themselves with the OU
Academic Misconduct Student Code (PDF) particularly on matters
related to cheating and plagiarism. The Provost
Office and the OU
Library has a few more tips offers a few tips on avoiding
plagiarism.
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