Courses

Foundations in the policy context and student characteristics of postsecondary education; analysis of issues and future trends in the field.

Explores concepts, methodologies and research practices that support campus decision-making: national data sets, planning and budgeting, enrollment management and enrollment forecasting, faculty studies and instructional analysis, institutional effectiveness and accreditation, educational effectiveness and student outcomes assessment.

This course is an overview of graduate study, professional careers, and professionalism in higher education.

This course gives students an overview of administrative leadership within higher education institutions. Students learn about organizational structure, governance, leadership, decision-making, internal and external constituencies, culture, resources, and organizational change. Brief discussions of key organizational theories are included but the course primarily focuses on administrative practice.

Numerous scholars, over many years, have explored a wide array of topics about college students — their preparation for college, their generalized and particularized characteristics, their behaviors in college, their attitudes about social issues, their relative success in achieving learning outcomes, their engagement (or lack thereof) with various components of the collegiate learning experience, their persistence, and the list goes on and on.

Creative projects, including nonthesis research, that are supervised on an individual basis and fall outside the scope of formal courses.

Strategic planning and resource management in higher education through institutional research.

This course is an overview of the legal standards arising in higher education, including institutional legal obligations, the rights and responsibilities of faculty, staff, and students, and the legal and regulatory roles of states and the federal government.

Principles involved in teaching at the college level; effective use of teaching aids; criteria used in evaluation.

An overview of the academic advising profession and the role of academic advising in the collegiate setting

Academic program assessment/student outcomes in accountability and accreditation processes.

This course examines the nature and purpose of the student affairs profession, its functions, and how they can be effectively managed, coordinated, and integrated as part of student learning in American institutions. It also explores institutional strategies for organizing, staffing, and funding the large portfolio of programs, services, and facilities designed to facilitate student learning and development at different types of institutions.

Strategic planning and resource management in higher education through institutional research.

Teaches best practices and necessary skills in quantitative and qualitative research design, including sampling and basic measurement issues, research methods, survey research, interviews, focus groups, and selecting appropriate statistical tools.

Academic program assessment/student outcomes in accountability and accreditation processes.

Topics include measuring faculty workload, evaluating faculty research productivity, the uses and misuses of student ratings, assessment for promotion and tenure, and methodologies for conducting salary studies.

Studies three stages of enrollment management: Pre-admission, initial student experience, and student success and completion.

Supervised experience in administrative offices, in research, on instructional teams, and in college teaching. (Recommended for students without work experience in higher education.)