BOSTON COLLEGE MASTER'S PROGRAM

GENERAL PROGRAM INFORMATION

Program name: M.A. in Higher Education

College: Lynch School of Education

Department: Department of Educational Administration and Higher Education

Degrees and Emphases: M.A. - Higher Education

Tuition and Fees: http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/enmgt/stserv/fin/tuition.html

Contact Person:

Arline K. Riordan, Assistant Dean for Graduate Admission
Campion Hall, Room 104
Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA 02467

Phone: (617) 552-4214
Fax: (617) 552-0812
e-mail: highedad@bc.edu

Web Page (URL) address: http://www.bc.edu/lynchschool (Select Academics)

Degree first offered: 1963

Typical number of students admitted each year: 30

PROGRAM STATEMENT

The Boston College Program in Higher Education offers master's and doctoral degree study in the field of higher education. The Program has been preparing professionals in higher education for three decades, and features a rigorous social science based approach to the study of higher education. The Administrative Fellows initiative provides financial assistance as well as work experience in a variety of administrative settings. Specializations in higher education administration, student affairs, international higher education, and others, are offered. The Higher Education Program works closely with the Center for International Higher Education. Two important scholarly journals in the field of higher education have close connections with the Higher Education Program. Beginning in 1996, the Review of Higher Education, the quarterly publication of the Association for the Study of Higher Education, has had its editorial office at Boston College. Philip G. Altbach is editor of RHE, and Karen Arnold and Ted I. K. Youn serve as associate editors. RHE is recognized as one of the top journals in the field of higher education. In addition, Philip G. Altbach is one of the editors of Higher Education, which has its editorial office in The Netherlands. HE is the most widely read journal in the field with an international focus. These journals help provide national visibility to the Higher Education Program. Students have the opportunity to participate in various aspects of these journals.

PROGRAM MISSION

The Boston College approach to the study of higher education and the preparation of professionals in the field includes three basic elements. The first is an understanding of the important issues relating to post-secondary institutions - including insights from history, sociology, psychology, economics, and political science. The second is exposure to the theoretical and empirical knowledge base of administration, and the managerial and policy - making issues facing higher education. The third focus is on an applied administrative experience that will expose professionals to a range of practical issues in higher education - for Master's students, this is in the form of a supervised internship. Our commitment is to link analysis with action, to combine understanding with the techniques needed to solve the complex problems of higher education. Underlying the curriculum is a concern for values - for understanding the basic nature of the academic enterprise and applying social and moral values to the management of higher education and ethical decision making. A hallmark of the BC Higher Education Program is a commitment to meeting the individual needs of students. In the context of a rigorous selection of courses, students are encouraged to pursue their own specific interests in higher education. The faculty make every effort to design a set of individualized academic experiences that satisfies the intellectual concerns of students and provides the appropriate training needed for specific careers in higher education.

PROGRAM UNIQUENESS

The Boston College faculty in Higher Education is distinguished by their strong disciplinary bases (sociology, psychology, philosophy, law, history) and are leading scholars in the field of higher education. The program is also known for the Center for International Higher Education and accompanying opportunities to study comparative higher education with students from around the world. Other distinguishing features of the program include close ties with the incomparable Boston higher education scene and a supportive, colleagial community among students, alumni, and faculty.

NATIONAL STANDARDS
Meets ACPA Professional Preparation Commission Standards: YES
Meets CAS Standards:
Other/Comments: One year, 30-credit M.A. program

APPLICATION AND ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

CURRICULUM INFORMATION

Program Required Hours: 30

Program Curriculum:

Level I--Core courses

Level II--Foundations courses (choose 3) Level III--Research course (choose 1) Level IV--Practicum and elective courses

Is a thesis required? No (comprehensive exam required)

 

STUDENT DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION - Students in student affairs or higher education administration programs (2005-2006):

 
Total Number
# of Males
# of Females
# of Whites
# of Persons of Color
Total          
 
% of part-time students
% of full-time students
% of students enrolled in the program who also hold some form of financial assistance (graduate assistantship, fellowship, tuition waiver, scholarship)
Total      

PROGRAM FACULTY (Faculty members with areas of specialization and percentage of time devoted to the program.)

Core Faculty
Ana Martinez-Aléman, Ed.D., Associate Professor, philosophy and theory of higher education; teaching and learning, particularly the impact of race, culture, and gender on college teaching and learning; feminist theory and pedagogy; cross cultural studies.
Philip G. Altbach, Ph.D., J. Donald Monan Professor of Education, Director, Boston College Center for International Higher Education, comparative and international higher education; the academic profession; student activism; publishing and knowledge distribution.
Karen Arnold, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Higher Education Program Coordinator, student development; academic talent development; women in higher education.
Diana Pullin, Ph.D., Professor, Director, Program of School Administration, law and higher education; public policy.
Ted I. K. Youn, Ph.D., Associate Professor, organizational analysis of higher education; politics and political institutions in American higher education; the academic profession.
Kevin Duffy, Ph.D., Assistant Research Professor, student affairs administration; facilities management.

Adjunct
Frank Campanella, D.B.A., Professor, Carroll School of Management, Boston College, finance and economics of higher education.
Gordon Arnold, Ph.D., Academic Dean, Monserrat College, organizational theory of higher education.
Patrick Keating, Ph.D., Executive Vice-President, Boston College, organizational decision-making; technology and higher education.
Jack Warner, Ph.D., Commissioner of Education, Rhode Island, community colleges; higher education policy.

Last modified June 2, 2005
Information submitted by: Arline Riordan

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