Higher Ed Masters Program, any advice?

[jrehokie]

Hello all! This is my first post on here and I'm a newbie, so please forgive me if this is the wrong place to be posting. I'm also sorry if this post is a little lengthy and scattered.

Anyway, I'm about to enter my junior year of college & my second year at the Virginia Tech. I'm a psychology major and over the past year, I've become more confident in my plans after finishing undergrad, and my first choice plan would be to attend graduate school to get my ma. My top choice would be UVA's M.Ed. in Student Affairs Practice in Higher Education (SAPHE) and my second choice would be Virginia Tech's Master's Program in Higher Education. If anyone if familiar with either of these schools or programs, any info would be helpful about their admission process!

I also had a few general questions regarding admissions to a master's program:

-Does cumulative GPA matter more, or do committees look at the in-major GPA? My reason for asking is that I'll graduate with around a 3.2 or 3.3 (is that low for grad school?) but my in-major GPA will be around 3.6 or 3.7. The reason my GPA is low is mostly due to lower grades in required calculus and biology and a two classes that I just didn't do well in.

-Is research experience required for these types of masters programs? I have no research experience but have experience in other fields that I believe are relevant (orientation guide, work in admissions office, work in the academic support office, etc - I can post my experience from my resume if needed).

-Would having a minor be beneficial at all? Or double majoring? Or does it depend on the school/program? I've been debating on taking on a couple of different minors in either Sociology, Business Leadership, Leadership & Social Change, or Business Diversity. One of those four, haha, but if it wouldn't have too much of an impact on admissions, I might not.

If you have any advice or input on these topics, I would greatly appreciate it! It would definitely help me narrow down what classes to take for the next two years, as well as what I should be focusing on with extracurriculars. Thanks!

[studentaffairsgrad]

Hello all! This is my first post on here and I'm a newbie, so please forgive me if this is the wrong place to be posting. I'm also sorry if this post is a little lengthy and scattered.

Anyway, I'm about to enter my junior year of college & my second year at the Virginia Tech. I'm a psychology major and over the past year, I've become more confident in my plans after finishing undergrad, and my first choice plan would be to attend graduate school to get my ma. My top choice would be UVA's M.Ed. in Student Affairs Practice in Higher Education (SAPHE) and my second choice would be Virginia Tech's Master's Program in Higher Education. If anyone if familiar with either of these schools or programs, any info would be helpful about their admission process!

I also had a few general questions regarding admissions to a master's program:

-Does cumulative GPA matter more, or do committees look at the in-major GPA? My reason for asking is that I'll graduate with around a 3.2 or 3.3 (is that low for grad school?) but my in-major GPA will be around 3.6 or 3.7. The reason my GPA is low is mostly due to lower grades in required calculus and biology and a two classes that I just didn't do well in.

-Is research experience required for these types of masters programs? I have no research experience but have experience in other fields that I believe are relevant (orientation guide, work in admissions office, work in the academic support office, etc - I can post my experience from my resume if needed).

-Would having a minor be beneficial at all? Or double majoring? Or does it depend on the school/program? I've been debating on taking on a couple of different minors in either Sociology, Business Leadership, Leadership & Social Change, or Business Diversity. One of those four, haha, but if it wouldn't have too much of an impact on admissions, I might not.

If you have any advice or input on these topics, I would greatly appreciate it! It would definitely help me narrow down what classes to take for the next two years, as well as what I should be focusing on with extracurriculars. Thanks!

I don't know about the schools you are considering, but as far as your other questions...

I would think your cumulative G.P.A. would matter more, since it gives a broader view of you as a student. I would only think they would look at just the in-major G.P.A. if it was directly related to what you were wanting to pursue in graduate school. I wouldn't sweat it though - the committee will see that your lower marks were in math/science which isn't a part of your grad program study. Fortunately, I've found that in higher education, undergrad grades don't matter as much as things like experience, etc. Unless you are applying to super competitive programs.

Which brings me to your next question about research and extracurricular activities. I'm attending a higher education grad program in the fall (college student personnel), and the majority of students I've run into have no research experience at all, including myself. The importance of research depends on where you are applying, and what you want to do. I am going to a program that focuses more on practical experience and outside the classroom experiences like assistantships and internships. I don't have any intention of doing research in grad school, because I am looking to work straight out of grad school, as opposed to going on to get my PhD in higher ed and becoming faculty. Say your goal is to become a faculty member. You would want to apply to programs like Penn State, which really focus on research over the practical side. My guess is that they would like to see that you have experience in basic research methods, but they most likely aren't expecting extensive research, as a lot of undergraduate research experiences will be in labs, and won't align closely with the subject matter in higher education. I would suggest reaching out to current students in the programs you are looking at, and see what their qualifications were. To sum it up, research isn't going to matter much unless you want to pursue a faculty position or PhD. Even then, I would suggest just waiting until grad school to start with the research.

On the other hand, your experience in the orientation office etc. matters the most! Regardless of which track (research vs. practical) you choose, that experience shows you have a passion and commitment to students, and at least have some idea of what you are getting yourself into. For example, I wanted to work in residence life (housing), so I really played up my undergrad experience as a resident advisor. Find out what you want to do, then tailor your experience to it. You will find that EVERYONE invited to interview will have a lot of experience in the area. That being said, you need to demonstrate how your experience was unique. Everyone applying for assistantships in housing had been resident advsiors, so I had to find ways to show how my experience was unique and made me a better candidate than the others. Decide if you want to go into res life, admissions, orientation, etc. and make sure you can get as much experience in those areas, and find someone who can write you a letter of recommendation. When you go to apply for assistantships, this experience will matter so much.

My program isn't top of the line - just mid range with an emphasis on practicality. Most of the people applying to these kind of programs aren't the genius academic types, and have eclectic backgrounds that led them to student affairs (so many history majors!) So don't get nervous about your grades. You have the experience, which is the important part. If you are applying to top of the line uber competitive programs, things could be a bit different for you, and you might want to consider some backup schools just in case.

As far as double majoring...meh. I think that is taking it too far. Higher ed people love the words diversity and leadership. If picking up a minor in one of the two won't cause you to have to add an extra year onto your undergrad, then I would say go for it. If not, at least take a few classes in the area. That way, when it comes time to find people to write your letters of recommendation, you will have professors who are teaching subjects that can be related to higher education. I took one leadership class just so I could get the letter of rec from the prof, and it worked out great!

I'm going on and on here, so just a couple more things. You are at the point where you should be thinking about taking the GRE. The good thing about higher ed is, there are a lot of programs that don't require students take the GRE. Figure out if your program even requires it. If they do, take it soon. See what your results are. If they are terrible, you might want to consider applying to some safety schools.

Lastly, you should not go into debt, or even have to pay for this degree. You've already seen me mention assistantships a couple of times. Your experience can help you to land an assistantship, which should at the very least, cover the cost of your tuition. My assistantship pays for full tuition, parking, room and board, plus a stipend of about 10,000. If you are seeking a position that isn't live-in like housing, a good offer is one that covers all of your tuition, and gives you a decent stipend that you can live off.

If you have any questions, just message me There isn't a lot of info regrading applying to grad school in higher ed, and I'm always willing to share what I've learned while applying!

[ZeChocMoose]

It looks like studentaffairsgrad and slave2phd have already answered all of your questions. I would agree with most of what they said. To give you some background, I sat on the admissions committee for my higher ed program when I was a master's student. I don't think anyone looked at the applicants' major GPA. The cumulative GPA was what our admissions committee was concerned with. It is also important (or at least it was to us) that you have at least one academic reference talking about your ability to do graduate-level work. In terms of research experience, I would agree that it is helpful to have, but not all applicants have the opportunity to gain that type of experience. If you are interested in a PhD in higher ed at some point, your best bet is to attend a program where you can gain research experience.

Some comments I had after reading your post. Is there a reason that you are only looking at Virginia schools? If you are not geographically-bound, I would expand out my search to look at other programs in other regions of the country. I would also say that one year programs can be tricky if you do not have any full-time professional experience. I know some universities consider a one year assistantship to translate into 0.5 years of experience since it was only part-time. Usually, I recommend for people with limited to no professional experience to look at 2 year programs because you gain more time in your assistantship and it gives you time to change your interests as you get exposed to more areas in the field. Lastly, I would take the opposite approach that studentaffairsgrad did in regards to assistantships. The great thing about assistantships (IMHO) is that they are temporary, part-time positions. Therefore, it is a great way to get experience in an area of higher ed that you haven't previously been exposed too i.e. if you have admissions experience, trying academic advising; if you have res life experience, try student activities, etc. It makes you a more well-rounded student affairs practitioner and it gives you a better understanding of how a college or university works.

[jrehokie]

Thank you SO much for all of your replies I got a private email from someone at the UVA SAPHE program too so all of this has been a tremendous help to me. Oh and sorry again for the lengthy reply I have (and multiple posts), but I'll try to elaborate more on topics to see if any more guidance can be given. I really appreciate it!

About GPA/Classes: My undergrad GPA at the highest will be a 3.4, which hopefully I can achieve. When I apply, I imagine it will be in the 3.0-3.2 range. Do any of you guys know if grad school applications will ask for transcripts from the school I transferred from? If not, then so far, I have an upward trend (Fall 10: 2.5, Spring 11: 3.02, Summer 11: 3.5) and I'm hoping to maintain at least a 3.4 or 3.5 for the remaining semesters I have. The classes I get the best grades in are the more rigorous psychology classes. I don't know how competitive either programs are, since my research online hasn't turned up much information, but hopefully my GPA is decent enough to be considered.

GRE: I haven't taken it yet but plan to do so this year. Any advice on how to prepare? I'm just an average standardized test taker (I got an 1800 on my first try of the SAT without studying, and got it up to 1850 the second time but didn't really try to study that much at all). slave2phd, what kinds of scores does UVa look for on the GRE?

Major/Minor: I'm pretty interested in the Business Leadership minor. If I don't follow through with the minor, I'll at least have some business leadership, communication, and education classes taken in addition to what's required for psychology. The education classes I've taken so far have all put emphasis on leadership and diversity, so I definitely can see how it would help. Thanks for advice on that!

Research/Experience: The extent of my research involves 2 research based and 2 statistics courses that I've taken, but that's all. I don't plan on pursuing a PhD and was looking for a more practical program, like studentaffairsgrad described. UVa's program seems to be more like that (correct me if I'm wrong), which is why it appeals to me more than Tech's program in Higher Education. I was just planning on building up my resume over the next year before I apply to grad programs. In addition to admissions, academic support, and orientation experience, I'm going to have an externship with a college access program that deals mostly with Financial Aid. I also plan on applying to work in Career Services or TA with First Year Programs. The college access program and First Year Programs are the closest to what I want to do career wise, but it's not guaranteed that I'll be able to get positions with both of those. I really want to do something along the lines of first year advising (the first school I attended does this and it really appeals to me) or undeclared advising. I don't know if this will be enough to stick out since it's been stated that everyone has these kinds of experiences, so research is still definitely an option at this point.

Do you guys have any other advice since I've provided more of my background with academics and experience? Maybe ways to improve my application or a direction I should be going in? Or am I on the right track? I've been planning this since last summer when I was about to start at Tech and have a pretty long list of back up opportunities, if the ones I prefer don't work out, haha.

[jrehokie]

slave2phd: I have a few more questions about SAPHE, if you don't mind answering!

-Do you know during what period of time the admissions cycle is? I know Tech does rolling admissions up until June. I see online that UVa has a deadline, but it has no info on when the application process begins.

-Is the program fully funded? How exactly?

-What assistantships/internships are available?

That's all I can think of for now, thanks again in advance for your advice!

ZeChocMoose: I'm looking mostly at Virginia schools since they're instate and I really like both Tech and UVa (for the SAPHE program anyway...just kidding!) and I don't believe I have the money or resources to travel outside of state. I doubt there's any benefit of staying in Virginia but I do want to work here after I graduate as well. Also, after researching the other programs in VA, I might just apply to those two and if I don't get accepted, I could try getting work experience or research experience after graduating at Tech. It's early in the game to know what exactly I can do after I graduate if I don't get into these programs, but I have pretty close relationships with professionals I've worked with in the past that are in the education field. Oh, and I mentioned it up there, but UVa's program and the courses offered seem to line up more with my career goals, even though it's a one year program. Tech's program is broader, since it's just Higher Education, while UVa's is direct Student Affairs. You bring up good points though about the assistantship and length of time.

[studentaffairsgrad]

slave2phd: I have a few more questions about SAPHE, if you don't mind answering!

-Do you know during what period of time the admissions cycle is? I know Tech does rolling admissions up until June. I see online that UVa has a deadline, but it has no info on when the application process begins.

-Is the program fully funded? How exactly?

-What assistantships/internships are available?

That's all I can think of for now, thanks again in advance for your advice!

ZeChocMoose: I'm looking mostly at Virginia schools since they're instate and I really like both Tech and UVa (for the SAPHE program anyway...just kidding!) and I don't believe I have the money or resources to travel outside of state. I doubt there's any benefit of staying in Virginia but I do want to work here after I graduate as well. Also, after researching the other programs in VA, I might just apply to those two and if I don't get accepted, I could try getting work experience or research experience after graduating at Tech. It's early in the game to know what exactly I can do after I graduate if I don't get into these programs, but I have pretty close relationships with professionals I've worked with in the past that are in the education field. Oh, and I mentioned it up there, but UVa's program and the courses offered seem to line up more with my career goals, even though it's a one year program. Tech's program is broader, since it's just Higher Education, while UVa's is direct Student Affairs. You bring up good points though about the assistantship and length of time.

Moose gave good advice, and I think since s/he has been on the admissions committee, can more specifically speak to your qualifications than I can BUT, I really don't think you have to worry about your GPA too much. Things like your personal statement, interviews, etc. are going to be more important. Your success in this field depends a lot on your ability to communicate, motivate, relate to students, etc. Just as long as your GPA is on an upward trend, you should be fine. When my friend applied to grad school in this area, I believe she had to provide transcripts even for a college she only took summer classes at once. I think it was something like, if you've taken at least 15 hours there, you had to provide the transcript. Every school is probably different though. I can't really speak about the GRE, as my program didn't require I take it. Thank God! haha. But to me, you really do sound like a good candidate with all of your experience and planning. Your research experience sounds similar to mine - I took one research methods class, and a stats class. Since you are looking for practical, I wouldn't worry about it. Honestly, when I went in for my faculty interviews, we didn't talk about classes, research etc. more about why I thought the program was a good fit for me, what kind of student I was, why I was different than the other candidates, why I thought I would be good for the program, my goals, etc.

I can see why you are leaning more towards the student affairs-related program. However, I do have concerns about it being only one year, for the reasons Moose mentioned. But, I know you are aware and evaluating the benefits. When I was looking at programs and trying to decide which one was the best (b/c wherever you go, they will tell you their program is the best), I was told by people in the field to look at a few things. Google the faculty, and see if they are publishing. Programs with higher credit hours and ones that require more internships are better, but UVA only having one year kind of negates that comparison. See if they require you to do internships as well as the assistantship. Moose mentioned you might want to get different experiences with your assistantship, which makes sense if you only have one year to explore the field. I'm a res life junkie and really wanted to do it for my assistantship, but I also have to do 3 internships, which means I will be able to explore other areas as well. Also, it is good if your program gives you the flexibility to take a good amount of electives, to explore and focus in on what you like. I've also been told that it is good if the program has a PhD program as well, b/c it demonstrates that they are serious about higher ed, and willing to devote resources to the study of it.

I don't want to over emphasize the importance of assistantships, but it will be a large part of your experience. If you are able to land a great assistantship at Tech, and not your first choice at UVA, it could very well play a big role in where you decide to go. Since there is so much funding available in this field, if you land a decent assistantship, you won't have to worry about tuition, and should get a decent stipend. Will this allow you to look at some out of state schools?

[ZeChocMoose]

When I sat on my admissions committee, we used a rubric on 5 key areas to evaluate applicants. To be honest, I can't remember all the areas now as it has been several years but I think they were knowledge of higher education, interest/experience in higher education, program fit, ability to do graduate level work, etc. That being said, I would make sure that you are able to secure great recommendations and write a well thought out personal statement. Also spend a paragraph or so talking about what interests you in that particular program. It may be helpful to speak with current students and faculty so you will be able to do this well.

Also as studentaffairsgrad mentions your assistantship may be a large factor in which program you attend. I agree with this. I know that this was the determining factor for a lot of individuals (even myself!) when deciding between programs. In retrospect though, higher ed/student affairs programs can be very different from each other and you want to consider a lot of factors especially program fit. I did dodge the bullet so to speak when I selected against one program that would have been a terrible fit for me. Thank goodness the assistantship offer did not appeal to me!

If neither UVa nor Tech fully funds their master's students, I would really recommend searching for other programs that do so. There really isn't any reason to go into debt especially since starting salaries can be low (in the 40Ks).

Lastly, you want to graduate from a program that is respected in the field. It makes it much easier to get a job and generally the alumni network is larger. I would also talk to higher ed professionals at your undergrad institution who are working in college access and first year programming (I believe those are your areas of interest) to see if they have program recommendations. These individuals will be the type of people on the search committee for your first job so it will be good to get their professional input as well.

Edited July 10, 2011 by ZeChocMoose