Certificate of Advanced Study Question

In 1992, I earned my Ph.D. at Columbia Pacific University when it was still operating legally. I do not currently use that degree in my work.

However, before I earned my Ph.D. at CPU, I completed the requirements for a CAS at Northern Illinois University. It was a post-Master's program that required 33 semester hours of work.

I note now that NIU does not offer the degree although a number of other major universities do. The University of Illinois, on their website, notes that the "Certificate of Advanced Study is a terminal degree for educational professionals beyond the master’s degree."

Has anyone heard of the CAS being accepted as a terminal degree? I was surpised (and happy!) to see that on the website since I have considered Ph.D., Ed.D., and J.D. to be terminal degrees but not anything that does not have "doctor" in it.

 

The CAS is terminal as it is not required for admission in to a higher degree.

However, can a CAS replace a EdD or PhD? this is unlikely as a doctoral degree is normally required for most of the teaching positions at the University level. The only case where a Master's is
enough is for the case of the MFA that is considered a terminal degree for academic position purposes.

The CAS was mainly designed as a way to earn a 7th year of studies required for some management positions in the education sector or as a way to get to the highest pay scale at the community college, high school without having to go into the doctorate.

 

Re: Re: Certificate of Advanced Study Question

Agreed. The CAS or CAGS (Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies) might be viewed as roughly equivalent to the education specialist degree; that is, it represents completion of the doctoral coursework without the dissertation. I have seen a few instances where an individual teaching at the community college level used the certificate on the C.V. as evidence of higher qualification. The latter is how I personally view the certificate.

Dave

 

In other fields, a CAS can be a substitute for a long professional school degree. For example, someone with many educational credentials and a long history of lay ministry might do a 1 year CAS instead of an M.Div. for ordination to the clergy.