Does anyone have any opinions and/or experience with the Master of Science in Administrative Studies program at Southwest Missouri State University? The program interests me because it concentrates on management skills, without deeply delving into finance and economics as would be required by an MBA. I also like the idea that the program includes a thesis. Does anyone have thoughts about how this degree might be received in the academic world? Thanks, Dan
I am not sure which academic world you are referring to but I took this similar path in 2000. I completed a MS in Administration vs. going for the MBA. I was not interested in major Accounting and Finance course loads. I was more interested in Organizational Behavior, Personnel Management, and the research component that my degree led to. As far as the academic world goes, if you are looking into teaching, most colleges require experience in the subject you want to teach. So, if you want to teach Human Resources, you should be OK, however if you want to teach International Finance, you may or may not qualify. In every other aspect though, your MS should hold up as an MBA would. If you are shopping around for programs, you may want to look at Central Michigan University. They have an MS in Administration as well. Hope this helped.
Thanks for the interesting and pertinent info Duff. Your post was right on target, and very supportive of the direction I'm planning to take. I took a peek at the CMU site. It looks like a great program (and school), but I'm very attracted to SMSU's required courses, the ability to have a concentration in Applied Communications, the thesis requirement, and the fact that the administration has been extremely responsive to initial inquiries. Thank you again for your help, Dan
HI Buddy, I am in that program. The school is great! I have been enrolled in many different schools and this is the best one that I have been in thus far in my traditional and DL learning Careers. Some schools that I attended: Chaminade Univ of Honolulu (RA-traditional, at the time they didn't accept very much transfer credit...I think they only accepted 6 hours of transfer credit) Burlington County College (RA-Traditional, they accepted much of my Military Credit and were very helpful in getting me started...I don't think that they have DL at this time. Last I checked the Alumni were voting whether or not to offer AA/BA/BS through DL University of Southern Colorado (RA-Traditional and DL, they accepted my Military Credits and Professional Licenses such as AA Counseling. They offer BA through DL but not sure if MA/MSA or MBA at this time Regis University (RA-DL, Master of Science in Management MSM program. I felt that it was a waste of time and money at over $950 per course...they only allow you to take one course per semester, and I found them difficult to work with. Central Michigan (RA-Traditional & DL, MSA Program changed two times while I was in the process of settling into the program and I felt that I was spinning my wheels. Southwest Missouri State (RA-DL, I cannot say anything negative about SMSU except that they have an examination at the end of the MSAS program required to grad. If you have a good rapport with your professors then you should be okay because its subjective and the professors grade your exam. At SMSU you receive a good mixture of different courses and competencies that give you a little background from several different subjects. I don't know about teaching with an MSAS Degree but I was offered a TA/Adjunct position on a trial basis once I get 18 hours of graduate work completed at this community college in Kentucky. I advised them that SMSU is where I am going and they didn't care as long as its RA. Hope this helps
