CSUDH HUX vs MAIS at WNMU- help please!

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by PatsGirl1, Oct 7, 2009.

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  1. PatsGirl1

    PatsGirl1 New Member

    Hey all,
    Been a while since I posted (I had our second baby and she’s a handful like her sister so between that and working on a Master’s I’ve been busy lol)…

    I have a couple questions about the degree programs I’m looking at. I should preface all of this by saying this degree is for me. It’s for intellectual pursuits mainly, although if I could ever use it to teach I would be thrilled. Wouldn’t be the end of the world if I didn’t, though. I’m taking classes right now in the MAIS program at WNMU (concentrations in English/Writing). So far it’s ok, but the complaints I have are pretty common ones others on here have had about WNMU. The Writing concentration is great, albeit new so the kinks aren’t worked out yet. It’s more of a “practical “degree- I get to work on my writing and get creative feedback, which I love. I would stick with them because the price is great and I like all of the help with my writing, but the classes are more oriented toward actual composition and rhetoric. I actually like that, but I also would like to work more on literature as well.

    However, I’ve been looking seriously at the HUX program at CSUDH (concentration in Lit). I like how interdisciplinary it is, and I checked out the sample course guides online and they look completely manageable. The lack of a lot of interaction wouldn’t bother me, although it would be different from WNMU with BB and all that. They have a class on the French Revolution that I would LOVE to take (I think it’s not offered until NEXT Fall, though). I joined the hux yahoo group, read all the posts on here on it, etc. It would be completely just an intellectual degree, with the bonus that I could at some point in the future teach humanities classes (yes, I know since the course prefixes are HUX it would be Humanities and not Lit or English I could teach).

    Also, for consideration I plan on in the future applying to UNISA to work on a doctorate in English. I would like a research degree since I already have a thesis/research interest in mind right now. This is just my opinion, but I think the HUX degree would better prepare me for the level of research/writing for a doctorate than WNMU would. WNMU is great, but I think it’s more of a degree (at least the concentrations I’m in) geared toward CC/HS teachers who want to teach some extra subjects and want practical writing help. Does that make sense?

    So if the degree isn’t needed for career advancement but would most likely be used in future to prepare to work on a doctorate, which would you pick? Stay at WNMU or move to CSUDH?
     
  2. emmzee

    emmzee New Member

    I don't have personal experience with those schools, and I'd hate to complicate your decision further, but awhile back I was researching online humanities degrees, and here are some other relatively low cost options I found:

    American Public University
    http://www.apu.apus.edu/academic/programs/degree/675/master-of-arts-in-humanities
    http://www.apu.apus.edu/academic/programs/degree/1206/master-of-arts-in-humanities-capstone-option
    $9,900

    Excelsior College (Liberal Studies)
    https://www.excelsior.edu/Excelsior_College/School_of_Liberal_Arts/Master_of_Arts_Degree_in_Liberal_Studies
    $13,530

    Salve Regina University
    http://www.salve.edu/graduatestudies/programs/ghm/
    $14,220

    Tiffin University
    http://www.tiffin.edu/mhhumanities/
    $15,000
     
  3. BillDayson

    BillDayson New Member

    I did an MA from CSUDH HUX, but I don't know very much about WNMU, so I can't really compare the programs.

    The lack of interactivity with HUX is a real problem, so you need to be sure that you will be satisfied with it. Most of your contact with professors will be submitting papers and getting back comments. There aren't any lectures or class discussions. Apart from the papers, you'll only communicate with your professors if you initiate the communication. That's the downside, and it's a big one. It's very unlike B&M graduate school. It's all guided independent study.

    The upside might be the interdisciplinary humanities approach. That's likely to add lots of context to your literary studies, placing literary works into a broader artistic, historical and philosophical context. It's a more holistic view of culture than students typically get from concentrating on the techniques and histories of a single discipline.

    Many HUX students are high-school teachers too. The HUX MA's greatest occupational utility might be as an upgrade degree for secondary teachers.

    As for English doctorates at UNISA, I can't really say very much. If you already have a potential research topic in mind, does HUX offer anything that's relevant, either substantially or contextually? You probably need to be looking at UNISA's admissions materials and at their English masters programs very carefully, to determine what they are looking for in a masters and hope to see in an applicant.
     
  4. PatsGirl1

    PatsGirl1 New Member


    What I'm interested in is primarily how supernatural folklore and urban legends reflect group consciousness, evoke universal responses in people across cultural divides and may stem from a basic human need to categorize experiences. I'm also interested in literature from the French Revolution, but that's mostly a side interest and wouldn't really work into a thesis, I don't imagine. As far as HUX goes, I'm interested in the historical aspect of folklore as well as the religious and psychological, which is why I like the interdisciplinary part of Humanities. It's something I wouldn't necessarily get solely from working on English and the craft of writing.

    I've checked UNISA's materials as well as I can and they have a variety of offerings from applied linguistics all the way to Literature. Probably the Doctorate most fitting what I want is in just plain old English, since Literature isn't exactly correct, either, although it can be.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 7, 2009
  5. Farina

    Farina New Member

    These degree plans are right up my alley! I am currently at WNMU and am enrolling in the HUX degree for the spring to take a couple of courses. I would say, if you plan to enroll in UNISA, check with them to see their requirements for pursuing a PhD. I've heard they can be picky when it comes to the title of your Masters degree. Ask them if they would have a preference for a Masters in Interdisciplinary Studies with concentrations in English and Writing or one in Humanities.
     
  6. PatsGirl1 and Farina... congratulations on your work and may you enjoy good fortune on whatever paths you pursue. I graduated from the CSUDH HUX program in 2003 and found the entire experience most enriching. I have no insights into doctoral programs other than the Harrison Middleton Dr. Arts with its Great Books orientation, for which CSUDH was a great preparation.
     

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