masters interdisciplinary?

Bump. I am very interested in this program. Wanted to keep this discussion near the top if you guys don't mind.

 

OK, so I'm bumpin it right back at ya. Tell us why this program is so interesting to you.

 

Well as I have previously stated here, I am intrigued by the ability to secure two additional subjects I can teach. However, my concern is the quality of the program as well as the way in which courses are constructed as far as assignments, tests, weekly reading load, etc.

 

I will see my colleague on 7/29 - WNMU is at the top of the list. Thanks to this board, I referred him to WNMU

Shawn

 

Shawn,
Thanks again! I love responsible adults

On an aside, I have been in contact with several departments at WNMU this past week.

First, the director of virtual programs Katerine Warren. She gets an "A+" from me in so many ways. Her communication and sincerity have been outstanding. She has quick follow through and when I encountered some confusion, she helped me with awesome efficiency. Ever have someone anticipate your needs? That's her. If you enroll in the online program, she is your contact.

Second, financial aid. Auughhhhhh. It feels so good to speak to people who know what they are doing. The gal who helped me was just a worker bee, and yet she knew her job well. Helpful, fast, smart. A+ again. (maybe I am a bit jaded by TESC's mind-boggling ignorance and incompetence of their financial aid one-woman-wonder?)

Next, two admin assistants. Very friendly, very helpful.

One tech support guy- very friendly, very helpful- quick fix.

One ed tech professor who has been in contact with me while she is on vacation in Yellowstone. (!) Not only did she respond, but sent files and attachments so I wouldn't have to contact another person. She will be one of my first professors. She tells me (get this) that several of the courses are for K-12, but that the professors can tailor them to be more applicable to my needs. (huh? Pick me up off the floor, I love this woman!) Again, A+

So- in all- I have nothing but raves to say about the support, customer service, and faculty interaction I have so far received. I don't know what to expect in my first courses, but I know it will be new and exciting and I am going in with an excellent outlook.

One final thing, that might not be a big deal to anyone else, but TESC keeps crappy office hours. They close at 4, and your getting voice mail by 3:45 any day (if you can get through, I average 30 minute hold times). Living in the Midwest, this means I have to place any calls to them by no later than 2 due to the time change, and my mail often arrives slightly after 2, so if I need to follow up to a piece of mail, it has to wait until the next day and even then it's anyone's guess if you'll get help. This has been a minor, yet annoying, issue I have dealt with all year. Well, New Mexico is 2 hours BEHIND me, and they keep great office hours. Katherine Warren till 6:30 (!!) so I can still conduct business with them until 8pm. Lovin' that.

 

Application and Admission

Applications & Admissions

Something to think about, WNMU has a great application process. You go online, and it's free- it takes just a few minutes. You'll get a very fast reply via postal mail granting conditional acceptance.

At that point, you mail official transcripts for university admissions.

For the MA Interdisciplinary, you have 2 or 3 concentrations. (18+18 or 18+9+9) You now have to apply for admission into each of those colleges (departments) which can/do have individual requirements.

Example- The education concentration requires a criminal background check, 3 references on the provided questionnaires, a writing sample, and the School Of Education Application. There are other various requirements if your GPA is low or if English is your second language.


The nice thing, is that you enroll in your first semester-6 credits- and then you can work on the concentration admission requirements. So, you have a nice amount of time to get everything squared away. You don't have to have it all ready to go, you can just start! Excellent idea in my opinion.

So, if WNMU is a last minute idea, don't worry- you can just start now and work through the red tape as you go. Even if your financial aid isn't in order yet, it's only $165 per credit, so most people can swing that in a pinch.

 

I am really wanting to pull the trigger on the program at WNMU, however teaching full-time in K-12 plus teaching a dual enrollment history course and marching toward working for Axia College, I am afraid I may load the boat too full taking a class on top of all of that.

 

Did you ask what the procedure is for course assessment (proctored exams, papers, on-line exams, other)?
Thanks.

 

I've wondered about that too. Looking at community college instructors, a lot seems to depend on the subject being taught. I've seen people teaching vocational trades subjects with no degrees at all (but plenty of work experience). In the traditional arts and sciences transfer subjects, instructors generally seem to have masters degrees (at least) in the subject that they are teaching. The '18 credits' idea kind of straddles that. Perhaps it's applicable in business, where teachers are reportedly in short supply. I don't know.

It might depend on what part of the country you are in. Here in the San Francisco - Silicon Valley Area, lots of people have advanced degrees and there are lots of applicants for teaching jobs. It's very competitive and its becoming more common to find people with doctorates teaching at community colleges. I'm told that's happening on the East Coast too. But that's subjects in which newly-minted doctors have trouble finding more desirable positions and have to take what they can get. Again, it may be different in subjects like business.

Yeah, a lot of hiring seems to be from inside. Schools hire people that they already know. I guess that's more true on the low-end, since the high-end schools often recruit nationally and short-listed applicants fly in (at their own expense) to present audition-lectures (which creates a fine lecture series for the students). But for adjunct jobs at the lower end, it seems to often be a class section needing an instructor right before a looming deadine and who do we know to fill it?

My own feeling is that if somebody is looking to get '18 credits' in multiple subjects in order to teach different things, they will need to be paying a lot of attention to the job market and choosing subjects accordingly. It would probably also be a good idea to choose subjects that build upon one's undergraduate major, are relevant to one another, and fit together coherently. It's hard for me to imagine somebody who's only had six classes in their subject being truly qualified to teach it. But if there's a relevant undergraduate major and if the rest of the graduate work is cognate, it makes more sense. Doubly so if there's significant work experience.

 

>>

I will have all of those answers this week! I can let you know.

 

My own feeling is that if somebody is looking to get '18 credits' in multiple subjects in order to teach different things, they will need to be paying a lot of attention to the job market and choosing subjects accordingly.>>


This is good advice. I can only speak for my region, but a masters AND 18 credits is a requirement in all arts and science departments. As you mentioned, the applied tech departments have no such requirement. I started teaching in applied tech with an associate's degree and 6 years chef experience. I would say that's about normal for the job postings I see in our sister departments.

For me, that was 16 years ago, and by now -I am firmly planted in my community college and my industry. Our department split into culinary and hospitality, so I technically teach for 2 departments- adding a third this spring 09. (*our hospitality degree is in the applied tech division, not the business division- that makes ALL the difference in reference to your comment about business- you have to check, each college is different) I will be qualified to teach in two additional departments at the completion of my master's degree (5 total), but if my job ended tomorrow, I wouldn't necessarily say that I could find full time faculty work in either of the areas I am earning 18/18 in. (nor would I want to!) I could apply, technically, but I think an 18/18 masters is more in line with adjunct jobs.

As a community college, we NEVER (literally) hire full time faculty, we always promote our adjuncts. So, it's my opinion, that getting in the door is the first step, once your there, if you do a great job advancement will come. My CC is a very "pay your dues" type of workplace

(NOTE: All above comments have nothing to do with a University system of hiring)

 

Hey Jennifer!

I know this is off topic but are you counting down the HOURS until you finish on July 21?

I can imagine there's going to be a big celebration at your house that day!

 

>>

LOL I just changed my siggy to bold font

Honestly, I don't feel all that celebratory. I probably need therapy for not being able to pat myself on the back on a job well done. This might be a chef thing. We all run in hamster wheels, and of course we never reach a level of comfort. I'm no different. Great sauce. Ok, better sauce. Ok, work faster. Ok, work cleaner. Ok, work cheaper. Ok, now replicate it 56 identical times for dinner service tonight or else I'll find someone else who can. You get the idea. (Shhhhhh...I love the Kitchen Machine and its insanity)

The fact is, that I should have done this years ago, and I am a bit embarrassed by that. I thought about it many times, but that was before the explosion of online learning options and my discovery of CLEPs for some serious "gen ed butt kickin." It was always an unapproachable journey, packed in the one size fits all option, so that kept me out. I do feel a little old to toot my horn about earning a bachelor's degree when typical grads are in their 20s.

Before you lay on the "never too late" thing, I get it- it's good. Very few people in my field earn bachelor degrees. I'm happy...I love the idea of a break after non-stop overlapping classes for the past 18 months (one semester I did 27 credits LOL)...but I'm starting my next degree in 30 days, so ONWARD!

 

Jennifer,

You should take time to celebrate your accomplishment - you and the hubby should get a sitter for the kids and spurge! Have a nice dinner THAT SOMEONE ELSE COOKED, maybe a hotel room, you get the idea.

The point is that both of you have sacrificed for your accomplishment, and you owe it to yourselves to reward yourselves.

Shawn

 

Jennifer, I agree with Shawn - celebrate just a little!

I think you and I are about the same age, so I understand part of what you're saying. And I think it makes you a better instructor too. But at least enjoy the break between classes!

 

+2 on that idea!

 

You guys are too funny......I'll think about it

 

Wnmu

Ok -just spoke with my colleague. He has completed 2 semesters in the program and his concentrations are English and Education.

1. In his concentrations, the thesis is optional.

2. No exams so far - he has written papers and presentations.

3. Teachers are "small college friendly" - very accessable.

4. Out of the three teachers he has had (one teacher twice) - two had previous online teaching experience -the other teacher was teaching online for the first time and had to make adjustments.

5. The classwork is rigorous (His BA is from a private Catholic College).

6. WNMU uses WebCT for the online platform. Sometimes there are minor issues with the program

7. On a scale of 1 - 10, overall satisfaction with the program is 8.

Shawn

 

Shawn,
Thank you for that update! It sounds great.
Do you know which of the education concentrations he is doing? Mine will also be English and Education (Ed Technology).

 

According to my colleague - his education courses are geared towards post-secondary ed and ed technology.

Shawn