Master S Degree - Now It's Not Too Late

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1 H E A L T H S C I E N C E G R A D U A T E N E W S L E T T E R F A L L V O L U M E 4 6 N O. 2 W E L C O M E B A C K F R O M D R. R! I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E : W E L C O M E B A C K! A S K T H E V I R T U A L A D V I S O R M I N I M E S T E R C O U R S E S M E E T & G R E E T 4 S P R I N G S E M E S T E R C O U R S E S 5 S P E C I A L P O I N T S O F I N T E R E S T : Welcome back! Work and school balance from the virtual advisor. Meet some new Health Science staff! What courses are coming in 2016? I know it s hardly an original response. But I m struck by how quickly the summer disappeared. We only just finished the spring semester and somehow, it s already October. Time is moving much too quickly. In the flurry of activity that was summer 15, the Health Science Department gained a new member. Dr. Caroline McNicholas joins the faculty as a freshly minted Assistant Professor. You ll read about her rich background and all she ll be contributing in this newsletter s faculty highlight. You ll also meet Stephanie Harshman, our new graduate assistant. As you know, Joyce Olabisi served as our GA for the past semesters. Happily, she finished her Master s degree and now is moving on to the proverbial bigger and better things in life after graduate assistantship. We re fortunate to have Stephanie as the new GA. Stephanie will bring her own enthusiasm and talents to the position. Among the GA s responsibilities, is the accumulation and analysis of data required by the Master s Program assessment plan. As you know, immediately prior to your graduation, everyone is required to submit a Master s portfolio. The portfolio is not new work for you. Rather it is an accumulation and reflection on what you accomplished over the course of your Master s career. [If you haven t done so already, you might want to review the Master s Handbook, available to you online at the program s website, for a reminder as to what documents you are to retain and how the portfolio process unfolds.] A panel of faculty reviews each portfolio. Don t worry, your identity is anonymous. The faculty panel assesses what you present relative to the program s key learning objectives. In addition, those same learning objectives are assessed based on students performance both written and spoken in Graduate Seminar. The assessment is not a judgement about you or students work. Rather it is a look at the extent to which the Master s program accomplishes what is intended. Those two types of indicators (direct and indirect), are the basis for our assessment data and annual assessment reports. Beyond yearly assessment reports, the University of Maryland System requires every program/department to have periodic review by outside experts. Last spring, the Master s Program, together with the undergraduate program in Health Science, were among campus offerings to participate in the comprehensive review cycle. I m delighted to inform you that our program fared extremely well. The external review supported all the curricular changes we ve introduced; concurred that program content is consistent with contemporary and emerging needs of the field; had no recommendations for redirection of any concentration; and encouraged us to continue on the path we ve developed. In brief all around good news! Rather than sit back and relax, we are well aware that there are always things that need attention. This year, we begin a special initiative to reach out to our adjunct faculty and facilitate their work in the classroom. These individuals bring valuable real world experience to the campus. The classroom, however, may not be as familiar to them as their professional setting. For that reason, we are developing special materials to inform them about what makes graduate education at Towson unique, resources available across campus, and other (we hope) useful information to facilitate everyone s students and faculty -- success. We also will begin to scrutinize impacts of the recently-implemented admissions requirement that all successful applicants must have a B or better in statistics. Your thoughts on these topics, or others linked to the Master s in Health Science, are always welcomed. Enjoy the fall. Stay in touch. Enjoy your classes. And take care. DrR

2 Page 2 A S K T H E V I R T U A L A D V I S O R I applied to the program but now, before I ve taken a single credit, I m transitioning into a new job. I m worried about coursework while still adjusting to the new commute, duties, and all the stress of a new job. Can I postpone when I start coursework? Answer: Students admitted to most degree programs may defer registration for initial courses for up to one year, with the consent of the graduate program director. If enrollment in courses does not occur within one year, or the student does not inform University Admissions of another starting date, the applicant s records will be removed from the program by the Registrar s Office and the student must reapply for future enrollment. The best advice is to keep everyone especially your advisor and the program director -- informed so that you avoid unwanted surprises when you decide to return to the classroom. I ve been going through a lot lately. As a consequence, my grades weren t as solid as I would have liked. I received a letter saying that I ve been put on academic warning. What does that mean? Good academic standing in a degree program Answer: Good academic standing in a degree program requires a minimum 3.00 cumulative grade point average (CGPA) for all courses taken for graduate credit, even if they are not required for the degree. For example, suppose you took an elective, failed it and decided not to use it toward your Program of requires a minimum Study in Health Science. That F still appears on your transcript and still figures into the calculation of your CGPA. Good academic standing is necessary to graduate cumulative grade Should your CGPA fall below 3.00, a letter will be sent from the Registrar s Office placing you on academic warning. A student placed on academic warning must restore the CGPA to at least a 3.00 within point average 9 graded, graduate units. The 3.00 CGPA may be restored by repeating courses or by taking additional courses. With written approval from the graduate program director, the student may use a maximum of two courses beyond those required in the degree to raise the CGPA. Once the CGPA is restored to 3.00, the student must maintain a minimum CGPA of 3.00 throughout the remainder of the program. If the CGPA falls below 3.00 again, the student will be academically dismissed from the University and will not eligible to reapply to the same program. All requirements for the program must be completed within the University s time limitation policy i.e., seven years. A student on academic warning who does not restore the CGPA to 3.00 within 9 graded, graduate units or who does not maintain a minimum CGPA of 3.00 for the remainder of the program after returning to good academic standing, will be dismissed from the degree program. A student academically dismissed from a degree program is not eligible to re-enter the same program, but may apply to another degree program. I am not positive that I will be able to take classes on a regular basis. Will I have to reapply if I don t take classes during every term once I begin the program? For whatever reason a new job, a new baby, or just because you never have to be continuously enrolled in coursework. You do, however, have to take courses on what the University calls a regular basis. According to University policy, students who miss one fall or spring term must apply for re-enrollment, and pay a $25 processing fee through the Registrar s Office. This requirement is University-enforced, not something in the Program s control. Forms are available through the Registrar s Customer Service Center at Enrollment Services 223 or The deadlines for reenrollment are August 1 for the fall term and December 1 for the spring term. Graduate non-degree students who have missed one fall or one spring term must complete a new application via University Admissions. If two academic years go by during which a student does not enroll in courses for graduate credit, the student is removed from the program by the Registrar's Office. If you decide that you want to take graduate courses after this action, you must initiate the application process as a new applicant via University Admissions. Towson allows Master s students seven years in which to complete their degree. The clock begins ticking with the date of your first class (even if transferred from another institution), not the date of admission. If you allow too many years to go by, it may be that coursework at the start of your program no longer will be accepted because it falls outside your sevenyear window. The overwhelming majority of our students complete their degree well within the seven years allowed by the University. Regular, but not necessarily every semester, enrollment is sufficient to complete your Program of Study.

3 Page 3 A S K T H E V I R T U A L A D V I S O R, C O N T I N U E D... I was reading the catalog and saw there are both Independent Studies and Directed Readings. What are they and how can I use them toward my Master s in Health Science? That initial working foundation for Answer: For all intents and purposes, an Independent Study is the same as a Directed Reading class. The only thing distinguishing them is the course number. That number is useful primarily to simplify credit count at the time you apply for graduation. To register for an Independent Study or Directed Reading, you first have to put together a the course must proposal that includes a brief description of what you want to do and how you would do it. You also need to make clear the type of involvement you re seeking from the faculty member with whom you want to work (but have not come from the yet invited to work with you). For example, do you want to meet weekly? meet on an as needed basis? handle everything via ? The student -- not the faculty member -- crafts the topic. The student proposes the nature of work to student be completed. In essence, this is a student-driven experience. The faculty member whom you identify will discuss the proposal with you, make suggestions, etc. But the discussion is launched by the student who comes armed with ideas as to what to do, how to be graded, etc. For example, you might want to do a series of annotated literature reviews on the topic of physical fitness programs for adolescents. Those reviews could be exchanged via , thus requiring no in-person time for you. You may want to construct a specific project. You may prefer to do a long paper. That initial working foundation for the course must come from the student. Once your thoughts are more or less together, you take that idea to your faculty advisor to confirm that the proposed Independent Study will count toward your Program of Study. On resolving that question, you then approach whichever faculty member in the department you d like to have as your faculty guide. Not all faculty supervise Independent Studies or Directed Readings, so it s prudent to contact your first choice sooner rather than later in the event you need to continue the search for a faculty mentor. Remember also that Independent Studies are available ONLY during the minimester and summer terms. Assuming the faculty member agrees to work with you, the two of you then agree to the terms under which you would be graded. Together with student input, that faculty member prepares a syllabus for the Independent Study. Included on that syllabus must be discussion of the required work, the grading scheme for the class, as well as the class schedule. Once all of those student-initiated conversations are completed successfully, the faculty member informs the Program Director of his/her willingness to work with you. Either the faculty member or the student also provides the Program Director with a copy of the course syllabus. Independent Studies and Directed Readings are permit-only opportunities. Only after the Program Director receives that faculty mentor s notification AND copy of the course syllabus, will the student receive a permit to register. Mini-mester Course Offerings Winter 2016 Course Number Title Instructor Location Time HLTH 653 RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT / RESEARCH Alt LI0117 5pm-9pm M & W HLTH 657 HLTH ADV0 ACR SERV SETTINGS Nelson LI0117 9am-3pm Sat HLTH 691 DIRECTED READNGS IN HEALTH Radius HLTH 691 DIRECTED READNGS IN HEALTH Radius HLTH 695 INDEP STUDY HEALTH Radius HLTH 695 INDEP STUDY HEALTH Radius

4 Who is who in the TU Health Science Graduate Department? Page 4 D R. C A R O L I N E M C N I C H O L A S New Faculty Member Dr. McNicholas started her journey in health science by studying human behavior and behavior change while obtaining her Bachelor s and Master s degrees in psychology in Ohio, where she was born and raised. She was involved in research through her undergraduate and initial graduate career, and worked at a medical center studying public health research after receiving her masters. She grew to love learning about the behavioral aspects of public health and eventually received her PhD from the University of Georgia in public health. She now focuses on violence and bullying prevention, injury prevention and health disparity among people with disabilities. If you are interested in bullying prevention, she would love to have students help in developing new and exciting programs involving this topic. She is teaching two undergraduate classes this semester: HLTH 208 Mental Health, Stress Management and Crisis Intervention & HLTH 315 Curriculum and Planning. In her spare time, Dr. McNicholas enjoys hiking with her dogs and husband, photography, and movies. Dr. McNicholas is a new resident of Maryland and enjoys the state thus far, although she has not had a crab cake yet (she is a vegetarian and is open to suggestions of good vegetarian restaurants in the area!). She is motivated to be the best teacher she can be and wants to effectively communicate the complex topics involved with health science to the students of TU! S T E P H A N I E H A R S H M A N New Dept Graduate Assistant Stephanie graduated from TU as an undergraduate Exercise Science major in After working for close to 5 years in local assisted living facilities and nursing homes, she decided to return to her alma mater to pursue her graduate degree in Health Science, concentrating in Administration. Along with pursuing her master s degree, Stephanie works full time as a rehabilitation director for Genesis Rehab Services at a local assisted living facility. She loves the outdoors and often goes hiking, running, golfing, and plays recreational football. Stephanie also has been a competitive jump roper for over 17 years and continues to volunteer with local jump rope teams to help improve their skills. In addition, Stephanie volunteers with a high school leadership organization through her church. Stephanie is very excited to be the new graduate assistant for the Health Science Department and looks forward to contributing as much as she can to the Department and the University. M A R I A N N E G I B S O N Alumnus update! Marianne graduated with her Master s in Health Science with a concentration in Community Health Education in December of Prior to attending TU, she received her B.S. in Social Work at Salisbury and worked in the field with mentally ill and chemically dependent adults, and then became an administrative director for a financial services firm, which she continued to do during her time at TU. Marianne says her education at Towson helped improve her technical writing skills and overall knowledge regarding research in the field. She now works for University of Maryland Baltimore on the state evaluation and technical assistance team for two harm reduction projects with a focus on preventing/reducing underage alcohol use and opioid misuse in Maryland. She says TU helped her achieve the writing skills necessary for her current position. Marianne is planning to obtain a second Master s degree from UMBC in Healthy Policy beginning Spring 2016, as her current line of work has given her a greater affinity to health policy. Marianne also volunteers with MERIT, a Baltimore City program that aims to eliminate health disparities through preparing under-represented high school students to become health care leaders. Marianne facilitates the health and wellness sessions for students, where they learn about a variety of topics ranging from healthy eating to improving one s self esteem. Advice for current students from Marianne? Don t be afraid to ask questions and get involved! Find a niche and seek out volunteer opportunities to help expand your reach and grow your career. Best of luck in your future Marianne!

5 Page 5 Spring Semester Course Offerings 2016 Course Number Title Instructor Location Time HLTH 505 DRUGS IN OUR CULTURE Cox LI 111 4pm-6:40pm Th HLTH 551 INTRO TO ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Brace LI 107 4pm-6:40pm W HLTH 601 CONTEMP ISSUES IN SCHOOL HEALTH Roller LI0117 6pm-8:40pm W HLTH 603 EMERGING ISSUES/HEALTH OF THE NATION Maxwell TBA TBA HLTH 615 COMM HLTH:QUALITATIVE/QUANTITATIVE ELM Cox LI 107 7pm-9:40pm T HLTH 618 INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC HEALTH Allen LI 006 6pm-8:40pm M HLTH 625 REASEARCH METHODS IN HEALTH Gaines LI 102 6pm-8:40pm M HLTH 637 SKILL DEVELPMNT:LEADERSHIP IN HLTHCARE Nelson LI 117 7pm-9:40pm W HLTH 639 INTRO TO HLTH BEHAVIOR/HLTH PROMO Lawrence-Hood LI 105 7pm-9:40pm W HLTH 645 HEALTH CARE POLICY Alt LI 119 7pm-9:40pm W HLTH 649 PROGRAM EVALUATION Brace LI 004 6pm-8:40pm T HLTH 651 PLAN/MRKTNG HLTH IN BUSINESS & INDUSTRY LeBrun LI 111 7pm-9:40pm W HLTH 691 DIRECTED READINGS IN HEALTH TBA TBA TBA HLTH 695 INDEPENDENT STUDY: HEALTH TBA TBA TBA HLTH 785 GRADUATE SEMINAR IN HEALTH Radius LI 105 7pm-9:40pm Tu