A rising tide of Professional Masters degrees: What does this mean for the academy?

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1 A rising tide of Professional Masters degrees: What does this mean for the academy? Karen K. Kemp Spatial Sciences Institute University of Southern California Los Angeles CA (Holualoa HI)

2 Professional Masters in GIx: A disruptive trend for the GIx academy? Karen K. Kemp Spatial Sciences Institute University of Southern California Los Angeles CA (Holualoa HI)

3 A disruptive trend Professional Masters programs in GIx, mostly on-line, are rapidly increasing in numbers across the US (and abroad?) What are the key differences between Professional Masters and Traditional Masters in GIx? Why is the trend towards professional masters degrees happening? What are the implications of these changes on the academy?

4 The drivers The need for professional certification A rapidly growing professional cohort A lack of standardization of education in GIx A lack of understanding of workplace requirements Financial benefits for universities and individual departments A growing cohort of non-traditional learners

5 The Master s as the New Bachelor s? From the NY Times, July 22, 2011 Terminal Masters used to be the consolation prize for failing to finish a PhD In 2011, nearly 2 in 25 people age 25 and over had a master s About the same proportion that had a bachelor s or higher in 1960 Is this credential inflation? Bachelor degree is no longer seen as an adequate screening measure of achievement for employers

6 Academic versus professional degrees

7 Academic degrees Consist of advanced studies in an academic discipline Purpose to contribute knowledge of the subject matter, rather than specific applications of knowledge to professional practices Emphasize theory and are not primarily designed as preparation for professional careers

8 Professional degrees Comprised of advanced studies in professional or vocational fields May have strong theoretical underpinnings, but must have as their primary purpose knowledge for application in professional practice e.g. MBA, MFA, MLA, MDiv, JD

9 PSM Professional Science Masters PSM initiative began in 1997 by Sloan Foundation Combine intensive study in science or math with courses in management, policy, or law Emphasize writing, project management, and other industry-sought skills Include internships and capstone projects guided by mentors in industry Aim to produce scientists and engineers who can translate basic scientific discoveries into practical applications and business ventures

10 The PSM initiative PSM affiliation is an integral part of maintaining quality standards Currently are over 300 affiliated PSM programs in 149 institutions, mostly US An estimated 5,000 PSM degrees have been awarded to date Largest number of degrees in computational sciences, biology/biotechnology, and environmental sciences Also in nanoscale physics, GIS and HCI

11 The disruptive environment

12 MOOCS are only the beginning MOOC can be thought of as experimenting with on-line education at scale Can see the evolution of the MOOC as more of a Cambrian Explosion, in which a large number of new approaches are appearing quickly and disrupting the ecosystem as a whole From Campus Technology Jan 2014, pp 21-22

13 New learning environments MOOCs Flipped classrooms Blended learning Adaptive learning Distance and on-line learning

14 Demand for accountability Demand for marketable credentials Desire for accountability and results in education that can be tracked with quantitative measures

15 Changes in how we teach Curriculum is what students need to learn, rather than what you need to teach Changing power balance between faculty and students Faculty as mentors rather than information delivery agents Students become actively engaged in learning

16 Explosion of knowledge Impossible to know all Need to know how to find information and to act on it

17 Key features of this disruption Reduction of credit hours required to achieve a master s degree from as much as 48 (2+ years) to as little as 30 (1 year, evening classes) Reduction from 2 full-time years residential requirement to 1 part-time year of evening and/or on-line courses Change from a requirement to undertake a year-long thesis project to preparation of: A professional project A portfolio of work completed Or simply finishing up all required course work

18 And that raises lots of questions!

19 Some questions to ask How do these changes affect what a master s degree means? What is the effective difference between the learning achieved by completing a thesis to that achieved in a professional project?

20 More questions to ask (2) Should Professional Masters Programs be seen as the means of funding non-profitable traditional academic education? Is it possible to completely integrate these programs within the traditional academy?

21 More questions to ask (3) How does this affect faculty workloads and traditional research activities? Are different kinds of faculty needed to oversee these programs? What does this mean to the retention of traditional research faculty lines?

22 And finally What s happening to academic reflection? Must knowledge be demonstrable to be valuable?

23 Facets of Mastersness