Key Trends in Graduate and Professional Education: Support by Attracting Students in Changing Times ETS on using test scores to attract and enroll a diverse student body

In an effort to increase the diversity of their student population, some graduate schools are adopting “test-optional” policies in their admissions process. However, before making such significant changes, it is important to consider both intended and unintended consequences that could result in negative outcomes.

For example, dropping or making standardized tests optional does not necessarily improve diversity in applicant pools. According to University of Georgia research, undergraduate schools that have made the SAT® test optional have not experienced the expected increase in applicant diversity.¹ Instead, their selectivity has increased because more students apply and those who report scores typically report higher scores.

Dropping test scores can also have a negative impact on underrepresented groups. These groups frequently start at nonselective colleges, immediately putting them at a disadvantage because selective graduate programs frequently consider the prestige of the undergraduate school attended. Standardized tests, however, offer programs a fair and impartial way to compare and evaluate students from all types of different backgrounds, including international candidates presenting other admissions documents that may not be well understood or are unfamiliar.

On the other hand, proper use of test scores can help institutions attract a diverse and talented pool of applicants and enrolled students. Whereas other factors are subjective and vary from one individual to another depending on their educational and cultural backgrounds and experiences, standardized test scores are the only measures common across all applicants in the admissions process.

Of course, putting too much emphasis on a test, or any other single predictor, is poor educational practice. In fact, ETS guidelines have long recommended that multiple sources of information always be used when making admissions decisions, particularly when assessing the abilities of disadvantaged applicants. For example, the combination of grades and test scores is a more effective predictor of a student’s readiness than either one alone. A balanced approach enables graduate schools to fairly and impartially identify diverse individuals with varying backgrounds and experiences who have the potential for academic success.

ETS is pleased to collaborate with Inside Higher Ed to keep you informed on key trends in higher education so you can effectively evaluate whether they are right for your school and your students.

David G. Payne, Ph.D. Vice President & COO, Global Education Educational Testing Service

Tap into these ETS resources to help identify the right students for your programs: • Important Guidelines for Using GRE® Scores: ets.org/gre/bestpractices • GRE® Search Service: ets.org/gre/search • TOEFL® Search Service: ets.org/toefl/search

For more information about ETS, visit ets.org.

1 Belasco, A. S., Rosinger, K. O., & Hearn, J. C. (2015). The Test-Optional Movement at America’s Selective Liberal Arts Colleges: A Boon for Equity or Something Else? Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, June 2015, Vol. 37(2), pp. 206–223.

Copyright © 2016 by Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved. ETS, the ETS logo, MEASURING THE POWER OF LEARNING, GRE and TOEFL are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service (ETS). SAT is a registered trademark of the College Entrance Examination Board. 35237 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Introduction

Graduate and professional education programs play numerous essential roles in higher education. They educate not only future professors, but future professionals who will play leading roles in many parts of American society. And their students teach undergraduates and support the work of professors.

Given the centrality of graduate education to higher education as a whole, changes in the field are enormously important. The articles in this compilation discuss admissions practices and strategies, shifts in the curriculum, diversity and the impact of technology on graduate education, among other topics. Essays offer views of experts on a range of issues.

Inside Higher Ed will continue to track these issues and welcomes your reactions to this compilation and your suggestions for future coverage.

--The Editors [email protected]

Inside Higher Ed 3 Recruit the students who are RIGHT for your program

TOEFL® Search Service GRE® Search Service To reach international students with the To reach prospects worldwide who have right English skill levels for your program demonstrated graduate-level readiness

You’re not recruiting just any students. You’re looking for the ones who have shown they are ready to pursue their education in programs like yours. These two powerful databases each have hundreds of thousands of interested students, and you can easily search for them by test score, country, field of study and more. Start searching today.

ets.org/toefl/search ets.org/gre/search

Copyright © 2016 by Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved. ETS, the ETS logo, MEASURING THE POWER OF LEARNING, GRE and TOEFL are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service (ETS). 35238 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Inside Graduate Admissions

By Scott Jaschik

What goes on behind closed doors when professors decide who should get a chance to earn a Ph.D.? Author of new book was allowed to watch. She saw elitism, a heavy focus on the GRE and some troubling conversations.

Ph.D. programs are one of the few ty of Michigan, obtained permission parts of higher education where from six highly ranked departments admissions decisions are made at three research universities to without admissions professionals. watch their reviews of candidates, Small groups of faculty members and she interviewed faculty mem- meet, department by department, bers at four others. All the depart- to decide whom to admit. And their ments were ranked as among the decisions effectively determine the top programs in their disciplines. future makeup of the faculty in high- To obtain this kind of access (not er education. to mention institutional review board Politicians, judges, journalists, approval), Posselt had to offer com- parents and prospective students plete anonymity. While her book subject the admissions policies of identifies comments as coming undergraduate colleges and pro- from people in particular disciplines, fessional schools to considerable she reveals nothing about where not wanting to offer a spot to some- scrutiny, with much public debate the departments are, and she also one they believed would go to a over appropriate criteria. But the hides most details about the appli- higher-ranked program. They didn’t question of who gets into Ph.D. pro- cants they reviewed. want their department to be the grams has by comparison escaped To judge from the book, the fac- graduate equivalent of what high much discussion. ulty members she observed did school students applying to college That may change with the January not present her with a scripted and call a “safety school.” In this sense 2016 publication of Inside Graduate idealistic view of admissions. They many of these departments turned Admissions: Merit, Diversity and Fac- were frank about things they are un- down superior candidates, some of ulty Gatekeeping, from Harvard Uni- likely to have shared in public. whom might have enrolled. Many versity Press. Julie R. Posselt, the For instance, those whose pro- of the professors sound insecure author and an assistant professor grams were not at the very top of about their programs even though of higher education at the Universi- the rankings frequently talked about they are among the very best.

Inside Higher Ed 53 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Across departments and disci- previous years), other factors come “Grade point, most people said it plines, Posselt tracks a strong fo- into play. Appointments to the com- doesn’t affect them very much be- cus on ratings, a priority on GRE mittees are made “to downplay cause basically everybody in the scores that extends beyond what internal conflicts, protect specific pool -- everybody in the final pool most department would admit (or programs interests or buffer the -- has such high GPAs that it’s not that creators of the test would ad- process from program faculty with meaningful.” vise), and some instances of what outlying perspectives or difficult A sociologist said this was espe- could be seen as discrimination. Of personalities,” Posselt writes. cially a problem with the many final- the latter, she describes a pattern in White males “dominated” the ad- ists from top colleges. “Grades are which faculty members effectively missions committees, and Posselt increasingly a lousy signal, espe- practice affirmative action for all ap- writes that chairs cite diversity as a cially at those elite places that just plicants who are not from East Asia, value in appointing members in only hand out the A’s. So you don’t even effectively having one set of GRE 2 of the 10 departments she stud- have that anymore,” he said. standards for the students from ied. One professor told Posselt: “I have China and elsewhere in East Asia A Focus on GRE Scores impressions that some of my fac- and another, lower requirement for Relatively few of the departments ulty -- senior members -- were sim- everyone else. And she describes in any public way would say they ply looking for the GRE. They have one instance in which a candidate have minimum GRE requirements. a threshold such as, ‘If it’s not over was strongly critiqued and eventual- But the book talks about consider- 700, I won’t read anything.’ And that ly passed over in part related to her able interest in scores. In an inter- cuts usually two-thirds of appli- having attended a religious under- view, Posselt said her consideration cants.” graduate institution. (More on both of “de facto” policies and not just Posselt writes of asking commit- of those issues later.) explicit ones revealed that every de- tee members why they were so fo- The book paints a picture of fac- partment had a GRE cutoff. Posselt cused on GRE scores and whether ulty members who are deeply com- said this is particularly surprising applicants attended elite under- mitted to their disciplines and their since all of the departments boast graduate institutions, even when scholarship. But Posselt also writes of “holistic review,” in which each these criteria minimized diversity that this seems to make many pro- applicant is evaluated on a range of of the accepted applicant pool. She fessors on these admissions com- criteria and not a formula. Further, heard in response much talk about mittees risk averse in ways that limit she noted, the Educational Testing how much graduate admissions is the diversity of those admitted. And Service, which produces the GRE, “gambling,” and how important it is this starts with who gets to be on has never suggested that depart- to admit students who will succeed. admissions committees. (The book ments use cutoffs the way depart- With small admissions cohorts is based on interviews with many of ments routinely do. and faculty members who depend the committee members, not just Many committee members said on graduate students to work with the observations.) they simply had too many applica- them on research and other tasks, Department chairs were aware tions to review, and needed a sim- any attrition is viewed as a disaster, of the “somewhat political task” ple measure with which to compare and committee members want to of serving on the committee, Pos- applicants and to exclude some. avoid the risk. selt writes. While they aimed for Prestige of undergraduate pro- Committee members also thoughtful appointments (and in- gram counted for a lot. But grade seemed to generalize from the ex- vited back people who were seen point average? Not so much. One perience of past graduate students as having been especially helpful in astrophysicist Posselt quotes said, who failed, wanting to avoid anyone

Inside Higher Ed 63 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

like them in the future. They spoke time discussing details of the appli- For example, Posselt found this to of “being spooked” by seeing such cant’s GRE scores and background be the case in philosophy, a field applicants. -- high GRE scores, homeschooled that has of late been struggling with The admissions committee mem- -- than it did with some other can- a perception (many say reality) of bers generally assumed applicants didates. The chair of the commit- being hostile to women. were getting Ph.D.s for careers like tee said, “I would like to beat that Many faculty members, however, theirs -- faculty jobs at research college out of her,” and, to laughter appeared more comfortable consid- universities. So they were looking from committee members asked, ering race and ethnicity as a slight for signs of research potential. And “You don’t think she’s a nutcase?” tip among otherwise equal candi- they were also unabashed elitists. Other committee members de- dates who had advanced to a final- “This is an elite university and a ist round. lot of the people at the university One professor said, “I try not to are elitists,” one professor said with pay too much attention. I try to ad- a laugh. “So they make a lot of in- mit students that are the best in my ferences about the quality of some- intellect with no regard for gender one’s work and their ability based on and race.” Only with two applicants where they come from.” who are “equal on intellectual merit, Bias Against a Christian then I will prefer a minority,” the pro- College Student? fessor said. Julie Posselt In most cases Posselt observed, Others spoke of diversity in terms the committee members used ban- of “opportunity.” They said they want- ter and “friendly debate” when they fended her, but didn’t challenge the ed to admit minority applicants, but disagreed with one another. They assumptions made by skeptics. they regularly spoke about fear of didn’t attack one another or get too One noted that the college had a seeing their yield -- the percentage pointed in criticizing colleagues. good reputation in the humanities. of admitted applicants who enroll -- She describes one discussion she And another said that her personal go down, as they assumed that the observed -- in which committee statement indicated intellectual in- best minority candidates would end members kept to this approach -- dependence from her college and up at just one or two programs. Pos- that left her wondering about issues good critical thinking. selt writes of hearing comments of fairness. At the end of this discussion, the such as, “Who are we going to get? The applicant, to a linguistics committee moved the applicant It’s a gamble,” and “We’ll lose him to Ph.D. program, was a student at a ahead to the next round but rejected Princeton and Caltech.” small religious college unknown her there. One economist put it this way: to some committee members but Talking About Diversity “Gender is an issue that we get whose values were questioned by When Posselt probed on diversi- good -- we get top-notch women as others. ty, she found that many professors well as top-notch men. Black -- we “Right-wing religious fundamen- said they felt an obligation to diver- get fewer blacks. It’s true. But we do talists,” one committee member sify their graduate student bodies try -- in the past we’ve tried to attract said of the college, while another and thus -- eventually -- the collec- them. But then they get the same said, to much laughter, that the col- tive faculty of their fields. In some attractive offers from Columbia and lege was “supported by the Koch fields, there was discussion about Yale and Stanford and Berkeley and brothers.” seeking more women, not just un- so forth. So it’s a small group typi- The committee then spent more derrepresented minority groups. cally who get a lot of attention.”

Inside Higher Ed 73 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Merit and International The professors said their view of when the admissions process is de- Students international applicants’ test scores signed to do just that. One human- Many graduate departments -- was not discriminatory, but based ities professor told Posselt, “How particularly in science fields -- rely on the preparation of students in do you compare six students from on international students. The de- countries that place more empha- China, who all have the same last partments observed by Posselt ap- sis on testing than does the United name?” (It is true, Posselt notes, pear to practice a form of affirmative States. that the 100 most common last action for everyone who is not an Many professors also expressed names in China are the names of international Asian student in that fears that Chinese applicants are 87 percent of its population, and professors de-emphasize the (typi- inflating test scores through cheat- presumably of much of the Chinese cally extremely high) GRE scores of ing. One professor, Posselt writes, applicant pool, while the 100 most such applicants to avoid admitting lowered his glasses during an inter- common last names in the United what they would States account consider to be too for only 17 per- many of them. cent of the Amer-

This is in contrast ican population.) to the attitudes While depart- Gender is an issue that we get good -- “ of many profes- “ ments are trying we get top-notch women sors with regard as well as top-notch men. to do a better job to considering of understand- American appli- ing Chinese ap- cants of various plicants and are ethnicities -- and certainly admitting many of them, who insisted on a single (high) stan- view to ask her, “You know about the Posselt writes of a “troubling ten- dard there. cheating, don’t you?” dency to think of students from Chi- Referring to international appli- The concerns about cheating are na not as individuals, but a profile of cants, one scientist told Posselt, “pervasive,” Posselt writes, with re- group averages.” “The scores on the standardized gard to tests designed to demon- tests are just out of sight, just off strate English proficiency. The What Do the Observations the charts. So you can basically faculty members on admissions Mean? throw that out as a discriminator. committees pay a lot of attention Posselt said in an interview that They’re all doing 90th percentile and to this issue, and report feeling she wanted to study graduate ad- above. The domestic students are burned in the past by applicants missions because it is so little un- all over the place so there was actu- whose scores indicated proficiency derstood and is so important. While ally some spread, some dispersion but who arrived in the United States admissions leaders constantly talk … so you could use that more as one with very poor English skills. Several about the value of holistic admis- of the quantifiers.” departments that do not interview sions, Posselt said, it is rare to see A philosopher said, “There certain- all applicants require interviews of up close just what that means. She ly is a kind of stereotypical …” and international applicants. saw much to admire, she said, in then he paused, appearing to catch Chinese applicants appear espe- the devotion of faculty members to himself, before saying, “Chinese cially challenging to many American their disciplines and their intellectu- student who will have astronomical professors, who report that they al traditions. scores.” “seem alike” and hard to distinguish, And she believes holistic review

Inside Higher Ed 83 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times has the potential to help graduate Even with the questions Posselt cant.” The one place where depart- programs (and other parts of high- raises about whether graduate de- ments do consider context -- inter- er education) to identify and admit partments are doing enough to national students -- gives her some more minority talent. promote diversity, she said her ob- hope departments could, if they But she also has worries. “If it’s servations suggest that race and (in wanted, think more about the con- not executed with care, it can lead some programs) gender do count. text of all applicants. to reproducing the status quo rather Posselt said graduate depart- In the meantime, she urged de- than seeking diversity,” she said. ments could admit more diverse partments to reflect on their practic- If higher education is going to fo- classes if they reconsidered the es, and to try to improve them and cus on holistic admissions to pre- way they use the GRE. She said be more open about them. serve affirmative action, Posselt her research doesn’t suggest the While the departments reviewed in said, admissions committees need GRE should be abandoned, but that the book remain secret, the general to be open about what they value the departments she observed are process used by elite departments and consider whether those values “misusing the GRE,” and looking at would now appear to be more open should change. scores “without context of the appli- as a result of Posselt’s book. ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/01/06/new-book-reveals-how-elite-phd-admissions-committees-review-candidates

Inside Higher Ed 93 Important guidelines for using GRE® scores Identify the BEST applicants for your next incoming class

Use multiple criteria. Many factors, including GRE® scores, can provide information about an applicant’s 1 potential for success. Using multiple criteria in admissions decisions helps ensure fairness and balances the limitations of any single measure of knowledge, skills or abilities.

Be more inclusive by avoiding the use of a cut score. GRE scores help you compare applicants, but if you use a cut score as a criterion, you could miss an applicant who 2 would be a great asset to your program.

Consider scores on the three GRE® General Test measures independently. The level of Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning and Analytical Writing skills needed for success in your field may vary. The GRE® General test measures 3 these skills independently, and you should treat the scores as three separate and distinct pieces of information about an applicant’s skills. Using a single score masks critical information about that individual’s specific skills.

Use percentile ranks to compare applicants who took the same admissions test. Looking at percentile Get your free copy ranks can help you better understand applicants’ relative 4 of the GRE® Guide performance on the same admissions test. It is not to the Use of Scores. appropriate to use percentile ranks to compare applicants 5 In this must-have across different admissions tests (e.g., GRE test with GMAT® ® resource, you’ll find test). Instead, use the GRE Comparison Tool for Business GRE Guide to the Graduate Record Examinations® Use of Scores GRE score interpretation Inside, find all the facts you need about:

Schools to interpret GRE scores in the context of GMAT • using GRE® scores appropria t ely •using per cen tile ranks • score in t erpretation and statistical informa tion, including scor e data by in t ended data, percentile ranks, scores: ets.org/gre/comparison. graduat e major field best practices and more: www.ets.org/gre/institutions 34039 ets.org/gre/guide. %

Copyright © 2016 by Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved. ETS, the ETS logo, MEASURING THE POWER OF LEARNING and GRE are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service (ETS). GMAT is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admissions Council. 35239 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Gains in Minority Grad Student Enrollments

By Colleen Flaherty

Graduate student enrollments increased nearly 4 percent, with the biggest relative gains seen among underrepresented minority groups.

First-time graduate student en- cent increase among whites, said rollments were up 3.9 percent in Hironao Okahana, assistant vice fall 2015 from a year earlier, accord- president for research and policy ing to a report from the Council of analysis at the council and one of Graduate Schools, released in Sep- the report’s authors. tember 2016. Each of the last four “There’s still a way to go in annual surveys has found that en- terms of their actual numbers,” rollment has increased, but 2015’s Okahana said, noting that mi- bump was one of the biggest since nority representation within the 2009. Contributing to that growth student body is still relatively low was an increase in the share of un- compared to the general popula- derrepresented minority student en- tion. “But we do think part of this rollees, which could be a response growth comes from how many to national conversations and insti- graduate institutions are working in programs leading to master’s de- tutional initiatives on faculty diver- very hard to recruit and retain and grees or graduate certificates. sity. At the very least, it’s a possible help minority students succeed.” Still, at least 22.5 percent of Amer- start to broadening the eventual The council doesn’t disaggregate ican and permanent U.S. resident faculty applicant pool. its data on race and ethnicity to first-time graduate students were “This year’s data are very encour- show whether enrollments are in underrepresented minorities in fall aging in terms of underrepresent- master’s or doctoral programs, so 2015, including American Indian/ ed minorities seeing very robust it’s too early to tell how many un- Alaska Native (0.5 percent), Afri- growth in their first-time graduate derrepresented minority students can-American (11.8 percent), native enrollment -- nonwhite Hispanics will seek their Ph.D.s -- let alone to Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander (0.2 are up by 7.6 percent [year over become faculty members. The vast percent) and Latino (10 percent). year] and African-Americans are up majority of the enrollments over all Underrepresented-minority women 6.6 percent,” compared to a 2.8 per- last year -- some 83.6 percent -- were saw particularly big gains in enroll-

Inside Higher Ed 113 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times ment. of Ph.D.s who In another seek those po- trend, new arts sitions.” So en- and humanities rollment data doctoral en- can reflect rollments were “responsible up slightly (0.1 decisions” that percent) last graduate pro- year from 2014, grams make but not enough to reduce the to put a dent in size of enter- a five-year-av- ing classes, as erage enroll- well as deci- ment decline sions students of 0.8 percent. make about New doctoral whether to ap- enrollments in ply, Feal said. the social and be- Anecdotally, havioral scienc- Feal said she’s es have declined heard depart- year over year and ments describe over five years by the “advantages more than 1 per- that can follow cent, as well. from limiting the Okahana said size of entering the longer-term cohorts,” espe- downward trend cially when re- could be a re- sources can be sponse to a shaky spread among academic job fewer students, market in the hu- such as to in- manities. “It’s one thing that could be Ph.D. Implementation Grants to crease support packages or offer weighing on a potential applicant’s transform scholarly preparation in more intangible forms of support. mind.” At the same time, he said, the humanities at the doctoral level. Over all, applications to doctoral council member institutions and Rosemary Feal, executive director programs decreased by 4.3 percent other groups are working with grad- of the Modern Language Associa- last year compared to 2014. They in- uate students to broaden their skill tion, said there’s been a “longstand- creased by 3.8 percent for master’s sets and help them “think outside ing and vigorous discussion about and other programs. At the master’s the box” about potential nonfaculty the right size of doctoral programs, level, math and computer science careers. One example of many such with much of the argument focused saw the biggest one-year increase programs, which Okahana highlight- on the equally longstanding decline in applications, of 11.2 percent. ed, is the National Endowment for in the number of tenure-track posi- Engineering, business and health the Humanities’ Next Generation tions as compared to the number sciences admissions offices were

Inside Higher Ed 123 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times the busiest, seeing 39.3 percent percent of doctorates. Among of all applications for 2015. The first-time enrollees last year, men largest share of doctoral-level ap- were more likely to be enrolled full plications was in the social and time than women. behavioral sciences, at 18.7 per- Much graduate school applica- cent of all applications reported. tion growth has been led in recent These sciences also were highly years by international students. competitive for admissions, with First-time international student an acceptance rate of 14.7 per- enrollment continued to climb this cent (only business was lower, at year over last, by 5.7 percent, but 13.4 percent). it was considerably lower than Education doctoral programs first-time students, at 58.2 percent recent increases. Okahana said saw the largest one-year increase of master’s and certificate-level stu- it’s too early to tell whether it’s a in applications of all broad fields. At dents and 51.3 percent at the Ph.D. single-year blip or the beginning of the master’s level, math and com- level. According to the survey, wom- a downward trend, and noted that puter science saw a whopping 11.2 en earned 66.4 percent of graduate earlier growth was probably unsus- percent jump. certificates in 2014-15, 58.4 percent tainable -- at least in terms of the an- Women made up the majority of of the master’s degrees and 51.8 nual survey. ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/09/16/graduate-student-enrollments-increased-4-percent-biggest-relative-gains-seen-among

Inside Higher Ed 133 Hundreds of thousands of individuals around the world take the GRE® General Test each year. You can maximize your applicant pool when they know they are welcome at your school.

Update your school’s website, admission materials, faculty and alumni so everyone knows you view GRE scores equally with other admission tests. ets.org/gre/business

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Assess Ability. Predict Performance. Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

MicroMasters on a Global Scale

By Carl Straumsheim

MOOC-based master’s degree initiative expands to more than a dozen universities. Will learners opt to enroll or settle for a certificate?

Fourteen universities around the they feed into. world in September 2016 launched Learners pur- modular master’s degree programs suing the iden- in which students can complete up tity-verified to half of the course work online, credential -- a earn a credential and then decide prerequisite whether they want to apply to pur- for applying to sue the full degree. the full degree The launch of the 19 programs, program -- will known as MicroMasters, follows a typically pay about $1,000 for it. In intelligence, offered by Columbia pilot at the Massachusetts Institute the MIT MicroMasters, for example, University, and user experience re- of Technology. MIT has since early each MOOC costs $150. search and design, by the University in 2016 tested the model in its sup- While learners can take the of Michigan. ply chain management program. MOOCs free, those who pay get ac- Each program also comes with a Learners start the program by tak- cess to some additional features. corporate endorsement. Walmart, ing massive open online courses Anant Agarwal, CEO of edX, said for example, has endorsed the sup- hosted on edX, the MOOC platform some of the MOOC provider’s uni- ply chain management program. In MIT helped found. After completing versity partners were hesitant about general, the endorsements serve as five MOOCs, learners who pay a fee offering credit for learners whose a stamp of approval from an indus- can either call it quits and walk away course work was graded by their try partner, but Agarwal said edX with a certificate -- or apply and, if peers. EdX will therefore filter learn- is in discussions with companies accepted to MIT, eventually earn a ers who pay into separate cohorts, about enrolling their own employ- master’s of engineering in logistics. where their papers will be graded by ees or inviting learners who com- The new programs launching fol- instructors. plete the MicroMasters program to low a similar blueprint. Most of them In addition to MIT’s supply chain job interviews. consist of four to 10 MOOCs, repre- management program, the lineup “I like to say it takes MOOCs to the senting anywhere from one-quar- announced this morning focuses on next level,” Agarwal said, compar- ter to half of the master’s degrees in-demand fields such as artificial ing MicroMasters programs to the

Inside Higher Ed 153 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

stand-alone courses edX and oth- The number of learners who pay new forms of delivering education. er MOOC providers are more com- to earn the credential may be one in- “An online education ought to be monly known for. dicator. In MIT’s pilot, which to date different from a face-to-face educa- While Agarwal stressed the path- has attracted more than 27,000 reg- tion, and this allows us to explore way to credit as one of the signature istrants, more than 3,500 are pursu- the interactions between both and features of the MicroMasters pro- ing the paid credential -- about four figure out what each does best,” Hil- grams, it is not yet certain if the op- times as many compared to a regu- ton said in an interview. “It allows us tion of pursuing a master’s degree lar MOOC, Agarwal said. to continue to experiment with ways will appeal to MOOC learners. The Several of the universities involved to bring high-quality learning expe- MIT pilot, which began in February in the launch said they don’t have riences to global and lifelong learn- 2016, has not yet ers.”

reached the point Similarly, Jeremy

where learners can An online education ought to be different from a Haefner, provost decide if they want face-to-face education, and this “ and senior vice to apply to com- “ president for ac- plete the degree. allows us to explore the interactions between ademic affairs at The closest com- both and figure out what each does best. Rochester Institute parison may be of Technology, said Global Freshman in an email that he Academy, an edX initiative run in any set goals for how many paying expected “enrollments in the tens partnership with Arizona State Uni- students they hope the programs of thousands” but that a “smaller versity. The initiative resembles the will attract. James L. Hilton, vice group” would probably opt for the MicroMasters programs, but is in- provost for academic innovation at paid credential and academic credit. tended for undergraduate students. the University of Michigan, said it is Agarwal said he expects other The university offers a number of “really hard to predict those kinds of colleges will accept the MicroMas- MOOCs on edX that learners can things” since only one MicroMasters ters programs as progress toward complete and -- if they are satisfied program has been piloted so far. a degree. “We believe that a Micro- with their own performance -- pay to Michigan is launching three Mi- Masters will start a new trend in ac- earn credit. But after the first round croMasters programs -- more than ademia where people will complete of MOOCs concluded in 2015, only any of the other colleges involved -- it and be able to find pathways to 323 of 34,086 initial registrants which Hilton said reflects the univer- credit at a variety of universities,” he were eligible for credit. sity’s interest in experimenting with said. ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/09/20/mooc-based-masters-degree-initiative-expands-globally

Inside Higher Ed 163 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Online M.B.A. Reboot

By Carl Straumsheim

U of Southern California becomes the latest institution to launch an online M.B.A. program, joining what program directors describe as a market in an “experimental phase.”

The University of Southern Cali- fornia’s new online M.B.A. program is the latest entry in a renaissance for such degree offerings, a devel- opment program directors say has been made possible by advances in technology that connect students and professors online. The USC Marshall School of Busi- ness launched its program in the fall of 2015, marking the first time the university has offered the de- gree at a distance. Students in the 21-month program, which is split into five semesters, will tackle one CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY: A professor hosts a live online session course of three to four topics at a with M.B.A. students time, covering much of the required readings and assignments at their egie Mellon University and the Uni- among other components. own pace but checking in with versity of North Carolina at Chapel “If we don’t think that our job is to classmates and professors during Hill, which in the past four years replicate the lecture experience but weekly live online sessions. Un- have begun to offer their selective find a new and in some respects im- like programs at other universities, M.B.A. programs online. Program proved experience, what does that which include regular campus vis- directors at those universities say mean?” said John G. Matsusaka, its, USC’s online students will only distance education and the tech- Charles F. Sexton Chair in American come to campus once. nology to support that mode of de- Enterprise at USC. “We really believe USC’s balance between asynchro- livery offer too many opportunities there’s a set of students out there nous and synchronous content is to justify simply recording a lecture who prefer to learn in this mode. the most recent attempt to find a and posting it online, but their opin- Of course there are some students ratio that works for an online M.B.A. ions diverge on the importance of that are going to prefer the residen- With the announcement, the univer- face-to-face meetings, the role of tial option. Our view isn’t that one is sity joins institutions such as Carn- outside firms, pricing and pace, better than the other.”

Inside Higher Ed 173 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Dan Bursch, program director of 2010. “The ability to have live class- (“because we haven’t been able to the online M.B.A. program at UNC, es every week is really what set find the right word to describe it,” called USC’s announcement a “val- things in motion,” Bursch said. Monroe said), the program splits idation.” UNC launched its online Similar, but Different course content about equally be- M.B.A. program, MBA@UNC, in Carnegie Mellon spent five years tween asynchronous content, live 2011, and in less than four years, waiting for a similar breakthrough. online sessions and intensive in-per- its enrollment has grown from 19 to The financial crisis left the univer- son conferences. about 630 students. sity’s business model for online Each mini-semester, of which Bursch said the Kenan-Flagler M.B.A.s “more or less dead,” said there are six a year, begins with a Business School at UNC views itself weekend in Pittsburgh or at Carn- as one of the first egie Mellon’s lo-

-- if not the first -- cations in New school to use the We really believe there’s a set of students out there York and Silicon terms “asynchro- Valley. During the who prefer to learn in this mode. “ nous” and “syn- “ following weeks, Of course there are some students that chronous.” In the students work years since MBA@ are going to prefer the residential option. independently UNC launched, Our view isn’t that one is bet­ter than the other. on course mod- Bursch said he has ules and attend a seen several uni- Robert T. Monroe, director of the weekly 75-minute versities “imitate and duplicate what part-time program there. The uni- live online session. we are trying to do.” versity’s old program was entirely “For us, the one-third, one-third, The fading “stigma” surrounding corporate sponsored, with compa- one-third breakdown of what was the quality of online education is nies paying more than $100,000 to previously 100 percent live class partly to thank for that development, set up clunky videoconferencing works well,” Monroe said. “We came Bursch said, but so are advances systems so professors could beam up with a new model that we felt is in technology -- particularly in vid- courses to their locations. As the as good as on-site and gives you a eoconferencing. Many M.B.A. pro- economy tanked, partnering com- complete experience.” grams pride themselves on small panies pulled out. In 2008, the busi- At 32 months, Carnegie Mellon’s cohorts and curricula that empha- ness school killed the distance edu- program takes longer to complete size group work, so just a few sec- cation program. than USC’s 21 or UNC’s average of onds of lag would be a major in- “Instead of scrambling to try to 27, and includes the most face-to- terruption. Conversations about an keep that one going, we decided face content. Matsusaka, mean- online M.B.A. program at UNC be- to use that opportunity to take a while, said USC’s faculty members gan as early as 2005, Bursch said, step back and see how things had made a point of making as much of but at that time, “the school said we changed in the 20 years since we the content as possible available to weren’t in a place where we felt that started it,” Monroe said. “We saw students on their own time. we could duplicate everything we do there was an opportunity, but that it “If you’re going to do this, you can’t on campus.” was going to be an individual oppor- ask [students] to come to campus a With the introduction and refine- tunity.” lot,” Matsusaka said. “I’m sure that’s ment of software such as Adobe Carnegie Mellon rebooted the pro- appealing to some, but our sense Connect, Google Hangouts and gram in 2013. Officially named the of the market is the typical person Skype, UNC returned to the idea in Tepper School Online Hybrid M.B.A. wants more flexibility.”

Inside Higher Ed 183 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

UNC, in comparison, requires “We spent a lot of time trying to show about 60 percent students students to attend two “immersion think about what’s the perfect price,” come from an area within a few weekends” on their way to complet- Matsusaka said. “What do we need hundred miles of Pittsburgh, Mon- ing the 66-credit program. The uni- people to know to feel we’ve been roe said. The West Coast is home to versity has hosted in the weekends able to give them a USC degree, and another concentration of students. both in the U.S. -- in Chapel Hill, what does that take? Clearly you UNC’s enrollment data is “pret- San Francisco and New York -- and don’t want to go in and be the most ty varied,” Bursch said. Students in abroad -- in Mumbai and Johannes- expensive guy.” the program reside in 47 states and burg -- since the program launched. Finding Students 35 countries, with most groups in Monroe said Carnegie Mellon’s USC has yet to enroll its first stu- major cities, but also in rural areas weekend sessions were created dents in the online M.B.A. program, where students would have to travel with the idea that students would but officials there have an idea of far to the nearest program. be able to balance their careers, whom the program may appeal to. “When people and schools that studies and family lives in mind. “It’s The ideal student, Matsusaka said, want to do this talk about the online very, very expensive for a student to graduated with a bachelor’s degree M.B.A., they use the word ‘flexible’ a leave work for two years to get an in computer science and went to lot,” Bursch said. “However, to me, M.B.A. -- especially from the more work for a company such as Google the key word is really ‘accessibility.’ selective schools,” Until 2011, if you Monroe said. “The wanted an M.B.A. ability to both go to from UNC, you a selective program The ability to both go to a selective program had to pick up and and keep working “ and keep working is a big deal. “ move your family is a big deal. That’s to Chapel Hill.” going to be very ap- That’s going to be very ap­pealing As the univer- pealing to a lot of to a lot of people. sities that offer people.” online M.B.A. pro- An M.B.A. from a grams are able to selective university can easily cost for five years. Now 30 to 34 years market to students who live increas- more than $100,000. To stress the old and ready to climb the career ingly farther away from campus, idea that its program is the same ladder, the student realizes he or they find both a larger pool of poten- no matter the form of delivery, Car- she needs to learn about account- tial students and new competition. negie Mellon charges all part-time ing or leadership but sees the pros- Marketing, the program directors students the same for tuition: about pect of leaving work for more than said, will likely play an important $120,000. At UNC and USC, how- two years as unacceptable, he said. role for programs to stand out in an ever, the online option comes with “It occurs to me there might be increasingly crowded field. a discount. USC’s online students an untapped market of people who Both UNC and USC have chosen will pay an estimated $88,502 for prefer this delivery,” Matsusaka said. to work with outside firms to help tuition, down from the residential “Unless your eyes are closed, you with that task. USC picked All Cam- program’s $108,504. At UNC, out-of- have to realize that a lot of people pus, a firm specializing in online en- state students in the residential full- live a lot of their lives and have a lot rollment. UNC took the partnership time M.B.A. program pay $111,092 of meaningful experiences online.” a step further, partnering with the for tuition, while MBA@UNC drops Results from the first year and a online “enabler” company 2U (then the price to $96,733. half of cohorts at Carnegie Mellon known as 2tor) to build the program.

Inside Higher Ed 193 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Bursch said the partnership let the future. All three described the mar- seriously have to think about what business school spend its time on ket as being in an “experimental your differentiator is when there are adapting the curriculum, outsourc- phase” that will remain unsettled for a lot of good online options avail- ing the technical aspect to the on- several years. able,” Monroe said. line enabler. The institutions threatened by that On the other hand, he said, launch- “We like to say we practice what development, Monroe suggested, ing an online program is more of an we preach here at the business may be those that place too much “incremental step” than Carnegie school,” Bursch said. “When you emphasis on location. Mellon had anticipated. With email, partner with an expert in the field, “If you’re an M.B.A. program lecture capture and learning man- you’ll produce a better product.” whose primary point of distinction agement software already in place The program directors said they is that you’re physically located in the residential program, “We expect more universities will launch somewhere that makes it easy for found we were already doing 70 per- online M.B.A. programs in the near students to get to, you’re going to cent of it.” ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/04/29/technological-advances-spur-creation-new-online-mba-programs

Inside Higher Ed 203 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Engines of Anxiety

By Scott Jaschik

Two sociologists interviewed law deans and admissions officers about impact of U.S. News rankings on legal education -- and their new book says impact is significant and generally negative.

A dean of admissions at a law including the U.S. News undergrad- school regularly runs into his uni- uate reviews. versity’s president in the parking lot, The authors of the book are two and the president always asks the sociology professors: Wendy Nel- same question: “How are our LSATs son Espeland of Northwestern Uni- going?” versity and Michael Sauder of the That anecdote is one of many in University of Iowa. In interviews, Engines of Anxiety: Academic Rank- both said that, as sociologists, they ings, Reputation and Accountability, were attracted to the topic because which the Russell Sage Foundation of their interest in the quantification published in April 2016. The book of quality, the use of numbers to cre- provides example after example of ate status and the anxiety of profes- how the law school rankings of U.S. sionals over how they are evaluated. News & World Report lead admis- In their research, they heard a lot sions officers, law deans and uni- of bashing of U.S. News rankings. versity presidents to obsess about Admissions deans said the rankings the pecking order and standardized were “evil,” or they just exclaimed, test scores, which are seen as the “Hate them.” One admissions dean speediest way to move up in the at a top law school called U.S. News, authors, who said he provided data rankings. There have been plenty based on its rankings, “a half-assed, that helped their research. of analyses of the negative impacts shitty magazine.” These same law The LSAT Above All Else of rankings, but this one is based school officials, however, described In interviews with law school on more than 200 interviews -- all how they do whatever is necessary admissions directors and faculty anonymous to encourage openness to do well in the rankings. members who serve on admissions -- with admissions officers, deans Robert Morse, who heads the col- committees, the authors found an and others about how they view and lege rankings division at U.S. News, overwhelming focus on Law School try to game the U.S. News rankings. declined to comment on the book, Admission Test scores -- above ev- The authors suggest their analysis saying he had not yet read it. He erything else and sometimes regard- has relevance for other rankings, did respond to questions from the less of other indications of whether

Inside Higher Ed 213 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

an applicant would be a good or bad very much, and the GPA doesn’t whole). law student or lawyer. All producers count as much as LSAT anyway,” But admissions directors told the of standardized admissions tests said one faculty member involved authors that largest way the LSAT (and most admissions officials) in admissions work at a top law emphasis hurts black and Latino say such exams should be used in school. “And what [my law school] applicants is that law school offi- concert with other measures and has done is basically focus its en- cials fear they are judged by LSAT not dominate the process. The new tire decision making on [the] LSAT averages -- not just in the U.S. News book suggests this is not the case, score. It hasn’t done this formally, points awarded for test scores, but in part because LSAT scores count but the dean basically controls who in the general reputation of a law more than undergraduate grades is on the admissions committee school. (And the U.S. News meth- (12.5 percent vs. 10 percent) in the and makes sure the people on the odology gives 25 percent of a rank- U.S. News methodology. admissions committee will admit ing to a “peer assessment” in which One faculty member of an admis- people primarily on the basis of law school officials are polled about sions committee described being LSAT.” other law schools.) told by the dean of admissions that The point about this being a policy “The most pernicious change is he would not reject anyone with that is not public is common among that I know a lot of schools who LSAT scores above a certain level law schools in the book. Generally, have become so driven by the LSAT -- regardless of other indications no law school admits to an empha- profile that they’ve reduced the ac- of an applicant’s appropriateness. sis on the LSAT along the lines that cess of people who are nontradi- The admissions director said he admissions deans (and law school tional students,” said one law school needed these high-LSAT applicants deans) freely admit to in the book. official quoted in the book. “The “to keep the numbers up.” Further, (In many ways, the findings of the higher [the] echelon you are, the faculty members described being book mirror those of Julie Posselt’s more worried you are that if you let told by an admissions dean pushing Inside Graduate Admissions, pub- your student [LSAT] numbers slide for high-LSAT students, “I don’t care lished in January by Harvard Uni- to reflect your commitment to diver- what the committee says.” versity Press, which noted the way sity, you’re going to be punished in Other admissions directors report- Ph.D. admissions committees at the polls for that.” ed law schools giving them specific top graduate programs focus on the The pressure on doing well in targets for an LSAT average, typical- GRE far more than they admit to in the rankings, the book says, quot- ly higher than the average from pre- public.) ing deans and others, isn’t just a vious years, that they are instructed By focusing on LSAT scores, ad- matter of law school deans putting to produce. missions officials said they realized pressure on admissions directors. While the pressure is most intense they were making decisions that Deans report a trickle-down impact at law schools that aren’t at the top depressed the enrollments of black in which university presidents pres- of the prestige hierarchy, the trend and Latino applicants, who on aver- sure them, in part by citing trustee extends even to those on the top, age earn lower LSAT scores than do and alumni pressure they receive. the book says. (While protecting an- white and Asian applicants. In part Likewise, the book says law onymity, the book frequently iden- this happens by awarding more and schools will do just about anything tifies the tiers of the law schools more non-need-based scholarships to game the system. For instance, from which admissions and other based on LSAT scores, meaning U.S. News also gives points for officials are quoted.) that large awards are being made whether law graduates find jobs and “You’re not going to be able to to wealthier white and Asian appli- whether they find jobs for which a push your [grade point average] up cants (compared to the pool as a law degree is needed. With the mar-

Inside Higher Ed 223 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times ket tightening for new lawyers, es- document in law schools applies in Sauder suggested several ways pecially from nonelite law schools, various ways to other parts of high- to improve rankings. One would be law school career center officials re- er education in the United States to divide law schools by mission. ported being under pressure to get and the world. Currently, he said, a law school that students jobs, any jobs, rather than Still, the authors said, there could saw diversifying the law profession focusing on which positions would be ways that the law school rank- or producing more lawyers who be a good fit. ings, and other rankings, might be would be engaged in helping low-in- One director of a career center improved. come people likely would be ranked told the authors the pressure has Espeland said in an interview low, as such a mission would be reached the point that career coun- that she thought one of the biggest advanced by looking beyond LSAT selors might say: “Can you get a job problems with rankings was the use scores. Such institutions might be in the beauty salon painting nails un- of ordinal numbers to suggest a pre- better compared to one another, he til these numbers are in?” (The time cision that doesn’t exist at all. This said. reference is to when the law school misleads prospective students and Further, Sauder said, rankings would report enrollment levels.) also creates more pressure on law would be better if they had compe- U.S. News and the American Bar school officials, she said. tition. Association have toughened their The greatest pressure she saw in He has done other projects study- rules on reporting job placement the interviews was at law schools ing business school rankings, and in recent years such that a beauty that could be either 49th or 51st in while he found many of the same salon job doesn’t count in the same U.S. News and were scrambling to problems, the existence of multiple way as a job at a law firm. But Saud- do whatever they could to get the rankings appears to relieve the pres- er, in an interview, said such shifts former rating instead of the latter sure to conform to the standard of don’t seem to scare law school offi- -- even if the measures had noth- any one of them, he said. cials. “It’s a continual game,” he said. ing to do with actual quality. There Still, Sauder doesn’t hold out much “Where U.S. News tries to improve is a sense that being in the top 25, hope for reform. He hopes drawing the measure, people find ways to or top 50, matters a lot. And the or- attention to the impact of rankings game the measures.” dinal rankings convey a false sense may make educators more reflec- Could Rankings Be Improved? that the 49th-best law school (per a tive about them, but he doesn’t ex- The conclusion of the book ar- ranking) is actually better than the pect them to disappear. “Rankings gues that most of what the authors 51st, she said. are here to stay,” he said. ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/04/28/new-book-based-interviews-law-deans-and-admissions-officers-details-impact-rankings

Inside Higher Ed 233 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Baby Steps

By Rick Seltzer

Washington & Jefferson dips its toe into graduate programs, but leaders of the traditionally undergraduate college admit it’s a balancing act, and are moving more modestly than other colleges trying to diversify their offerings.

Washington & Jefferson Col- lege leaders want to make sure a new foray into graduate education doesn’t cause an identity crisis. The small, 1,400-student liber- al arts college about 45 minutes southwest of Pittsburgh announced in January 2016 it was starting new graduate programs in applied health care economics, professional writ- ing, professional accounting and thanatology -- the study of death, dying and bereavement. The move represents the institution’s first for- Jefferson’s traditional focus on res- reason to watch the broader mar- ay since 1984 into master’s degrees, idential undergraduate education. ket and try changes. It’s a strategy and it only came after years of dis- In short, Washington & Jefferson is experts see more colleges and uni- cussion about how to best meet a taking things slowly and trying not to versities following as degree growth changing higher education market. overextend its resources as it finds tilts more toward master’s degrees In the summer of 2016, Wash- its way forward in a still-changing and student populations become ington & Jefferson held some of market. older and more diverse. its first new graduate classes. But The cautious pace contrasts with “We feel this is an important time it is also still planning the launch of some liberal arts colleges that have for small colleges to expand their several of the programs announced pushed into graduate and profes- curriculum,” said Tori Haring-Smith, in January 2016. And it will remain sional education with online-heavy Washington & Jefferson’s presi- open to tweaks and changes if, say, offerings after seeing a tightening dent. “It not only helps our visibility students prove more interested in residential undergraduate market. to have these graduate programs -- certificate programs. Even so, a college like Washington and obviously our reputation -- but The college’s leaders are clear: & Jefferson, with a strong academic it provides an opportunity for us to they want to keep the graduate pro- reputation but financial assets that build upon our strengths.” grams small, and they do not want won’t be confused with the largest The four graduate programs being them to infringe on Washington & endowments in the country, has started each come from Washing-

Inside Higher Ed 243 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times ton & Jefferson’s traditional exper- Professional writing started with know intellectually it’s there, it’s tise, Haring-Smith said. She traced about three students over the sum- an opportunity for them, but they the roots of their creation all the way mer, although it’s expected to grow. should not be bumping against it back to 2010, when leaders consid- Applied health care economics will day in and day out.” ered a number of different ways for likely start with half a dozen this Yet she also acknowledged that the college to position itself for the fall. Accounting, which specifically some may be worried the institution future. Options considered ranged includes preparation for the certi- is straying from its traditional mis- from creating a law school to start- fied public accountant examination, sion. ing a nursing program. will probably start with a dozen next “On campus, there are individuals New graduate programs could be summer, although some at the col- who worry about mission creep, no useful for Washington & Jefferson lege think cohorts could grow to be doubt about it,” Haring-Smith said. undergraduates who might be inter- two or nearly three times that size. “That’s an important voice, and it’s ested in additional education after Thanatology, which is listed as a an important question for us to they finish their bachelor’s degrees, certificate program and is designed keep asking.” college leaders said. They could for professionals in funeral homes, The question is heavy on the also be attractive to alumni and oth- hospitals and counseling, as well mind of one of the faculty mem- er profession- bers tasked als. with getting a And they graduate pro- have the ben- gram off the efit of being On campus, there are individuals who worry ground. Kath- low-risk start- “ about mission creep, no doubt about it. “ leen McEvoy ups. You can’t That’s an important voice, and it’s an important is an associ- start a law ate English school with question for us to keep asking. professor and six students director of and no ma- Washington jor administrative additions. But as other individuals, will likely enroll & Jefferson’s graduate program in you can create small graduate pro- cohorts of about seven and has al- professional writing. grams if you have strong faculty ready posted scheduled sessions. She believes the graduate pro- members and support staff already A key goal is keeping the under- gram can enhance the experience on campus. graduate experience from chang- for undergraduates. Starting the For instance, additional costs to ing, said Haring-Smith, who plans to graduate writing program this sum- start the applied health care eco- retire in the summer of 2017 after mer allowed McEvoy to reach out to nomics program run in the tens of leading the college since 2005. Fac- professionals she wants to teach as thousands of dollars per year, not ulty members should not be turning adjunct professors, she said. Those counting some institutional costs away from undergraduates to focus professionals may not come just to like information technology staff on their graduate classes, she said. teach one undergraduate class, but time, Haring-Smith said. The pro- “I say students and undergrad- they might be interested in the pros- grams won’t be major revenue cen- uates at Washington & Jefferson pect of teaching both an undergrad- ters -- they won’t be large enough. should not know on a daily basis uate course and a graduate course. Still, plans call for them to be break- that we have graduate programs,” “We’re outside of Pittsburgh, and a ing even in two to three years. Haring-Smith said. “They should lot of the people we’re looking at for

Inside Higher Ed 253 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times these adjunct positions live in Pitts- to strike the delicate balance of versities to think about new stu- burgh,” McEvoy said. “To convince marketing new graduate programs dent audiences or accessing new them to drive 45 minutes to an hour while still keeping its bread-and-but- markets, Hickman said. Institutions to teach one class, it can be a hard ter undergraduates at the center of are thinking about both their own sell.” operations is a challenge, McEvoy strengths and the surrounding mar- Faculty members can also benefit said. ket. from new experiences, said Samuel “The big difficulty is that Washing- “What we have seen is a growing Fee, a professor who chairs the col- ton & Jefferson has a very specific number of institutions who are also lege’s computing and information reputation in the region,” McEvoy looking at things like labor market studies department and taught a said. “It’s a good reputation, but it’s analytics,” Hickman said. “Do we graduate class in web design and the reputation of an undergraduate have a good sense of how indus- development this summer. The institution. It’s been three decades tries are shifting and changing and class, which is part of the gradu- since we offered master’s degrees, what specific skills the profession- ate professional writing program and from my understanding, a lot als in this area might benefit from?” curriculum, was designed to teach of people weren’t aware that we of- Washington & Jefferson’s plans students to write content for online fered master’s degrees back then.” seem to fit with another data point audiences, to -- projected code and to growth in design web- master’s de- sites. grees.

It’s gone The big difficulty is that Washing­ton & Jefferson has The total well, with stu- “ a very specific reputation in the region. “ number of dents seem- It’s a good reputation, but it’s the reputation of an master’s de- ing motivated undergraduate institution. grees award- and interest- ed is expect- ed, Fee said ed to jump in an email, 37 percent which let him lead deeper class- Institutions will naturally face between 2011-12 and 2023-24, ac- room discussions. He took student questions of identity when starting cording to National Center for Edu- feedback into account from the very new programs, said Carla Hickman, cation Statistics projections. That start of the course. managing director of research with compares to a 15 percent projected “I took a little time at the beginning the education research firm EAB. It increase for bachelor’s degrees. of the course to learn what students is important to acknowledge them, Washington & Jefferson is aware were interested in knowing and then she said. of expected demographic changes, modified the class a bit from my “If you are going to pursue grad- said Robert Gould, vice president for original planning to suit,” he said. uates for the first time, if you are enrollment. McEvoy hopes her program can going to pursue, really, a new kind “Being an undergraduate institu- have 15 students a year from now of credential that you have not his- tion of about 1,400 students, we’re on. She projects awarding the first torically done, that comes down to, I well aware of the demographic master’s degree in December 2017, think, a question of scale,” Hickman shift,” he said. “So we’re thinking because students are juggling class said. “It just needs to be a conversa- about this as smart from a portfo- and working full time. tion about who we are.” lio perspective, maintaining market Washington & Jefferson trying The trend is for colleges and uni- share.”

Inside Higher Ed 263 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

The option of earning both a bach- M.B.A. [in the market],” Kirkpatrick and research firm Stamats. He ex- elor’s degree and a master’s degree said. pects to see similar moves at many in five years could be of great val- “We’re talking coming from the lib- institutions. ue to students, Gould said. He also eral arts arena to really look at niche “Places like Washington & Jeffer- sees potential for the graduate pro- programs.” son, the sort of small- to midsized grams to attract community college The programs don’t necessarily liberal arts colleges, they’re not transfers interested in eventually need to generate a high number of adding these because they want to earning master’s degrees. master’s degrees to be successful, build out some sort of publishing At the end of the day, though, the Kirkpatrick said. Students can also and research portfolio for their fac- goal isn’t to grow the graduate pro- find professional certificates to be ulty,” Mahurin said. gram too much, Gould said. The aim valuable, she said. “We are seeing more and more of is small, targeted programs, accord- Washington & Jefferson’s strate- this. ‘How do we leverage faculty ex- ing to Judy Kirkpatrick, Washington gy isn’t typical, but it isn’t unheard pertise and build out some new aca- & Jefferson’s vice president of aca- of, either, said Ron Mahurin, vice demic programs in spaces where we demic affairs. president for strategy and planning believe there may be market oppor- “We don’t need one more vanilla at the higher education marketing tunities?’” ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/08/19/washington-jefferson-balances-new-programs-old-emphasis

Inside Higher Ed 273 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Stanford’s Massive Push in Graduate Scholarships

By Scott Jaschik

University announces $400 million gift to help create $750 million endowment for program to attract the best talent from around the world.

Stanford University in February lion for the program. The second 2016 announced a $400 million gift part of the name honors John L. that will help launch a new schol- Hennessy, who is concluding his arship program to attract the best presidency of Stanford and who will graduate and professional students direct the program after he finishes from around the world. his work as president. The university is already close to A faculty committee will soon its goal of a $750 million endow- set specific criteria for awarding ment for the program, which will the scholarship. In addition to high admit 100 students a year for up to achievement in academics, leader- three years of study -- fully funded, ship and civic commitment will be including living expenses -- in one among the qualities that Stanford of the university’s graduate or pro- will seek. Stanford’s announcement fessional schools. The students will also says the university will seek to be nominated by their undergradu- award the scholarships to people ate institutions. Those in M.D. and from “a wide range of backgrounds Ph.D. programs, which typically take and nationalities.” longer than three years to complete, The university also announced a will have the option of additional $100 million gift, specifically to fi- John L. Hennessy years of funding. nance scholarships in the program All students in the program will for those from “less economically to 89 students a year (32 from the also receive leadership training and developed regions of the world.” United States) for study at the Uni- attend special programs that will Stanford’s new program also versity of Oxford. draw the students together across comes amid something of an in- In 2000, Bill and Melinda Gates their fields of study. ternational competition for the top donated $210 million to the Univer- The program will be called the graduate student talent. sity of Cambridge to create a schol- Knight-Hennessy Scholars Pro- For decades, the pre-eminent in- arship program for study there. Of gram. The first part of the name ternational scholarship program for the 95 new scholarships awarded honors Philip H. Knight, who earned graduate students from around the each year, about 40 are to students his M.B.A. from Stanford, co-found- world has been the Rhodes Scholar- from the United States. ed Nike Inc. and is giving $400 mil- ships, which currently are awarded In 2013, Stephen A. Schwarzman,

Inside Higher Ed 283 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

the founder of its engineering Blackstone, gave programs drew $100 million to The Stanford program will admit 100 students many critical re- create a schol- a year for up to three years of study -- fully funded, sponses, includ- arship program including living expenses -- in one of the university’s ing this essay in to bring global graduate or professional schools. Inside Higher Ed. talent to Tsing- It’s too soon to hua University know if Stanford in a program explicitly modeled on will face similar criticism, but many the Rhodes Scholarships. That pro- Criticism of Big Gifts of those who raise questions about gram in 2016 announced its inau- to Wealthy Institutions the spending of the wealthiest col- gural class of 111 students. They The gift to Stanford also comes at leges and universities have argued were selected from more than 3,000 a time when mega-gifts to already that they should spend more on applicants and come from 32 coun- wealthy institutions have come un- scholarships, as opposed to launch- tries and 75 universities. Nearly half der scrutiny, with many questioning ing new programs or building new (44 percent) come from the U.S., 21 whether such donations are need- facilities, so the emphasis of the percent come from China and 35 ed when many other institutions Stanford program may shield it percent come from the rest of the lack resources. A $400 million gift from some critics of other mega-do- world. to Harvard University last year for nations. ■

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/02/24/stanford-announces-huge-gifts-and-new-efforts-attract-best-graduate-and-professional

Inside Higher Ed 293 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Views A selection of essays and op-eds

Send First-Gen Students to Grad School

By Paula M. Krebs

Many students, especially those who are the first in their families to attend college, need help from faculty members to think about what happens next, argues Paula M. Krebs.

If you’re teaching at a four-year occupations de- college or university, you may have mand graduate had some training in the needs of degrees at the your first-generation college stu- entry level, and dents, many of whom have probably others, such as transferred to your institution from the master’s a community college. You probably in social work, haven’t been asked to think about want you to have first-gen status in relation to what some experi- happens after graduation, though. ence first. Most Students whose families don’t know first-generation much about college need more help college students acculturating to the expectations of don’t know how college. Likewise, many students, to begin to think about graduate M.S.W., M.P.A. or M.B.A. Those pro- perhaps even most students, need study, however. grams can complement all sorts of help from faculty members to think At my public regional university, undergrad social science degrees about what happens after college. we offer quite a few master’s-level or humanities degrees, building on According to the Bureau of Labor programs, mostly geared toward the critical thinking, writing, speak- Statistics, graduate degrees bring professional qualifications: teach- ing, synthesis, project management higher wages to their holders, but ing degrees such as the M.A.T.; and data analysis skills of a liberal their value varies by field. Some professional programs such as the arts degree. Other graduate pro-

Inside Higher Ed 303 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times grams aim to give students skills With the increasing importance of help our students figure out the and credentials that make them graduate degrees in the workplace, right questions to ask. better qualified for particular kinds and the decreasing likelihood that We can also start talking to stu- of careers: public history or criminal employers will pay for workers to dents about postgraduation options justice programs, or library and in- pursue graduate degrees, it falls to sooner in their undergrad careers. If formation systems degrees. undergraduate faculty to think about a student wonders aloud about top- Whatever the graduate program, how we can become better advis- ping her art degree with an M.B.A., however, its very graduateness ers for students who would bene- we can encourage her to take some might make it intimidating to stu- fit from graduate degrees. We can basic business courses while she’s dents whose families are unfamil- help them to learn what programs still an undergraduate. If a student iar with graduate education. Most are worth the investment, both of thinks he might want to teach, but of our students don’t have parents tuition dollars and of delayed entry he doesn’t want to get an undergrad who have professional positions; into the labor market, as well as to education degree, we can look up most don’t have advanced-degree choose undergraduate courses that the requirements for postbaccalau- holders in the family. If students will move them to the next step. reate teaching certification to see are to get advice about graduate It can be a tough sell for first-gen- how he can get a head start right school, it’s probably going to come eration students to talk to their fam- away. from their faculty Perhaps the members. most important

Faculty mem- With the increasing importance of graduate degrees thing we can do bers don’t have in undergrad pro- in the workplace, and the decreasing likelihood that “ to become ca- “employers will pay for workers to pursue graduate grams is to de- reer counselors, degrees, it falls to undergraduate faculty to think about mystify graduate but if we’re at how we can become better advis­ers for students study for all our master’s-grant- who would benefit­ from graduate degrees. students, so the ing universities, people who don’t we can start by know much about learning about the graduate degree ilies about spending more years in it can feel free to ask questions. Fa- programs at our own institutions. the classroom. The more we can miliarize yourself with the graduate Perhaps faculty in foreign languag- help students to sort out the advan- options at your own institution and es can encourage their students to tages and disadvantages of various the financial aid possibilities for take their training and enthusiasm degree and certificate programs each one. Put yourself in your stu- into public health programs. Maybe and of delayed entry into grad pro- dents’ shoes: If you were a junior sociology B.A.s could move into clin- grams vs. moving straight from and had never thought about gradu- ical psychology master’s programs. undergraduate, the better they’ll be ate school, what would you need to At my university, we have a criminal able to talk with the folks at home be told? What mistakes might you justice master’s program that can about their plans. make? help any undergraduate move into Should they take out more loans If you work at an institution that many different kinds of work in and to get a master’s degree? Should has graduate programs, ask your around the justice system, and our they work first and pursue a grad dean to set up an opportunity for master’s in public administration certificate at night or on weekends? faculty members to learn about helps students into jobs in local gov- Will they be eligible for aid or assis- the requirements for graduate ad- ernment. tantships in grad school? We can missions and the expectations of

Inside Higher Ed 313 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times grad students at your school. In- what kinds of degrees and certifi- I’m not recommending sending vite the graduate dean to a depart- cates your grads are pursuing after more of our students to research ment meeting. He or she is looking graduation. Talk to alumni. Ph.D.s -- the degrees most of us to boost enrollments and so will be If you understand the various have and understand. thrilled to come and tout the advan- postbachelor’s options available for That’s a whole different topic and tages of the various degree and cer- your students, you can make a big raises a whole different set of ques- tificate programs. difference in how they are able to tions about access, social class, di- If you don’t have grad programs, use what you’ve given them in the versity, time to degree and other is- look around your area to see what undergrad classroom. sues widely discussed in the higher programs are within driving distance There’s room for a lot more con- ed literature. (for your commuting students), nection between undergraduate What I’m advocating here is keep- check out the Bureau of Labor Sta- education in one discipline and ing the option of graduate study -- tistics link above and look into the graduate education in another. It’s the kind that can result in career ad- resources about master’s programs the undergrad faculty who’ll have to vancement and increased earnings at the Council of Graduate Schools. help students to see those connec- -- in front of all of our students, not Find out from your alumni office tions. just the privileged ones. ■

Bio Paula M. Krebs is dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Bridgewater State University, in Massachusetts. On Twitter, she is @PaulaKrebs. Paula M. Krebs is dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Bridgewater State University, in Massachusetts. On Twitter, she is @PaulaKrebs. https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2016/08/04/faculty-members-should-help-first-gen-students-go-grad-school-essay

Inside Higher Ed 323 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

The Costs of ‘Colorblind’

By Julie R. Posselt

To increase racial diversity in the professoriate, we need to build the pool of Ph.D.s of color, writes Julie R. Posselt, and that means confronting barriers in the admissions process.

In a closed-door meeting on Nov. 5, 2015, Yale University Pres- ident Peter Salovey admitted to students of color, “We failed you … I think we have to be a better university. I think we have to do a better job.” Protests over racism at Yale prompted this meeting and all but eclipsed a major announce- ment administrators there had approved unprecedented funds -- $50 million -- to diversify their To increase racial diversity in the Chinese, Latino, African-American faculty. professoriate, we need to build the and/or female. And when profes- Few universities can match Yale’s pool of Ph.D.s of color, and that sors did reply, it took them longer. investment, but almost all need the means confronting barriers in the If racism can creep into these early change that Yale seeks. Even at graduate admissions process. As interactions, then those responsi- flagship universities of ethnically di- admissions season ramps up and ble for admissions and recruitment verse states like Texas and Florida, the U.S. Supreme Court debates should take steps to avert the risk. people of color make up less than Fisher v. University of Texas, the The public policy that governs 25 percent of the teaching force. It’s timing to do so is ideal. admissions presents barriers, too. in part a supply problem. Only 26 First, the obvious question: Is bias State affirmative-action bans have percent of doctorate recipients are a barrier? A recent field experiment reduced graduate and profession- black, Latino/a, Native American, or found the answer may well be yes. al-level enrollments in several fields Asian-American, and their share is Faculty members were less likely to of study, including medicine. These even lower in the highly ranked Ph.D. hit reply when email inquiries from findings are especially important as programs from which colleges and prospective advisees had names the Supreme Court again weighs ev- universities like to recruit faculty. that suggested they were Indian, idence in Fisher. The equivalent of a

Inside Higher Ed 333 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times nationwide ban on race-conscious question.” In using this sequence, Heavy reliance on high GRE admission hangs in the balance, many believed they were achieving scores and college pedigree thus and if implemented, it would likely a standard of “pure merit,” as one systematically excludes some of decimate the already small profes- economist called it. the very groups that an institution’s soriate of color. In principle, race neutrality means diversity commitment implies they Finally, the admissions process excluding race from the criteria on wish to attract -- people who might creates its own barriers. I witnessed which students are judged. But in rise to the top in later rounds of re- that firsthand through a major practice, it can be much more pow- view. This apparently neutral, even study of doctoral admissions that I erful than that. I saw how colorblind desirable, criterion carries disparate recently completed. It involved two admissions could effectively shut impact. years of fieldwork with 10 highly down any discussion of race or U.S. courts have not yet consid- ranked doctoral programs in three ethnicity -- even that which is well ered whether using admissions well-known research universities. within the law, such as GRE scores’ criteria with disparate impact con- I had the privilege of observing ad- uneven distributions by race. stitutes unlawful discrimination (as missions committees deliberate in Ironically, colorblind review made it does in South Africa), but they a variety of disciplines, and I inter- professors myopic. When they have taken up similar questions in viewed 68 thoughtful professors failed to see race, they also failed to employment law. The Fifth Circuit who were charged with reviewing see that the bar they set to reduce Court ruled the consideration of age applications. the pool had much to do with diver- in determining pay to be constitu- Overrelying on Scores sity, even if they did not actively ask tional only when implemented for and Pedigrees “the diversity question.” the purpose of “business necessity.” Despite their good intentions to The priorities I observed are con- Is selecting students with very increase diversity, broadly defined, sistent with national trends. In the high GRE scores a matter of busi- admissions work was laced with most comprehensive study avail- ness necessity for graduate pro- conventions -- often rooted in in- able, two of the three strongest grams? It’s hard to make the case herited or outdated assumptions predictors of graduate school ad- with current research. In a recent -- that made it especially hard for mission were high composite GRE ETS study, only 43 percent of gradu- students from underrepresented scores and degrees from selective ate students in biology departments backgrounds to gain access. institutions. However, black and with combined GRE scores in the From philosophy to physics, nine Latino students’ odds of enrolling top quartile also earned first-year out of 10 committees made the first in the most selective undergradu- grades in the top quartile. Correla- cut of their large, highly qualified ap- ate institutions are declining over tions between GRE scores and first- plicant pools through race-neutral time, relative to white and Asian year grades meet levels that testing or “colorblind” methods. Some did students. And a recent analysis in proponents hold up as statistically so by requirement; for others, it was Nature concluded that the median significant and skeptics dismiss voluntary. The common standard quantitative GRE score in American as practically insignificant. And the at this point consisted of very high physics programs (700, or 166 on test poorly predicts longer-term GRE scores and very high grades, the new scale) eliminated almost outcomes, such as graduation and ideally from tough classes and a all black, Latino, and Native Amer- time to degree. name-brand college or university. ican test takers and about 75 per- A Standard of Pure Merit? A sociologist summed up the pro- cent of female test takers. However, It’s time for professors to ac- cess: “First you have to be above a it retained 82 percent of white and knowledge the GRE’s limits and put bar. Then we can ask the diversity Asian-American test takers. scores in their proper place. Setting

Inside Higher Ed 343 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

high cut scores and reading scores first-ever applicant from Malaysia. English skills. devoid of context not only under- They mockingly compared a solid President Salovey wasn’t talking mines diversity. It runs contrary to Midwestern student to a Ford: “He’s about graduate admissions when ETS directives and promotes a false everything you look for and nothing he acknowledged Yale had “failed” sense of security in admissions in- you weren’t expecting.” They reject- students of color. vestments. ed many accomplished students But he might as well have been -- Make no mistake: when the ad- from China. and many other top university lead- missions committees that I stud- Indeed, judgment of students from ers could say the same -- so wide is ied reviewed their short lists, merit Asian countries, especially China, the gap between diversity rhetoric meant something very different than reflected a common exception to and usual means of identifying ac- it did when they made the initial cut. the norm of colorblind review. A lin- ademic talent. Only in one case -- a student dubbed guist stated it bluntly: “If a kid from To “do a better job” educating col- “freaking genius” for his perfect Har- China does not have essentially per- lege students means not only taking vard grades and perfect GRE scores fect GRE scores … they’re regarded a strong stand against overt forms -- was conventional achievement as probably brain-dead.” Professors of racism on campuses. sufficient to secure an admissions attributed high scores of students We also need to see the subtle offer. More often, admitted students from China to a test preparation in- ways that racial inequalities are in- had “interesting,” “unique” or “cool” dustry that is a “well-developed ma- stitutionalized in standard operating profiles rooted in personal or profes- chine” and “second to none in the procedures and the ideals of “pure sional experience. One committee world.” They mused openly about merit” through which college stu- excitedly moved to admit a retired suspicions of rampant cheating. dents become graduate students CIA operative, a contributor to a Memories loomed large of students and graduate students become pro- hip magazine and the department’s who arrived on campus with terrible fessors. ■

Bio Julie R. Posselt is an assistant professor of higher education at the University of Michigan and a fellow with the National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation. Her book, Inside Graduate Admissions: Merit, Diversity and Faculty Gatekeep- ing, is now available from Harvard University Press.

https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2016/01/18/how-so-called-colorblind-admissions-reviews-create-barriers-people-color-essay

Inside Higher Ed 353 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

The Master’s Question

By J. H. Pearl

Faculty members and administrators tend to forget that, for most undergraduates, grad school doesn’t mean a doctorate, writes J. H. Pearl.

The debate over advising students award for doctoral students who interested in a humanities Ph.D. has couldn’t or didn’t want to finish. now raged for years, if debates in Looked down on, openly derided, the scholarly world can actually be the M.A. in most humanities disci- said to rage. After William Panna- plines has long been treated as a packer’s salvo, “Graduate School beginner Ph.D., rather than an ad- in the Humanities: Just Don’t Go,” vanced B.A. Consequently, mas- professors of English and other dis- ter’s programs, badly needing ren- ciplines have argued seemingly all ovation, have fallen into neglect, a sides of the Ph.D. question. predicament detailed by Leonard We tend to forget, however, that Cassuto in “The Degree for Quit- for most undergraduates, grad ters and Failures,” now part of school doesn’t mean a doctorate. It his excellent book, The Graduate often means a master of arts. Pro- School Mess: What Caused It and spective students might be unsure How We Can Fix It. tics, classics, philosophy, art histo- about their futures, but many know M.A. programs are on the rise, ry, religious studies, area studies or already that the technical fixations however. According to a study by gender studies. That’s almost five of academe aren’t for them. For the American Academy of Arts and times the number graduating with some, the M.A. is an opportunity Sciences, the number of degree doctorates in those fields: five times to learn that firsthand. For others, completions has risen steadily in as many, and most professors think it’s a chance to enjoy personally the last three decades. The trend only of the Ph.D. cherished intellectual pursuits. And dipped a little in the early 2010s, Granted, there are good reasons for others still, the M.A. is part of a and humanities M.A.s continue to not to get an M.A. Where there’s route to career possibilities well be- lose ground to professional and sci- a doctoral track, the master’s will yond the ken of most professors. entific degrees. But in 2014, the last always be a poorer cousin, even Some will say I have this back- year for which there is data, roughly though M.A. programs at most in- ward. The modern M.A. was con- 25,000 students graduated with a stitutions function as cash cows. ceived as a sort of participation master’s in English, history, linguis- People in elite Ph.D. programs cor-

Inside Higher Ed 363 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times don off these “lesser” degrees, nev- for instance, or the Harlem Renais- ture? It’s hard for even the most ar- er giving them the attention they de- sance. “I have a passion for liter- dent B.A.s to know. As one student serve, and professors everywhere, ature and wanted to continue my revealed, “Although I knew I ulti- out of ignorance or self-absorption, studies,” one student explained. “I’m mately wanted a Ph.D., my gap year refuse to account for the needs of passionate about the intersections between undergrad and grad school students whose ultimate goal is not of literature, the environment and left me feeling insecure about my to enter the professoriate. Perhaps activism,” another said. “I’ve always abilities. I was questioning my goal most significantly, the cost can be had a passion for literature and writ- … but my experiences as an M.A. prohibitive: two years of education ing,” said another. student have helped reaffirm my and potentially a lifetime of loan Trained in the protocols of “sus- commitment to pursuing a Ph.D.” payments. That Arts and Sciences picious reading,” I at first saw these Undoubtedly, many will decide oth- study provided data on funding for declarations as uncritical, a little erwise, but they’ll have a versatile doctoral students but not master’s naïve. Then I remembered our re- degree in hand and plenty of time students, yet a recent article -- apt- spondents were already enrolled; to try out alternatives. Twenty years ly entitled “Graduate-School Debt Is they’d already taken courses; many ago, in an M.A. program myself, I Raising Questions About Degrees’ had finished course work and were remember a friend complaining he Worth” -- points out that three-quar- writing theses. And still the enthu- wanted to “enjoy” literature, rather ters of all M.A.s, compared to two- siasm. I reread their answers, and than “analyze it to death.” That peer thirds of Ph.D.s, finish school with it occurred to me that no one be- didn’t go on, but he left academe debt. The average for master’s grad- trayed the malaise of a dissertating more informed about the discipline, uates is $40,000. Ph.D. candidate, the paranoia of an more mindful of his own distinct M.A. students know what they’re assistant professor, the cynicism of ambitions. doing, however, and we ought to lis- a long-tenured associate professor. Of course, to no one’s surprise, ten to them. That was the purpose Our students had plenty of sugges- many students said they aimed to of a survey we conducted at my in- tions, even criticisms, but clearly the get jobs or promotions at area high stitution, a large second-tier state system hadn’t beaten them down. schools, but a significant share saw university in the Southeast with a And besides, isn’t passion the best the degree as a means to other ca- high Hispanic enrollment. Among reason for doing anything? What do reers. Respondents hoped to use other questions, we asked, “What we gain by second-guessing stu- the M.A. to teach English abroad, to was your reason for pursuing an dents’ aspirations? More important, adjunct at a community college, to M.A. in literature? What do you hope what do students themselves gain? work as an academic adviser. One to do with the degree? What are We assume we must debunk their student, already a writer, simply your plans after graduation?” illusions, telling them how long the wanted higher-level academic cre- The most common reason, some- Ph.D. takes and how tough the job dentials: “The degree would give me times given all by itself, was that market is, but maybe instead we more experience with theory and reading literature -- and thinking, can learn from their idealism. also a bit of legitimacy that lived talking and writing about it -- is ful- About half our students voiced an experiences alone wouldn’t.” An- filling and enriching. Over and over, interest in getting a Ph.D.; getting an other student planned to “become students avowed a passion for M.A., they said, was a way to test the an editor and help diversify the big the intellectual rewards of thinking waters. Would they be able to move five publishing houses.” And anoth- through big ideas and learning from to another state, another part of the er, who expressed interest in adver- experts, of spending long hours at country? How committed were they tising, explained simply that it was the library researching George Eliot, to the professional study of litera- difficult to find a job with only a B.A.

Inside Higher Ed 373 Key Trends in Graduate & Professional Education: Attracting Students in Changing Times

Insofar as reading, writing and Put crassly, an M.A. reduces these cause they’ve always been done speaking well are valuable skills, an stakes. I’ve never counseled against that way. M.A., especially in English, will al- getting a master’s, and if the desire When we discussed conducting a ways have much to offer. Moreover, is there, it’s hard to imagine circum- survey, the point was made that we to write a thesis on, say, the history stances under which I would. Long couldn’t let students drive our prior- of the Ming dynasty is to develop ago, another peer in my M.A. cohort ities, couldn’t let them dictate what an argument about some portion told me that whatever happened af- we teach them. But whose priorities of our rapidly globalizing world. My ter graduation, she’d at least spent take priority? wife has an M.A. in English and now two years thinking about great These traditions might seem right, works as vice president of market- books -- a fair deal, she reasoned. and they’ve certainly become com- ing and communications at a health Ultimately, the master’s question, fortable, but it’s unethical, not to care nonprofit. In graduate school, as I’m calling it, is a question less mention bad teaching and bad ad- she learned how to speak in front for students than for us, for the pro- vising, to ignore the prospects of the of a crowd. She also learned about fessors and administrators running students who fill our classrooms, to representations of gender and dis- graduate programs. Are we will- carry on as though they’re all des- ease on the early modern stage. ing to rethink our course offerings tined to be Ivy League Ph.D.s. And I know of many other former and degree requirements accord- At my institution, we’ve sent grad- master’s students who’ve migrated ing to actual students’ needs? Will uates to great programs, but that’s to professions as diverse as film- we reach out to employers to learn the exception, and we shouldn’t ex- making, political consulting and what they’re looking for? How about pect everyone to pursue such a goal overseas economic development. asking recent graduates how the -- or desire it. When the truly gifted, No one can predict the future, so degree has helped them and how it truly committed M.A. student walks when students come to us, we need might have helped them more? into my office and asks about Ph.D. to tread lightly, never passing final At many universities, the M.A., like programs, that student usually judgment on their suitability (or un- the Ph.D., is chained to the past. knows quite a lot already. We need suitability) for a particular career. Things are done a certain way be- to think more about everyone else. ■

Bio J. H. Pearl is an associate professor of English and the director of graduate studies at Florida International University.

https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2016/09/07/advising-graduate-students-who-are-interested-ma-not-phd-essay

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