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2008-2009 Graduate Catalog [Archived Catalog]
Master of Science in Administration (M.S.A.)
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M.S.A. Applicant Requirements
Applicants to the M.S.A. program must have:
- A bachelor’s degree from an accredited American college or university, or its foreign university equivalent, with a minimum 2.8 G.P.A.
- Full-time relevant work experience of usually three years. In exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the program director, an applicant may submit scores from the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Examination Test (GRE) in lieu of work experience.
- Applicants for whom English is not a native language should consult “Admission Procedures for International Students” in the front of the catalogue.
M.S.A. Admission Procedure
Applicants to the program will need to follow the procedure for admission as stated below or as found in the Application for Graduate Admission. Please note: International applicants should also follow “Admission Procedures for International Students.”
- Complete the Application for Graduate Admission.
- Obtain official transcripts of all relevant undergraduate and graduate course work. Have official transcripts sent to you in a sealed envelope and included with your application. (Please note: International applicants should have official transcripts sent directly from the institution to Saint Michael’s College at the address below. Program directors may require foreign academic credentials to be evaluated independently.)
- Fill out the first portion of two Reference Forms, giving the name and address of two persons who know your academic and/or professional competence. Give these forms to your evaluators to be returned by them to Saint Michael’s at the address on the form or to be sent to you in a sealed envelope to be included with your application.
- Include a résumé.
- Submit a single page essay describing your education and career background and reasons for desiring the M.S.A. The essay should also include four to seven personal specific goals that will be achieved as a result of matriculation in the program.
- Include an application fee.
Please send all the above materials in one envelope to:
Saint Michael’s College
Graduate Admission, Box 286
One Winooski Park
Colchester, VT 05439
While Saint Michael’s College usually notifies applicants regarding the completeness of their files, it is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that all necessary materials are received. Admission decisions are made by the program director in consultation with other key people in the program. Meeting applicant requirements and following admission procedures does not guarantee acceptance into the program. Applicants are notified of the admission decision after all requirements of the admission process have been satisfied.
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M.S.A. Requirements
The M.S.A. program requires the successful completion of a minimum of thirty-seven credits or a maximum of forty-three credits of coursework with a grade point average (G.P.A.) of 3.0 or higher. It is the student’s responsibility to meet all of the degree requirements and follow the policies governing the M.S.A. program. The degree is granted upon the student successfully completing the following requirements: 1. Qualifying Courses
The qualifying course requirements of economics, accounting, management, marketing, and business statistics may be waived by applying for advanced standing in any of these five courses in recognition of previous graduate or undergraduate course work completed with a minimum of B- (2.7), not older than five years at the time of application. Advanced standing may also be granted if a student demonstrates competency by successfully completing a relevant CLEP Subject Examination. Only College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) scores comparable to a B- (2.7) and not older than five years may be used for advanced standing. Business Quantitative Tools and Statistics may be taken or waived based upon successful completion of a skills assessment. (If applicable, the quantitative skills assessment should be scheduled with the program director.)
If possible, the qualifying courses should be taken as beginning courses in the M.S.A. program. Students who waive two, three, four, or five qualifying courses must still complete thirty-seven credits to graduate, but may take the credits in elective courses. If a student waives one qualifying course, that student’s degree requirements are for forty credits; and if no qualifying courses are waived, forty-three credits are required for the M.S.A.
Students must take or have previously taken the following five courses at an accredited graduate or undergraduate institution or successfully complete an assessment in the following five courses: 2. Core Courses
Students must complete the following sixteen credits:
GSA 511 Managerial Presentations and GSA 515 Effective Written Communication should be taken near the beginning of the M.S.A. program. GSA 595 and GSA 596 Leadership Seminar I & II are designed to be taken as capstone courses at the end of the program. 3. Elective Courses
(Courses are three credits unless otherwise indicated.)
Students must complete a minimum of four three-credit electives, or as many courses as necessary to complete the degree requirements of thirty-seven to forty-three credits. It is recommended, but not required, that nine credits be taken in one of the areas of specialization toward the M.S.A., with an additional three credits taken outside the selected area of specialization. Current areas of specialization include: Organizational Behavior/Management, Planning & Control, Human Resource Management, International Management, Marketing, Management Information Systems, and Nonprofit Management. Please note that areas of specialization represent a concentration and will not appear on the student’s degree. Elective courses by area of specialization are: Organizational Behavior/Management
Human Resource Management
International Management
*GSL courses with director’s approval Management Information Systems
Nonprofit Management
Often new electives are offered under GSA 591 Special Topics. Most electives are offered every other year depending on enrollments. You may check with the director about the specific schedule.
Subject to the terms of the transfer of credit policy, up to six transfer credits from another accredited graduate institution with a “B” grade or better and not more than seven years old may be used as elective credits. Students may take up to six elective credits in the Saint Michael’s College master’s programs in education, clinical psychology, teaching English as a second language, or theology. See the course descriptions and prerequisites for the courses in each program. A total of three one-credit electives (600 course number series) may be taken to equal one three-credit course. Unless a student chooses the Nonprofit Management area of specialization, no more than three one-credit electives may be taken for the degree. 4. Candidacy Requirements
In order to develop students to their fullest potential in an academic setting and in their work and community organizations, students must show proficiency in writing and quantitative skills to achieve candidacy. After admission to the M.S.A. program, but prior to the completion of twelve credits, students must complete the candidacy requirements and apply for candidacy. The candidacy requirements include the following: a. Students may show proficiency in writing by satisfactorily completing:
b. Students may show proficiency in quantitative skills by satisfactorily completing:
- a quantitative skills assessment; or
5. Portfolio Requirement
In 1994 the Master of Science in Administration Program (M.S.A.) made a major curriculum change by adding a capstone course, Leadership Seminar I & II. Central to these courses is the M.S.A. Portfolio which is designed to help the student integrate the knowledge and skills acquired throughout the program. The focus is equally upon leadership and followership as the knowledge, skills and belief systems required of effective leaders and followers are similar. The portfolio is the vehicle by which the student documents their learning’s.
Student portfolios have long been used in teacher education and other academic majors to document learning and assess performance and growth. Portfolios have also been found to be useful in personal and professional development as the student often learns much about themselves through the reflective process necessary to write the portfolio. This process permits one to appreciate how the new knowledge, skills, attitudes and beliefs have impacted their behavior and that of others. The strength of exemplary leaders and effective followers lies in their ability to influence – the situation and the behavior of others.
Commencing with the 2007-08 academic year a major revision was made to the portfolio. Students now document their accomplishments around the principles embodied in James Kouzes and Barry Posner’s, The Leadership Challenge, the most widely used text in college leadership classes. In the process of developing the portfolio the student also provides evidence of their achievement of the MSA program goals
Using Kouzes & Posner’s practices of exemplary leadership (Inspire a Shared Vision, Model the Way, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and Encourage the Heart), students prepare a portfolio around these five themes. The portfolio is focused upon a current or past leadership / followership experience and requires that students demonstrate that they have applied and are applying new knowledge and skills, and are developing new attitudes and beliefs that are positively impacting their leader / follower behaviors.
Students quickly learn that the skills exemplary leaders possess are also the same skills that effective followers possess. So the first mental model that is developed is that exemplary leaders and effective followers share similar foundations, often the significant difference being the role one plays. The portfolio documents the application of the new knowledge and skills acquired in the Leadership Seminar and throughout the MSA program. Students are further challenged to reflect upon these learning’s, especially as they impact their attitudes and beliefs which ultimately underpin changes in their behavior.
Portfolio Development: The following are sections that must be included in the completed portfolio:
Introduction to the Portfolio: In this section, students should preview the contents of the portfolio for the reader. What the reader will find in each section, various highlights, and any editorial comments should be included.Program and Personal Goals Accomplishment and Application: In this section, evidence demonstrating the achievement of the goals of the M.S.A. and personal goals should be discussed in the context of the work situation. Students need to state in what courses or through which experiences in the M.S.A. program they achieved the goal and secondly, what was learned from the courses and/or experiences. They will need to describe how they have applied the learning and understandings to their work situation. In what ways have they increased contributions to the organization as leaders and/or followers? How has personal and professional growth increased worth to the company for which they work? Evidence of accomplishment of the goals, which includes papers, reports, video presentations, and case analyses, should be included in the appendices. In addition to personal goals, students need to address the following program goals in this section:
- Demonstrate an ability to research, write, present, and defend reports on issues in administration and management;
- Present administrative topics to diverse audiences using effective delivery skills and use of appropriate visual aids;
- Show proficient application of information technology;
- Examine the theory and application of various models to support management decision-making;
- Analyze the structure, leadership style, group processes, and power relationships of given organizations;
- Select and apply appropriate and workable management techniques to cases or current situations;
- Understand how external factors, such as the global economy, international politics, sociological, technological, and ecological trends impact an organization;
- Synthesize the theories and applications learned throughout the student’s experiences in a comprehensive evaluation of a current situation;
- Demonstrate effective interpersonal communication skills;
- Consider ethical issues in their cultural context; and
- Understand and demonstrate an appreciation of diversity.
Individual Leadership/Followership Case Study: In this section, the students develop a leadership case study in which they analyze the effectiveness of their leadership/followership styles within the given structure of an organization. This analysis should demonstrate research skills and the ability to determine both effective and ineffective patterns of leadership/followership behavior and to develop a plan for improving effectiveness.Team Action Research Paper & Presentation: This section includes a report of a team project. This project is designed to introduce students to the concept and practice of “leader as decision-maker.” Students will present a team case on a “real” company, selected by the students and approved by the faculty. This case must be written and presented. It must integrate the fields of business and include evidence of the ability to apply decision-making techniques and models. In addition, evidence of computer usage must be demonstrated.Portfolio Summary: In this section, students should present a summary statement of contents of the portfolio. Students should include in what ways it reflects experiences in the program and comments about the process of developing the portfolio.
Portfolio Process:
- Students should attend a portfolio workshop.
- In the final semester, the portfolio must be submitted for final review and examination.
M.S.A. Graduation Requirements
Graduation is contingent upon successful completion of all degree requirements. A student must file an Intent to Graduate Form at the beginning of the semester in which the student anticipates completing all degree requirements. The form should be approved by the program director and sent directly to the Registrar’s Office by November 1 for December graduation, by February 1 for May graduation, and by July 1 for August graduation. A diploma fee is paid when an Intent to Graduate Form is filed. |
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