departments may have additional senior project requirements. Students who enter the M.Ed. program with a baccalaureate degree do not complete a senior project.
American History (M.A.Ed.)
Objectives: To provide a degree appropriate for a person seeking certification to teach history or social studies with endorsement for Virginia and states with reciprocal agreements concerning credentials. To provide the proof required for competency and mastery according to federal guidelines. Requirements: 30 semester hours at the 500 or 600 level, including History 502; 503; 505; 507; 516; either 517 or 519; 520; one course chosen from 536, 539, or 540; 552, and 600.
Additional Requirements for M.A.Ed. and M.Ed.
When students have completed 24 semester hours of course work, they will be required either to take a written comprehensive examination or to complete an integrative project. A follow-up oral examination may be required. Although the M.A.Ed. and M.Ed. are teaching degrees rather than research degrees, a culminating writing project will be required that can take two directions. In most programs, students will write a comprehensive paper in which they will analyze what they have learned, and the implications of their discoveries for what they expect to happen in their classrooms. In the reading program, this project usually takes the form of a comprehensive case study wherein students demonstrate what they have learned.
Community and Organizational leadership (M.A.COL)
Objectives: To equip early and mid-career professionals with the skills necessary for them to be more effective leaders within communities and organizations; to offer an interdisciplinary approach to questions and issues of leadership and community development in both the public and private sectors, for proactive leadership focused on building communities. Requirements for the Master of Arts in Community and Organizational Leadership with a focus on Nonprofit Leadership: MCOL 501, 502, 503, 510 or 520, 512, 515, 518, 530, 532, 535, and 600. Requirements for the Master of Arts in Community and Organizational Leadership with a focus on Health Care Policy and Advocacy: MCOL 501, 502, 503, 510 or 520, 512, 515, 518, 540, 542, 545, and 600.
Requirements for admission (M.A.Ed. programs)
Admission to a Master of Arts in Education degree program requires a baccalaureate degree from an accredited undergraduate institution with a minimum GPA of 2.75 overall and 3.0 in the major; completion of the Graduate Record Examination; submission of a writing sample of high quality; and review by an admissions committee. For experienced teachers and other individuals of exceptional promise, the admissions committee may modify the GPA requirement. Prospective graduate students are required to provide three recommendations from individuals familiar with their work, submit a completed application for graduate admission, and provide official copies of any professional tests they have completed.
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