Putting your master's on the fast track

As undergraduates think about the possibility of continuing their education for a master's degree, they may not need to look further than Boston College. The postgraduate master's degree can take up to four years to complete, but BC's fifth- year program allows students to obtain a degree in only one. While the advantages of this are numerous - an extra year at BC for one - only paying one year of tuition versus four years certainly has its perks as well.

The trend toward a more rapid completion of graduate study is one that is a priority for both students and the schools they attend. On Oct. 3, Joseph Berger wrote in The New York Times that the Council of Graduate Schools, which represents 480 universities in the United States and Canada, "is halfway through a seven-year project to explore ways of speeding up the ordeal." BC's fifth year program is one solution.

Fifth-year programs have emerged at BC as both popular and well-regarded in three colleges: the Lynch School of Education, the Connell School of Nursing, and the College of Arts and Sciences. Students complete and receive their master's degree after only one year of post-graduate study, supplemented by a few courses taken in the student's senior year or the summer after graduation.

The Lynch School of Education has included a fifth-year program since 1985 and can now boast a 22nd position in the U.S. News and World Report's ranking of Best Graduate Schools in 2008. Students can receive an accelerated master's degree in teaching, curriculum and instruction, developmental and educational psychology, higher education, or educational research, measurement, and evaluation.

John Cawthorne, head of the Lynch School's Offices for Students and Outreach, said that the program is "especially wise for students who want to teach moderate or severe special needs or who want to get higher education in education or developmental psychology." While most applicants to the program are from LSOE, Cawthorne said students from other schools often enroll in the program if they wish to teach elementary or secondary school.

Each year, approximately 75 students apply to the program, all during their junior year. There are currently 40 students in the program while 53 students were accepted from this year's senior class. Juniors interested in applying must turn in this year's application by March 1.

Katharine Butler, who graduated in 2004 from the LSOE fifth year program, made this decision because it was the most straightforward route to receive her master's degree. "BC made it really easy with references for my application from BC professors, an advisor to help you transition, and a program catered to students who want to work at the same time," she said.

Students must complete 10 courses to complete the program, but many take two of those in their senior year or in the summer. Butler did both and was able to finish her fifth year while simultaneously working full time.

There are, however, disadvantages to the program. Cawthorne reminds students that while they are being taught a specialization, they do not receive the education a longer form of graduate study could provide. Butler added, "Some of the course content was repetitive, because BC has a certain way of teaching that is the same in the years of graduate study."

Regardless of the abbreviated program, students do benefit from the relationship between undergraduate and graduate study at BC. Because some graduate courses are taken during the senior year, tuition for those courses is included in the undergraduate bill. This can amount to a saving of over $5,000.

Regardless of the acceleration of study, Cawthorne said, "Students find it very manageable to complete the program in just one year."

Butler agreed. She completed the program in a year, graduating with a master's degree in curriculum and instruction. She currently teaches at Ashburton Elementary School in Montgomery County, Md.

LSOE isn't the only school at BC that houses this type of program. The Connell School of Nursing also has a fifth-year program, which is much smaller than the Lynch School's, perhaps because of its greater demands for its applicants and graduates. This year, approximately 10 students are interested in the program, and there are six working toward completion.

The program requires that students maintain a grade point average of at least 3.2 and earn a grade of B or above in all nursing courses during their undergraduate study.

Students must also take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) before application. Patricia Tabloski, associate dean for graduate programs in CSON, informed students that the mandate for the GRE isn't solely for the application, but for the students who wish to apply for their doctorate later.

Students also must pass the NCLEX-RN examination and hold an unrestricted RN license in Massachusetts following graduation from the undergraduate program.

While most nursing students graduate as licensed RNs, Tabloski said, "The fifth year program is designed for students who may want to become a nurse practitioner or specialized clinical nurse."

The program asks that students take many courses before their fifth-year even begins. Junior and senior students take graduate nursing courses as electives, and then must take three graduate courses during the summer following their graduation from undergraduate study.

Kat Burke, CSON '07, has decided not to do the fifth-year program because she wants exposure in a hospital before getting her graduate degree. "Many of my clinical instructors have advised us that employers are really looking for experience, not more education. Also, BC is a pretty expensive place. Some hospitals will help pay for that same education later," she said.

Tabloski maintained, however, that it is important for some nursing students to get this education right away. "It serves to put more advanced practiced nurses in the pipeline. And they really bring something new to the table - their current knowledge, enthusiasm, youth, and new perspectives - all stimulating a new kind of discussion."