Science Professionals Master's Education for a Competitive World (2008) / Chapter Skim
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2 Master's Education
2 Master's Education
Pages 17-52
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From page 17... ...
As shown in Table 2-1, this rate of growth was more than double that for bachelor's degrees and research doctorates during the same time period. Since 1980, the rate of growth in master's degrees awarded has also been significantly higher than for professional degrees in law, medicine, and dentistry. The professional disciplines of education and business dominate the master's degree programs in the United States.
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From page 18... ...
research and studies, and a catchall field, multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary studies. With the exception of computer science, the numbers of master's degrees awarded in natural sciences fields are both small and slow growing.
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From page 19... ...
The award of a master's degree in the context of doctoral education signified either a "stepping-stone" en route to the doctorate or a "consolation prize" for those who were not admitted to candidacy or who dropped out. Professional degrees, by contrast, served as credentials for practice.
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From page 20... ...
Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2004-2005 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)
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From page 21... ...
To others, this ability to mean different things to different people in varied settings is the key to its "silent success" as a degree and its ability to be responsive to the changing needs of both students and society. "Students pursue master's degrees," writes the Council of Graduate Schools, "to prepare for further advanced study or for entry into public school or community college teaching, to improve and upgrade their professional skills, to change professional fields, and to explore their own personal intellectual development." Many factors have spurred this change in master's education.
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From page 22... ...
(Another NRC committee, The Committee on the Study of Teacher Preparation Programs in the United States, will issue a report address ing this issue within several months of our committee's report.) Nevertheless, we would suggest that attention be given to the development of professional science master's degree programs designed specifically for science teachers.
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From page 23... ...
Discussions of what the engineer of 2020 should bring to the workplace, however, now presume both increased knowledge and skills in communication, business or economics, the social sciences, cross-cultural studies, and important technologies. Adding this knowledge to a strong engineering curriculum may mean that the first professional degree will need to be the master's rather than the baccalaureate. Roles of Master's Education in the Natural Sciences Conrad et al.
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From page 24... ...
, students mainly pursue master's degrees as an intentional degree in an applied field for use in professional practice. In natural sciences fields like the biological sciences, physics, and chemistry, by
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From page 25... ...
-- Excerpted from Council of Graduate Schools, Professional Master's Education: A CGS Guide to Establishing Programs (Washington, DC: Council of Graduate Schools, 2006)
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From page 26... ...
(See Appendix E.) The University of Utah, however, has compiled just such data for selected fields in the natural sciences and they are likely to be reasonably illustrative of experiences across graduate schools.
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From page 27... ...
Engeering Civil Engeering Chemical Engeering 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Percent Figure 2-3 S&E master's degree recipient, with no additional advanced degrees 10 or more years after first S&E master's degree, by fine field, 2003 (percentage)
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From page 28... ...
Ph.D.s per Ph.D. # # % # % # % # Biology 15 3 20 12 80 0 0 38 0.4 Chemistry 51 3 5 46 90 3 5 76 0.7 Mathematics 93 61 66 1 1 31 33 23 4.0 Physics 58 26 45 12 20 20 35 28 2.1 Geology/Geophysics 46 32 70 0 0 14 30 20 2.3 Meteorology 16 10 60 0 0 6 40 9 1.8 Professional MST 68 68 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 Source: David Chapman, Graduate Dean, University of Utah, presentation to study committee, July 14, 2007.
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From page 29... ...
We would argue, then, that master's degree programs should be developed to produce individuals who have those skills. Emerging Need for Professional Master's in the Natural Sciences The natural sciences have been "among the few academic areas that have persisted with the ‘traditional' model of the master's degree," according to the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS)
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From page 30... ...
30 Table 2-5 Employed Individuals with Highest Degree in the Biological Sciences, by Highest Degree and Employment Sector, 2003 Total 4-Yr College/ Highest Degree Employed For-Profit Self-Employed Nonprofit Univ. Other Educ.
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From page 31... ...
These fields require new talent, that is, personnel with advanced science education and practical workplace skills. Further, scientific advances that led to the growth of the biotechnology industry now present opportunities for master's-educated professionals who can contribute even more to the industry as it matures and requires individuals who have management and leadership skills.
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From page 32... ...
But the biotechnology industry is maturing and, consequently, its workforce is changing with employment growth in such positions as project manager, laboratory manager, clinical trial monitor, and regulatory affairs specialist that can be filled by graduates of professional science master's programs. Indeed, increased innovation results not only from scientific discovery, but also from the work of firms to commercialize these discoveries.
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From page 33... ...
Of approximately 3,400 students enrolled in professional science master's degree programs in the fall of 2005, about 50 percent were women, 80 percent were U.S. citizens, and 9 percent were from underrepresented minority groups -- all percentages higher than for graduate enrollment in the natural sciences overall.
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From page 34... ...
(See Box 2-4.) PSM programs prepare graduates for work in science outside of academia, which leads to a wider variety of career options than traditional graduate programs provide.18 The MBS and PSM have been developed with several core, defining features in mind, namely, that professional master's education can provide: • additional scientific knowledge beyond a four-year bachelor's degree; • more interdisciplinary training, often in informatics, computation, or engineering, than a typical science degree, which allows a student to bring relevant knowledge from a variety of fields to the workplace; • a focus on acquiring scientific and technical knowledge that can be applied in a variety of positions in business, government, or nonprofits rather than acquiring research skills as provided in a doctoral program; • a perspective on a business culture that values applied research and commercialization of scientific discovery; and • job-relevant skills in teamwork, project management, communication, business administration, statistics, ethics, and legal/regulatory issues.
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From page 35... ...
M Keck Foundation provided an initial funding of $50 million (current use and endowment)
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From page 36... ...
Sloan Foundation pioneered the development of professional science master's programs designed to graduate students who would bring both advanced scientific knowledge and practical, professional skills to the workplace. The Sloan Foundation, from January 1997 to September 2007, had approved a total of $17.5 million in grants to promote the PSM and to establish PSM pro grams, of which $15.9 million has been paid to date.
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• A commitment to attempt to track the career trajectory of every graduate in order to help assess program outcomes and success. • Agreement to use the name "Professional Science Master's" and the PSM logo on Websites and advertising brochures.
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From page 38... ...
KGI has three general types of courses: graduate science, MBA business, and "bridging" courses in such areas as pharmaceutical development, clinical trial design, and biostatistics. The integration means that topics like project management are taught in one of the science courses, the MBA business courses exclusively use case studies from the bioscience industry, and the "bridging courses" serve as the curricular glue allowing students to see science and business together in practice.
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From page 39... ...
Other programs had enrollments that ranged from 2 to 77. Appendix G provides a side-by-side comparison of program features for the Keck MBS program, the Sloan PSM initiative, and the PSM provisions of Section 7034 of the America COMPETES Act.
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From page 40... ...
• The number of business intelligence or analytics staff who apply mathematical modeling, data analysis, and computer simulation to solve business problems is growing in many large business and industrial companies. This work is seen as a valuable source of corporate competitiveness.
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From page 41... ...
While some Ph.D.s have founded and managed companies and others fill executive positions, most Ph.D.s in the biotechnology industry work in research and research management. The industry also has a growing need for people
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From page 42... ...
Masters-educated graduates with appropriate preparation are ready to contribute to this growing field and are likely to become its staffing backbone. The approximately 20 mathematics-centered professional science master's degree programs available today in such fields as industrial mathematics, financial mathematics, bioinformatics, and mathematical entrepreneurship are outstanding training grounds for a career in business intel ligence, as the employment opportunities afforded to their graduates testify.
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From page 43... ...
SOURCE: Adapted from "Service Science, Management and Engineering," IBM Incorporated http://www.research.ibm.com/ssme/ and http://www-304.ibm.com/jct09002c/university/schol ars/skills/ssme/index.html (accessed October 20, 2007)
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From page 44... ...
Through the fall of 2005, there were 1,300 graduates of PSM programs from six cohorts. While a small number -- in light of the more than 18,000 master's degrees awarded in the natural sciences (biological sciences, physical sciences, and mathematics)
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From page 45... ...
Source: Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences.
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From page 46... ...
Chamber of Commerce, a group of 15 prominent business organizations, the Association of American Universities, and the Council of Graduate Schools have all recommended a national effort to develop and expand the number of PSM degree programs in the nation. These reports represent the collective voice of government, industry, and higher education, and in each case the recommendation to establish and increase the number of PSM programs was seen as a key part of a package designed to address U.S.
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From page 47... ...
Initially, as Tobias and Brigham have reported, it took programs "a minimum of two years to plan a PSM, gain appropriate administrative approval, recruit, and actually enroll students." Now, however, they note that this "time has been reduced, partly because there are PSM models to learn from, and an outreach network from which to draw strength and advice."26 The track record for PSM programs begun with Sloan seed money has been very good so far. One way to assess their progress is to discuss "those few instances where PSM programs have been discontinued." Tobias and Brigham write: "Some number of PSM tracks never made it to launch though their sister tracks on the same campus did.
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From page 48... ...
Many faculty members in the natural sciences continue to view master's degrees as incidental and unimportant elements of graduate programs focused primarily on preparing doctoral students. Others more enthusiastically embrace professional master's programs.
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From page 49... ...
At present, some external advisory boards "are very active and involved," report Tobias and Brigham. Others, however, meet only once a year or are "nominal," which means "advisers signed on but aren't doing any work." Commu
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From page 50... ...
31 CaliforniaCouncil on Science and Technology, Industry Perspective of the Professional Science Master's Degree in California: Prepared for the California State University System, January 2005, http://www.ccst.us/publications/2005/2005PSM.php (accessed October 31, 2007)
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From page 51... ...
As noted earlier, students attracted to PSM programs typically differ from other graduate students. They include more women and, in general, tend to be older.
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From page 52... ...
Institutions like the University of Maryland University College have pioneered the development of a successful model of distance education that is now technology driven and delivers course content to students globally.33 This model could possibly be adapted for certain courses or programs for PSM degrees as well. 33 Susan Aldridge, President, University of Maryland University College, presentation to the study committee, July 16, 2007.
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