Science Professionals Master's Education for a Competitive World (2008) / Chapter Skim
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3 Mastering the Future
3 Mastering the Future
Pages 53-70
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From page 53... ...
The Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862 provided states with the resources to establish and grow postsecondary educational institutions whose mission would include the development of agriculture and engineering and increasing access to higher education. A second Morrill Act, passed in 1890, required states to show that either race was not a factor in admission to state universities or they had established institutions of higher education that would serve the states' African-American population.
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From page 54... ...
The traditional science master's degree does not meet this need. A reinvigorated master's degree in the natural sciences provides an opportunity to meet this challenge by training adaptive innovators and service scientists solidly based in science, linked to industry, and possessing communication, business, and teamwork skills.
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From page 55... ...
Rather, faculty develop them to serve the needs of students who require a different graduate experience for the workplace: banks, insurance and financial companies, and large firms who hire graduates of PSM programs in financial and industrial mathematics; a maturing biotechnology industry with a growing need for middle managers who have both scientific knowledge and broader business skills; services corporations like IBM that require employees with depth in science and breadth in business and customer skills; and government employers (particularly in the military, intelligence, and homeland security agencies) that have an increasing need for science- and technology-savvy staff, particularly those with an interdisciplinary background.
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From page 56... ...
Testimony to the committee provided specific examples of the demand for these graduates from biotechnology companies, banks and financial corporations, information technology firms, and government agencies. There is, moreover, broad support for expanding PSM education, voiced by the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, the National Science Board, the National Governors Association, the Council on Competitiveness, the U.S.
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From page 57... ...
RECOMMENDATIONS In August 2007, Congress passed the America COMPETES Act, which authorizes the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop and implement a program of grants to higher education institutions that may use them to develop or expand PSM degree programs.
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From page 58... ...
We expect that, to meet those needs, many of these new master's programs will be interdisciplinary in nature and that they, like the Sloan- and Kecksupported programs, will provide opportunities for students to acquire skills in communication, teamwork, project management, or other areas of business, ethics, or law. The America COMPETES Act authorizes the NSF director to develop a program that will award grants to four-year institutions to create or improve PSM degree programs in high-need fields.
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From page 59... ...
The America COMPETES Act mandates that the NSF director shall establish a clearinghouse -- in collaboration with four-year institutions of higher education (including applicable graduate schools and academic departments) and industries and federal agencies that employ sciencetrained personnel -- to share program elements used in successful PSM degree programs and other advanced degree programs related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)
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From page 60... ...
State Governments 2. State governments, which have a long history of efforts in economic development, should regard PSM degree programs as critical to producing a cadre of science professionals who can play an important role in managing and growing science- and t echnology-based industries in their states.
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From page 61... ...
Philanthropic institutions should continue to play a role in creating and sustaining PSM degree programs and otherwise spur ring innovation in master's education. Foundations can provide matching funds for federal grants, funding to assist students with financial aid, and the seed money for the establishment of a base of new programs in a specific field or in support of a specific industry.
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From page 62... ...
This strategy should include the PSM and specific actions to help create and sustain such PSM programs as: • Creating a society-wide committee on master's education in the field, parallel to those that focus on doctoral and postdoctoral education • Highlighting or facilitating PSM programs through conference sessions and presentations • Providing a field-specific clearinghouse of information on PSM programs and job opportunities for PSM graduates • Recognizing the professional contributions of faculty who lead or participate in successful PSM programs Industry associations may similarly play a critical role in identifying workforce needs and providing a catalyst for the development and nurturing of PSM programs. We recommend that associations in hight echnology or science-based industries develop an overall strategy for higher education.
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From page 63... ...
Higher education institutions should continue to innovate in and support the development of master's degree programs in the natural sciences to meet the needs of students seeking science based careers and of the employers who hire them. PSM programs will provide students with deeper, often interdisciplinary, scientific knowledge and must include opportunities for the development of professional skills and practice through courses, summer intern ships, and business- or government-sponsored projects that provide an invaluable workplace experience.
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From page 64... ...
These programs must include courses or course elements focused on professional skills and practice in such areas as: • Communication, interpersonal, and project management skills • Teamwork, innovation, leadership, and entrepreneurship • Business or public policy (economics, finance, management, organizational behavior) • Legal climate • Professional ethics • Computation • Culture/languages Master's education in the sciences that consists solely of science courses provides only limited preparation for a career in business, government, or nonprofit organizations.
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From page 65... ...
The use of external employer advisory councils will provide substan tive, real-time input for framing of new science master's programs and practical assistance with curriculum development, mentoring, marketing, employer-sponsored projects, internships, hiring for graduates, and financial support. Institutions should also provide outreach to students, informing undergraduate students and poten tial graduate students of the PSM degree opportunity.
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From page 66... ...
An ongoing effort to attend relevant business/industrial gatherings and talk about a program and its virtues is also important. Institutions should provide outreach to students and recent alumni, informing undergraduate students and potential graduate students of the PSM degree opportunity.
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From page 67... ...
We also recommend that employers invite representatives of PSM programs to speak at local or regional business gatherings that provide a forum for communication about the existence and attributes of PSM programs and their graduates. Lastly, we encourage employers to broaden their traditional recruiting to hire graduates from new programs.
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From page 68... ...
Students in PSM degree programs should take full advantage of internships and industry-sponsored team projects. We encour age alumni to provide the professional programs from which they graduated with links to and resources from their current employers who can assist with mentoring, internship opportunities, and infor mation about employment.
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From page 69... ...
MASTERING THE FUTURE 69 We encourage alumni to provide the professional programs from which they graduated links to and resources from their current employers, including mentoring, internship opportunities, and information about employment.
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