Master’s in Student Affairs in Higher Education

1. Personal and Ethical Foundations: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, awareness and understanding of one's values and beliefs as related to professional codes of ethics and principles of personal wellness.
2. Values, Philosophy, and History: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, a basic understanding of the values, philosophy and history of the student affairs profession as relevant to professional practice in the field.
3. Assessment, Evaluation, and Research: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, an understanding and ability to design, conduct, critique, and utilize various AER methodologies and the results from them to inform professional practice.
4. Law, Policy, and Governance: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, an understanding of policy development processes used in various contexts; the application of legal constructs, compliance/policy issues; and governance structures and their impact upon professional practice.
5. Organizational and Human Resources: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, an understanding of the scale, scope, and interactivity of the human and organizational resources involved in the professional practice of student affairs within the context of higher education.
6. Leadership: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, a basic understanding of concepts, principles, and dynamics of leadership, leadership processes, and leadership development, both generally and in the context of higher education. This includes understanding processes of student leadership and development.
7. Social Justice and Inclusion: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, awareness, and understanding of issues of oppression, privilege, and power and their manifestations, along with the impact they have upon our personal and professional interactions with those with whom we work, especially college students. Additional focus is placed upon understanding social justice and advocacy-oriented practices and skills.
8. Student Learning and Development: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, a critical understanding of learning and development theories and their use in constructing learning outcomes. This includes the ability to apply theory to improve and inform student affairs and teaching practice.
9. Technology: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ASPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, understanding of the use of digital tools, resources, and technologies for the advancement of student learning, development, and success as well as digital literacy necessary for improved professional practice.
10. Advising and Supporting: Students will demonstrate, consistent with ACPA, NASPA, and CAS objectives, development of capacities for individual interventions that entail listening, direction, feedback, critique, referral, and guidance; understanding of group dynamics; management of conflict and crisis situations; and collaboration with others on and off-campus.

Note: The American College Personnel Association (ASPA), the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), and the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) have endorsed the above ten areas as competencies and learning outcomes for graduate preparation programs in student affairs in higher education. Each area has a list of foundational level knowledge, dispositions, and skills that should be addressed in graduate training programs and that students should be prepared to meet by graduation. The curriculum for the Kutztown University Student Affairs in Higher Education Graduate Program includes a course(s) that addresses each competency area.

This course familiarizes the student with the origin, development, purpose, and challenges of student affairs and its role in higher education; and presents an overview of the philosophy, mission, operational activities, and professional requirements of each of its major functional areas. Opportunities for interaction with specialists representing specific areas and on-site visits will be provided.

Contemporary ethical issues relevant to organization and governance in higher will be examined using the Ethical Principles and Standards of the American College Personnel Association (A.C.P.A.). Students will gain an understanding of how colleges and universities work by examining real-world ethical cases and the academic literature. Students will become familiar with the literature on the organization, administration, and governance of institutions of higher education. This course will prepare students to apply major theoretical concepts of organizational behavior to ethical issues and apply these perspectives to practical problems.

This course focuses on knowledge and skills needed to appropriately advise and support college students. Students will understand the importance of group dynamics, managing conflict, crisis situations, and the utilization of on and off campus collaborations. Individual capacities to recognize student needs and execute interventions that entail listening, direction, feedback, critique, referral and guidance appropriate for working with college students will be developed.

This course examines the characteristics, issues, concerns, values, attitudes, needs and expectations of contemporary undergraduate students. It examines the impact of college on students and students on the college, as well as the influence of societal factors. Special attention will be devoted to diverse undergraduate student subpopulations (e.g. residents and nonresidents, undeclared majors, transfers, Greeks, students of color, etc).

This course provides the student with a knowledge of human development principles as applied to undergraduates. It examines major theories relevant to the student development process. It attempts to relate theories to practice in current student affairs settings by demonstrating how undergraduates can identify their needs, promote growth, and measure progress. Appropriate evaluation and assessment measures are described. The work of major theorists will be included.

This seminar will provide students with opportunities to learn about leadership and to acquire and enhance personal leadership skills in a student affairs setting. It will focus both upon leadership as a field of study and upon personal leadership development of each enrolled student. It introduces students to the several styles, characteristics, and practices of leadership, and examines dimensions of leadership in different settings. Opportunities will be provided for the improvement of personal skills in preparation for leadership, advisement, and mentoring responsibilities in student affairs settings. Students will serve as advisors or co-advisors of campus organizations.

This course addresses the vast array of social and legal issues that practitioners working in the realm of student affairs and higher education need to be aware of. It will also address the impact of these issues upon the roles of practitioners, and discuss skills that practitioners need to act within the parameters of the law and to effectively and competently execute these roles.

This course will be a review of the student affairs and higher education literature on evaluation and outcomes assessment, and will address the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to effectively conduct outcome assessment and program evaluation in student affairs and higher education, and utilize the information yielded to inform instruction, programs, and services.

This course is designed to be an introduction to the foundations and concepts necessary for understanding and conducting research in the realm of student affairs and higher education. The course will focus upon the basics of research design including problem identification, literature review, method selection, data collection and analysis, application, and writing.

This course is an introductory examination of financial and budgetary issues within higher education. Students will learn the role of federal and state governments in relation to institutional budgets, analyze financial statements from institutions of different sectors to understand revenue streams and expenditure patterns, and relate budgetary issues to institutional operations. In addition, due to the strong nexus between finances and governance, the course will include an overview of common institutional governance structures, organizational structure and decision-making patterns in various institutions.

This is a fifteen-week internship which combines a fifteen-hour per week campus on-the-job experience in student affairs (under the direct supervision of a site supervisor) and a three-hour, fifteen-week seminar with a professor. During the semester, students will share information on the functions, services, and issues of each office, its role within the institution, and relevant professional literature with each other. Students will develop and share personal internship goals, implementation strategies, and a project which relates developmental theory to the internship experience. Students can select from several student affairs sites at Kutztown University and several other area colleges and universities. Paid graduate assistantship sites may be utilized with permission from the student affairs program coordinator.