Occupational Education, M.Ed.

Graduate Program Chair

James Alicata, PhD

Graduate Committee

Wayne Whitfield, Committee Chair

Soumitra Basu

Abdel Gabar Mustafa

Hong Yu

Nirajan Mani

Program Description

The MEd in Occupational Education Program is a 100% online program that is designed for students who have earned a baccalaureate degree in technology education or vocational education and want increased awareness and knowledge of current issues and trends in occupational education.  The program consists of 36 credits to be completed in a suggested sequence within six years. The course sequence has been designed to ensure quality and provide flexibility to serve the variety of student interests and professional needs. A program advisor assists each student with the planned sequence, and advises the selection electives (12 semester hours) to meet individual goals and interests.

Program Learning Outcomes

Candidates completing a Master of Education in Occupational Education, upon graduation are expected to have achieved the following outcomes: 

• Students will have a familiarity of the leaders, organizations and movements that have contributed to the development of occupational education in the United States. Knowledge of the philosophies of past and present, along with the issues and problems that have affected occupational education will serve them in their decision-making responsibilities. 
• Graduates will apply recent readings, reports, products and research as tools to analyze strategies for strengthening the delivery of occupational education within a variety of settings. 
• Graduates will be able to demonstrate how educational supervision is a carefully structured leadership with responsibilities related to the improvement of instruction. In the context of a supervisory role, graduates will be able to examine in-service training, inspection, staff guidance, research and evaluation of personnel and curriculum concerns. 
• Graduates will have received instruction relating to the development and evaluation of written achievement tests and concepts relative to basic descriptive statistics and parametric techniques.
• Graduates will have a familiarity of federal and state laws pertaining to occupational education. Particular attention will be applied to the legislative process as it relates to current school law and to the judicial process in its interpretation of school law.
• Graduates will be able to plan research, write research reports and interpret statistical occupational education data.
• Graduates will recognize the teacher as an innovative designer of strategies for planning curriculum. Graduates will have reviewed and examined the process of designing and accessing model curriculum projects in occupational education.

Admissions Standards and Criteria

To apply for enrollment in the Master of Education in Occupational Education Program, a student must submit documents as outlined in the Graduate Admission section as well as:

• Documentation of standard certification or vocational teacher approval

Program Requirements

The MEd in Occupational Education program consists of 36 credits to be completed in a suggested sequence within six years.

Total credits are divided between:

• Twenty-four semester hours of required courses
• Twelve semester hours of electives designed to allow the vocational educator to develop specific skills relative to their career goals

It is recommended that students take OCED 7250 - Research and Statistics in Occupational Education , early in the program. All electives must be approved by the program advisor prior to enrollment in the courses.