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Kansas State University

Master's Degree in Academic Advising

Kansas State University is now offering a Master of Science in Academic Advising. This Academic Advising master’s program offers two options:

  • Administration of Academic Advising
  • Intercollegiate Athletics and the College Student

Frequently Asked Questions

What courses must I complete to earn a master’s degree in Academic Advising?

The Program of Study

Every master's student must file with the Graduate School a Program of Study (POS), which is a formal list of the courses the student intends to take to fulfill the requirements of the degree. The Program of Study should consist solely of courses directly related to the master's degree. Full-time students must file their programs before the end of their second semester of graduate study, and part-time students must do so upon the completion of 9 credit hours. For students who have previously completed K-State's 15-credit-hour Graduate Certificate in Academic Advising, the POS should be filed upon completion of an additional 6 hours. The student should prepare the Program of Study in consultation with the supervisory committee, and all members of which must indicate their approval by signing the Program of Study form provided by the Graduate School. The head of the academic unit must then endorse the Program of Study and forward it to the Dean of the Graduate School, whose approval must be received within the first two semesters of graduate work. Subsequent changes in the Program of Study require approval of all members of the supervisory committee, and if changes are made, a Program/Committee Change form should be submitted to the Graduate School before graduation.

Courses for the 30-hour online Master of Science in Academic Advising are:

Required:

EDCEP 752 — College Student Athletes
EDCEP 816 — Research Methods
EDCEP 829 — Learning Principles
EDCEP 835 — Foundations of Academic Advising
EDCEP 838 — The College Student and the College Environment
EDCEP 851 — Multicultural Aspects of Academic Advising
EDCEP 863 — Trends in Career Development
EDCEP 886 — Seminar/Interpersonal Relations for Academic Advising
EDSP 886 — Seminar/College Students with Special Needs

One elective is required:

EDCEP 761 — Intercollegiate Athletics and the College Student Athlete
or
EDCEP 886 — Seminar/Administration of Academic Advising

An electronic portfolio is also required for this degree program. As a capstone activity and learning experience for the Master of Science in Academic Advising, students will prepare an electronic portfolio that demonstrates their knowledge and expertise in the academic outcomes for the program. In the development of these e-portfolios, students will draw from their learning in the courses and the application of their learning to academic advising. The e-portfolios will be reviewed and evaluated by the student's program committee.

Portfolio Requirements (PDF)

Portfolios for committee review are due to your appointed advisor at the following times:

Graduating in Fall 2008: October 17, 2008
Graduating in Spring 2009: March 15, 2009

Two weeks prior to submitting the portfolio, the Approval to Schedule Final Examinations form should be completed. Students should type their name, K-State eID, student number, and home address. The form is then to be e-mailed to the students' major advisor.

Approval to Schedule Final Examinations (DOC)

Once students receive feedback that the portfolio has been approved, students should e-mail their advisor requesting a ballot be sent to the graduate school.

The pdf file presented below presents an example of a master’s portfolio submitted to meet degree requirements. The portfolio was submitted by Krista Soria, who completed the Master of Science in Academic Advising in Summer 2008. This is posted with her permission and is presented as an example; it is not intended to be a model, as portfolios will vary in terms of presentation (e.g., format, content, focus).

Portfolio Example (PDF)

How are the courses delivered and what is the timeframe?

All coursework is delivered via the Internet in semester-based courses. Classes are delivered within a semester time frame and are somewhat flexible in schedule. Students work independently but share comments and questions via electronic communications.

What technology is required to take these courses?

Computer Requirements

You will need a computer that can connect to the World Wide Web with specific browser requirements.

Kansas State University has an extensive Information Technology website. We ask that you follow the links below to see what K-State recommends for students coming to campus. These same recommendations will apply to you, as you will be using the K-State Online course delivery system.

What are the costs?

Tuition and fees are $380 per credit hour. Payment of course fees is required at the time of enrollment. This includes a $75 non-refundable fee.

It is your responsibility to withdraw from classes at any time after enrollment if you do not plan to complete the course. Classes are NOT dropped automatically if tuition/fees are unpaid.

Can I transfer credits into the program?

Transfer of Credit

Kansas State University accepts graduate credit from another institution only under the following conditions:

  1. The other institution is accredited by the cognizant regional accrediting association to offer graduate degree programs appropriate to the level of the credit to be transferred.
  2. The credit is fully acceptable to the other institution in satisfaction of its own advanced degree requirements.
  3. The credit is applicable to the student's program of study for an advanced degree at Kansas State University.
  4. The program of study should consist solely of courses directly related to the master's degree.

Under normal circumstances, graduate credit transferred from other institutions may not exceed 10 credit hours for the master's degree, and then only for courses graded B or better. Credits that were earned more than six years prior to the semester in which the program of study is approved cannot be transferred. The Graduate School may grant exceptions to these limits when justified by inter-institutional collaborations. Graduate programs that are granted such exceptions will present evidence of quality of the student's program of study during periodic program reviews.

How do I form a supervisory committee and submit a program of study?

The Supervisory Committee

The chairperson will have assigned you an advisor upon admission to the program. Within the first year of study, you should contact your advisor and together assemble a supervisory committee, including the advisor and at least two other graduate faculty members (listed below). After approval, the Dean of the Graduate School will formally appoint the supervisory committee. This committee will advise in developing a program of study, supervise your progress, and conduct the final examination. The major professor serves as chair of the supervisory committee.

The Program of Study

Every master's student must file with the Graduate School a Program of Study, a formal list of the courses the student intends to take to fulfill the requirements of the degree. The Program of Study should consist solely of courses directly related to the master's degree. Full-time students must file their programs before the end of their second semester of graduate study, and part-time students must do so upon the completion of 9 credit hours. The student should prepare the Program of Study in consultation with the supervisory committee, all members of which must indicate their approval by signing the Program of Study form provided by the Graduate School. The head of the academic unit must then endorse the Program of Study and forward it to the Dean of the Graduate School, whose approval must be received within the first two semesters of graduate work. Subsequent changes in the Program of Study require approval of all members of the supervisory committee, and if changes are made, a Program/Committee Change form should be submitted to the Graduate School before graduation.

In preparing your Program of Study, you may take one of the two electives based on your interests. The electives are Intercollegiate Athletics and the College Student and Administration of Academic Advising. The files for templates of Programs of Study for each of these electives can be viewed below.

Graduate Faculty Available to Serve on Committees
  • Aaron Carlstrom
  • Doris Carroll
  • Judy Hughey
  • Ken Hughey
  • Marilyn Kaff
  • Christy Moran
  • Fred Newton
  • Charlie Nutt

If I already have the Academic Advising Certificate, how will that affect my Master's Degree in Academic Advising?

Students who have successfully completed the Graduate Certificate in Academic Advising will, upon application, be admitted to the master's degree program. It is not necessary to submit Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Miller Analogies Test (MAT) scores. The certificate hours are not considered to be transfer credits, so all 15 hours apply to the Master's Degree in Academic Advising. Once admitted, the program of study should be completed. Directions on how to complete the program of study are found under “How do I form a supervisory committee and submit a program of study?” Instead of entering anticipated dates for the semester taken for the courses, the date that the course was actually taken should be listed.

Contact Information

Rosemary Boggs
K-State Division of Continuing Education
13 College Court Building
Manhattan, KS 66506
Phone: 785-532-5575
E-mail: informationdce@k-state.edu

Dona Deam
Office of Graduate Studies
Kansas State University
18 Bluemont Hall
1100 Mid-Campus Drive
Manhattan, KS 66506-5312
Telephone: 785-532-5595