Submitted by
Luke Eric Lassiter, Program Director (appointed August 2005)
Program Office
Marshall University Graduate College
South Charleston, WV
304-746-1923 / 2022
I. Assessment Activities
A.
Program Goals (M.A. in Humanities)
The Graduate Humanities Program, an interdisciplinary M.A. degree program that permits students to develop individualized plans of study, established four program goals in the initial assessment plan. These foundational goals reflect the nature of the program itself to
1. graduate students who have experienced interdisciplinary study in the humanities (core courses focused on interdisciplinary study and study in two different discipline areas);
2. graduate students who have completed a coherent plan of study (a plan that may emphasize one disciplinary area but will incorporate appropriate classes from other disciplines);
3. graduate students who have demonstrated competence in an area of specialization (arts and society, cultural studies, historical studies, or literary studies); and
4. graduate students who have demonstrated competence in research activities emphasizing more than one discipline.
These goals have not changed during the past year, but we plan to begin tracking other factors that impact the timely completion of the degree (see Part III: Assistance
Needed).
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B.
The Program assesses degree candidates at three points
1.
Admissions to Program
Candidates who fail to meet the specific criteria for outright admission are offered provisional admission that specifies classes to be taken in the first twelve hours.
2.
Comprehensive examination
Candidate must have completed 24 hours of course work, including all core classes, and have a 3.0 grade point average. Three examiners construct the comprehensive examination for the student based on the individual plan of study. The comprehensive exam focuses on two core areas and the area of emphasis. The student must pass the examination before progressing to the final research project. Outcomes being measured include: a.
ability to analyze texts and images from more than one particular perspective; b.
knowledge of research methods/critical issues in two core areas; c.
knowledge of major figures/issues in area of emphasis; d.
written proficiency; and e.
technological competence.
3. Research Assignment (thesis or project)
Evaluated by committee (thesis) or mentor (project). Outcomes being measured include: a.
production of an appropriate piece of research, one that begins with formulating an interdisciplinary research question; b.
written and oral proficiency (product and presentation of research in symposium or thesis defense); and c.
technological competence in carrying out research and producing the document.
C. Continuing Assessments
In addition to these periodic assessments, the Program has continuous assessments through monitoring of final grades and advising. Because the Humanities Program is a small program (averaging five graduates per year), the advisor / program director has frequent contact with the degree students.
Following graduation, usually a year later, the graduate is asked to reflect upon his/her educational experience by completing an Exit Interview.
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To evaluate the Program's success in meeting the goals established, the faculty in
2004 analyzed the plans of study of the twelve graduates from August 2002 to
August 2004.
(As the program was in transition from August 2004 to August 2005, with no full-time director, there is no data available for the three additional students who graduated since the last report.)
Outcome
The following table provides the findings.
Experience of
Interdisciplinary
Study
Coherent Plan of
Study
Competence in area of specialization
Competence in research
Method of
Assessment

Analysis of plans: core courses in two different areas

Comprehensive exam
Benchm ark
100% of plans

Analysis of plans:
Area of emphasis reflects thematic coherence;

Appropriate core class for emphasis

Transcript
3.0 gpa as
minimum

Comp. Exam passed
Project /Thesis completed successfully
(approval of mentor or committee)
100% of plans
100% of plans
100% of plans
Evaluation

All graduates have taken
HUMN 600, an interdisciplinary core course, and at least two others in two different areas.

All graduates have passed comprehensive exam (See details on page 4.)
Although some areas of emphasis reflected 2 or 3 different subject areas, all were thematically coherent; all had appropriate core courses.
Conclusion /
Action
Outcome met.
Outcome met.
All maintained at least 3.0 gpa; all passed the comprehensive examination
(with three examiners)
4 completed theses; 8 completed projects;
3 of 12 (25%) shifted from thesis option to project + additional courses to complete.
Outcome met.
Outcome met.
(See next section for additional comments.)
Graduates of the Humanities Program are meeting the standards set out in the plan of study and the criteria established by the University for acceptable graduate work.
In addition to our initial measures, the faculty in 2004 revised the tracking to include the following measures:
1. the time between admission to the program and completion of the degree;
2. the number of attempts necessary to complete the comprehensive examination; and
3. the number of students who begin a thesis but later shift to a project.
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Findings on these two measures in relation to the twelve graduates:
Measure Tracked
Time to complete plan of study (date of admission to graduation)
Attempts needed to pass comprehensive examination
Shifts from thesis to project option
(requiring two additional courses for a total of 39 hours)
Findings
Range: 1.5 to 8 years
Average: 4.3 years
8 (67%) passed all parts on first attempt;
3 (25%) had to rewrite 1 part;
1 (8%) rewrote 2 parts
7 initially were on thesis option;
4 (33%) completed that option;
8 (66%) completed projects
(including the 3 shifting from thesis option)
Observations
Three of those over average are employed full time; two of them shifted to project option.
All those required to rewrite passed on the second attempt.
Shift from the thesis option to the project option occurred when students were having difficulty with thesis process.
D. Post-Graduate Measures Monitored:
Although we do not promote the M.A. in Humanities as a degree leading to particular employment, two common measures of a program’s success are being tracked:
1. The ability of graduates to compete for places in doctoral programs, and
2. The ability of graduates to secure employment.
In terms of the twelve graduates being examined, the Humanities Program notes the following: o Six of the twelve graduates were employed full time during their graduate student; all six continue to be employed in the same positions. o One graduate took full-time work during graduate study and is still employed. o Securing the degree allowed three of the six to gain full-time teaching positions at the college level. o Two graduates have only part-time employment. o Two graduates with full-time employment have begun teaching part-time at the college level as the result of their earned degrees.
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II. Plans for the current year (2005-2006):
Faculty will continue to monitor the assessment plan currently in place. As the new director, however, I would like to develop new measures that can assess the possibilities for establishing a more applied humanities program. One of the first ways to begin doing this, I believe, is surveying previous and current students.
III. Assistance Needed:
Advice on developing surveys, assessment planning, data collection to assess the need
(and possibilities) for developing a more applied humanities program.
IV. What was learned?
As reported in 2004, the Humanities Program is a small graduate program, and most students are able to complete the degree within the seven years allowed. Graduates do find employment following the degree. Indeed, it seems that the collected data and previous assessment reports bear this out. As the new director, however, I am seeking ways to make this connection to praxis more explicit in the curriculum itself.
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