Path to Graduation
for graduate students taking the 30 Credit
Master of Science (M.S) in Post Secondary
Education
Non Certification Program
MSPSE through eTROY, Global Campus, and the
Alabama Campuses
Please see page 92 of the Graduate Catalog 2012-2013 for
specific information about your Master of Science degree
in Post Secondary Education (MSPSE). It describes the
Goals and Objectives, Admission Requirements, Program
of Study and Concentrations. A chart on page 89 gives
students information about Program Locations.
Students who are currently in this Program have completed all
requirements for Admission and are currently matriculated into the
MSPSE. At this point, some students will have the following
Conditions of Admission:
Unconditional Admission: Granted for a student completing the above
admissions requirements; and who has either an overall GPA of 2.5 on a 4.0
scale; or a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale from the last 30 semester hours (45 quarter
hours) of undergraduate work; and one of the following minimum scores:
383 on the MAT, or 372 Verbal score on the GRE.
Temporary Admission: A student is granted temporary admission for
one semester pending receipt of official records. The processing of all
records (transcripts, test scores, etc.) must be completed before a student
can register for a second semester. If official records (including proof of
baccalaureate degree, official transcripts AND test scores) are not received
by the end of one semester, the temporarily admitted student may not enroll
for another term.
Conditional Admission: A master’s level student who does not meet the
graduate admission requirements can be conditionally admitted for a
maximum of 9 semester hours.
Applicants receiving a “Welcome to the University letter” should make
immediate contact with both their FACULTY ADVISORS and Student
Services (Advisors) Counselors.
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>>> The Faculty Advisor teaches full-time in the Master’s
Program and has advisement duties. When it comes to your
program, no one knows it better than your faculty advisor.
>>> It is the Faculty Advisor who assists and supports
students with: degree prerequisites, program purposes and
requirements, course load, timelines from admission through
graduation, course order, comps preparation, graduation
procedures, and other academic program recommendations.
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>>> The Student Services (Advisor) Counselor is a TROY
Student Services employee who helps with informal questions,
admissions status, registration, email, books, blackboard and
web express accounts, drop, withdrawal and grades, graduate
catalog and year, student handbooks, and setting up a
student’s degree plan once it has been discussed with the
Faculty Advisor.
When a student is admitted to the MSPSE program at Troy University, they
are assigned to a Faculty Advisor in the College of Education.
Before or during the first semester of Master’s level enrollment, a new
student should make an appointment with their Faculty Advisor to discuss
future plans and to get acquainted. Seeking out the Faculty Advisor and
student services personnel is the student’s responsibility.
Students are advised on a program plan and course of study, course order
and degree plan, which assures the student that the courses s/he selects
meet his/her degree requirements and professional goals.
If a problem arises during registration, students should contact their Student
Services (Advisor) Counselor for questions about financial aid, etc.
WHAT IT MEANS TO HAVE “DEGREE CANDIDACY” OR -- WHEN
DO I GET TO FILL OUT MY OFFICIAL DEGREE PLAN WITH MY
FACULTY ADVISOR?!:
A degree plan is usually filled out after a student has been 1)
unconditionally admitted and 2) has at least a “B” average in 6 or more
hours of coursework.
When a student has met all the requirements for candidacy, they ‘meet’ with
their Faculty Advisor to work out their degree plan. The application for
candidacy IS the student’s responsibility. This means it is critical that a
student be in touch with their Faculty Advisor to make sure this requirement
is met.
COURSE PATTERN AND SEQUENCE:
One of the purposes of faculty advisement is to recommend courses and a
pattern or sequence to students. This 30 semester hour program is
comprised of 4 core courses and 6 concentration courses.
CORE COURSES: Ideally, students should begin their program with PSE6691
(students must achieve a B or better) as one of their first 2 courses.
This means taking either PSE6670 or PSE6660 as the first course. Many
advisors prefer 6670 be taken before 6660 even though the numbers are in
a different order. It is recommended that PSE 6680 should be taken as the
last core course (this does not mean it should be taken as the last course in
a student’s program). It is always a good idea to talk with the Faculty
Advisor and plan your program and course order together.
CONCENTRATION COURSES:
REGISTRATION, TUITION, TRANSFER CREDIT:

VA students should contact their local VA Certifying Official to obtain a
transient authorization for each eTROY course and submit the transient
authorization to Jason Messick jmessick@troy.edu or Travis
McCullough tmccullough7274@troy.edu to initiate the school’s
certification of enrollment. This should be done in the middle of each
term for the following term.

To insure a place in the desired classes, students should register as
early as possible since there are limitations in eclassroom capacity and
eclass size.

Current tuition is listed in the University’s semester schedule.
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Active duty service members must enroll through the education portal
of their service (i.e., goarmyed portal, WAVE, etc.) in order to utilize
TA benefits. Questions regarding their eligibility for tuition assistance
benefits should be directed to their servicing Education Centers

Request for transfer credit must be made in writing by the student
through his/her faculty advisor. It is the student’s responsibility to
initiate this request. Note conditions of transfer credit in the Graduate
Catalog.
WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADUATION?:
Students must:
_____ 1) File an Intent to Graduate form with the Graduate Records Office
at the beginning of the semester PRIOR to the semester of graduation.
_____ 2) Prepare for and schedule your comprehensive examination.
Contact your advisor for guidance and a comps study guide.
WELL, WHAT ABOUT COMPS?
Once a student has filed an Intent to Graduate, they may sign up for the
comprehensive examination. If an eTROY student has a local site, the
examination may be taken there, or the student can take the test online by
contacting Barbara Sanders at bsanders@troy.edu or (334-670-5802.
Again, your faculty advisor will provide you with a comps study guide and
any necessary pre-comps support.
The comprehensive examination offers each candidate for the master’s
degree an opportunity to demonstrate his/her ability to synthesize and apply
knowledge acquired during the course of study. Examination questions are
designed to determine whether or not a candidate (1) has mastered
program content; (2) can present information and ideas in a complex,
creative and orderly manner, and (3) can use theory and research to
support assumptions and conclusions.
A. The date of the comps is announced at the time of filing Intent to
Graduate form.
B. The exam is 6 hours long. Students choose a time with either someone
from Tampa or Barbara Sanders. Students who arrive after the
examination has started may be admitted at the discretion of the
examination administrator but will not be allowed additional time to
complete the examination. Online students starting late will not be
allowed extra time.
C. There are four questions on the exam. Two from the program’s core
courses and two from the student’s chosen concentration.
D. Candidates completing the examination in less than six hours will be
permitted to leave. Candidates are encouraged to review all questions
initially in order to allocate adequate time for each response. There
are no scheduled breaks during the examination but candidates are
allowed, one at a time, to take breaks as needed. Snacks and
beverages are allowed in the testing area as long as it is not
distracting to others.
OTHER THINGS TO KNOW:
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‘Going to class’ happens on student time. YOU need to make a
commitment to a schedule and keep it. Be aware of all due dates
required by your professor(s).
Each term is 9 weeks long.
A full-time load is two courses. A part-time load is one course.
Unconditionally admitted students may wish to take 3 courses other
students wishing to do this must get approval.
Faculty advisors will generally recommend that beginning students
take on only course in the program to assess the nature and level
of graduate work.

Students MUST MAINTAIN a 3.0 or B average. If a student
should attain 3 grades of C, the student must wait a year to reapply to the program.

Textbooks are to be purchased through MBS, the TROY bookstore
provider at http://bookstore.mbsdirect.net/troy.htm
The link for the TROY library is http://uclibrary.troy.edu/
The link for troy is http://www.troy.edu/etroy/
The link for the Writing Center is
http://troy.troy.edu/writingcenter/research.html
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The link for the Blackboard Support Center is
http://www.troy.edu/bbhelp
SAMPLE ATC (DEGREE PLAN) FORMS for eTROY 10 course MSPSE
PROGRAMS:
Degree Plans may be found in the 2012-2013 Academic Catalog
Adult Education p. 150
Foundations of Education p. 158
Instructional Technology p.166