Masters Degree Programs Available Online
May 7, 2010 by Natasha Bright
Filed under Online Colleges
If you have a bachelor degree, you might consider advancing your credentials while jobs are few and candidates abundant. That’s what many others have apparently been doing. As a result, these students are contributing to an increase in master’s degree enrollments, according to Inside Higher Education. New and expanded master’s degree programs were being created at the time of the publication’s last year report. And online master’s degree programs might make it easier for many to obtain a graduate university degree.
The popularity of master’s degrees has apparently been growing since the 1990′s. More than 600,000 master’s degrees awarded in 2006-2007 represented an increase of as much as 44 percent over those awarded a decade prior, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Most master’s degree recipients in 2006-2007 were women, and the number of minority graduate students is reportedly on the rise.
Students pursuing master’s degrees might find that online degree programs with flexible course formats make it easier to schedule studies. Online degree programs overall are reportedly growing fast, and students with Internet access can participate in studies for a master’s online from home or just about anywhere when they aren’t working or when the children are napping or in bed for the night. Some online degree programs are also considered “accelerated”, so that students can more quickly obtain their master’s degrees. Earning a distance learning programs can also be easier with the help of tuition assistance.
There might especially be incentives for students pursuing online master’s degrees in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subjects. As a January 2009 article in an educational magazine known as Converge tells it, the Obama administration as well as business groups and state governments have been working to enhance STEM study incentives and programs.
Council for Graduate Studies President Debra W. Stewart in a news release credited master’s degree programs with training highly skilled science professionals who significantly contribute to the country’s economic competitiveness. STEM careers exist in the field of nanotechnology that make products such as the iPod possible as well as in alternative energy, such as wind and solar power, that are designed to help the natural environment.
Online master’s degree programs in the STEM subjects include everything from professional science and environmental engineering to cybersecurity and bioethics. And industries in the STEM subject areas are looking for qualified applicants, the Converge article noted.
But compared with other countries, a low percentage of American students in college and graduate programs study STEM subjects, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Where the majority of master’s degrees in the United States in 2006-2007 went to students majoring in education, business and health sciences, degrees in mathematics and statistics were the fewest; and while master’s degrees in the field of security and protective services saw the largest percent increase since 1996-1997, those in the areas of physical sciences and science technologies had the smallest percent increase over the decade, the National Center for Education Statistics reports.
College tuition can no doubt be costly, but students can find help in paying for online university degree with scholarships and fellowships in the areas of teaching, the humanities, theology, western civilization and more. Colleges, universities, organizations and non-profit foundations offer scholarships and fellowships, and some of these financial aid offerings are designed especially for women and minorities. Some scholarships and fellowships, such as those offered by NASA, the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, the American Society for Microbiology and the U.S. Departments of Energy, Defense and Homeland Security, are also geared toward students pursuing graduate degrees in the STEM subjects.
Grants, scholarships and fellowships are all aids that help the student in the pursuit of their online diploma. With the encouragement being offered for students to enter STEM fields, starting with a bachelor masters degree and working your way up might be one of the most productive courses.