"Graduate Studies in Science Expand Beyond the Ph.D."
(page 4)
The final ingredient in Arizona's program is a business basics
course, billed as a mini-M.B.A. in a semester, which covers
topics such as management and intellectual property.
Michigan State's professional master's degrees require a
similar, but more intense, business certificate. Students get
no course credit, but are required to attend 10 two-day
workshops that cover business, negotiation, and communication
skills. "This helps them distinguish themselves from the Ph.D.
candidates," says Estelle J. McGroarty, associate dean of the
college of natural sciences. But the extra credential comes
with a steep price tag: $4,500. (Tuition for these programs
varies. At Michigan State, residents of Michigan pay $12,000
and others pay $19,000.)
Ms. McGroarty is working to lower that extra cost, and others
are hoping that they will soon be able to point to the
well-paying jobs the early graduates of these programs land.
Georgia Tech's human-computer interaction program, at three
years old the granddaddy of such programs, has been
successful, attracting more than 100 applicants for 20 spots
and leading to jobs with major software companies paying
$65,000 to $85,000, said Anderson D. Smith, associate dean of
the college of sciences.
Other practical concerns, such as graduate stipends, highlight
the tension inherent in trying to build a professional degree
inside an academic department. In theory, administrators of
nearly all these programs agree that the future is a
tuition-supported program that doesn't offer graduate stipends
or assistantships. But the reality is far different. At some
universities, the students do receive financial support.
Georgia Tech doesn't offer stipends to students in the
program, but allows them to seek out other teaching
assistantships around the campus, which several have done. At
N.J.I.T., Mr. Recce says, some students have realized that
they can get a better financial package if they enter the
Ph.D. program and then take a fallback master's degree.
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