Masters of Education in Life Long Learning

at Mount Saint Vincent University Canada

Philosophy, said Oxford philosopher Gilbert Ryle, is “thinking hard.” And what do philosophers think hard about? The most fundamental questions you can ask about what exists, how we should live, and what we can know.

Using imagination and careful reasoning, students who sign up for a philosophy course at the Mount get a chance to think hard about questions like these:

• Does God exist?
• Are there basic principles that tell us what to do about poverty or war?
• Is any action really right or wrong?
• Do we have free will?
• Is science the only path to truth?

Philosophy students learn to think for themselves about deeply rooted cultural assumptions, and so experience a kind of intellectual liberation that can be empowering for both women and men. As a side-effect, philosophy courses will give you critical thinking skills you can use to advantage in any other course as well as in your career.

The Mount is proud to offer the only university-level Child & Youth Study program in Atlantic Canada. Students in our program engage in practical training and theoretical explorations in child and youth work, early childhood education, as well as early intervention and inclusive development. As strong supporters of experiential learning we are pleased to offer our undergraduates four supervised practicum placements which enable our students to apply the knowledge that they have learned in the classroom to hands-on, real-world experience. We also offer a Master of Arts in Child and Youth Studies.

Our Department is committed to laying the groundwork for future leaders in the ECE and Child and Youth care fields. Your BA(CYS) degree will also prepare your for further education and professional preparation in Child and Youth Study, Education, Speech Language Pathology, Child Life and Social Work.

A university degree that is nationally and internationally recognized for employment in a variety of programs and services such as early childhood, child and youth work, mental health, recreation, family support, early intervention and inclusive development.

The Child and Youth Study program prepares students for careers in a wide variety of programs and services for children, youth and families. Students will normally focus on early childhood/child care administration or disability/special needs or youth care, but may take courses related to more than one area.

Learn how to determine an organization’s human resource needs and guide both employees and management through the internal and external demands of an ever-changing environment we all must operate within with a major, concentration, or minor in Human Resource Management. You can choose this specialty area within the Bachelor of Business Administration degree at Mount Saint Vincent University.

This specialty area of study provides relevant knowledge in the areas of human resource management strategy, recruitment, training and development, compensation management, labour relations, managing diversity, organizational topics, organizational behaviour, values in a business society, international human resource development, and organizational change.
A sample of courses offered include human resource management, Organizational Behaviour, Labour Relations, Strategic Compensation, Managing Diversity: Gender and Other Issues, Recruitment and Selection, Strategic Human Resource Development, International Human Resource Management.

A specialty in human resource management can prepare you for many career opportunities. The list of positions job is extensive. Examples include human resource consultant, human resource executive or manager, training and development officer, organizational development manager, payroll specialist, labour relations officer, human resources recruiter, talent acquisition manager and any multitude of jobs that require strategic input from a human resource professional that can help plan, direct, and coordinate the administrative functions of an organization.

At the Mount, we are aware that the business world is both thought-provoking and diverse. Our program will equip you with the essential leadership skills. These skills will prepare you for your career in business, whether you choose to become an entrepreneur or work in a large corporation, a small business, or a not-for profit organization.

Management
You will gain the knowledge and experience necessary to manage businesses, non-profit and public sector organizations. To earn a BBA with a management major, you must complete a total of six full units of management courses in your degree program. If you plan on earning professional designations in management, you may want to complete a major in management, rather than a minor. The more management courses you complete, the greater the chances of getting course exemptions in post-grad professional studies.

Our Masters programs in Studies in Lifelong Learning prepare students with knowledge and skills to take leadership roles as lifelong educators. Our graduate students benefit from our small classes, knowledgeable instructors, hands-on experiences, and an exciting curriculum. Whether they are interested in supporting learning in formal education institutions, families, communities, or workplaces, students find our program rich, engaging, and pertinent. Our students come from many different educational and workplace backgrounds. The common denominator is that they are interested in how learning occurs across the lifespan. Often they are currently involved or would like to become involved in teaching other adults.

Acquiring new skills
A graduate degree in lifelong learning will provide you with a wealth of academic knowledge and research that will be effective in the workplace, and best-practice methods for sharing information with others, and more – including:

• Understand the process of learning across the lifespan
• Design educational programs (workshops, seminars, curriculum)
• Strategies for teaching effectively
• Improved communication skills
• Increase your capacity for creativity

Connect Through Practicum
Students in the program gain practical experience through a practicum. The practicum is a full unit course that provides students with an opportunity to take some of the concepts, theories and ideas that they have learned about in the program and put them into practice. Over the course of two semesters, students will work with their practicum instructor and a mentor at their practicum site to develop and carry out a “hands-on” project that fits with their particular interests.

The practicum requires approximately a hundred and fifty hours of work, is voluntary (so no payment can be received for this work), and is usually done with a community organization although sometimes it is done in the student’s place of work, provided the practicum tasks are clearly above and beyond work that they would be paid for.

The Master of Science Applied Human Nutrition program provides students with the opportunity for advanced level study in nutrition, with an emphasis on issues related to community nutrition, food and human nutrition. The programs explore the theoretical foundations of nutrition through critical reflection on current research and practice within the discipline and drawing from other related disciplines. The Master of Science Applied Human Nutrition is comprised of three and a half units of course work and one and half units of thesis research. 

As a student in one of our graduate programs, you’ll develop a deep and meaningful understanding of the disciplines of communication studies and public relations–the philosophies, the principles, and how these apply to scholarly and professional practice.

Master of Arts (Communication) -This is a thesis-based program. It will prepare you to become a highly-educated communications professional or pursue further research as an exceptional scholar and academic.

This certificate provides a solid foundation in the field of accounting. It will be of interest to those working in the accounting field and to those with non-business university degrees working in administrative positions.

At the Mount, we know Tourism is about more than hotels, restaurants and resorts. It's excursion and adventure tour companies, bed and breakfasts, experiences and memories that last a lifetime. Tourism is the world's largest service industry and careers in tourism and hospitality are available locally and around the world. Here in Nova Scotia, the tourism and hospitality industry is an exciting, vibrant and rapidly growing sector. Students in our program benefit from small class sizes and faculty who have a wide range of research interests and industry experience. Tourism is the world's largest service industry and the second largest industry overall. Here in Nova Scotia, the tourism and hospitality industry is an exciting, vibrant and rapidly growing sector.

The Research Master of Arts degree is intended for those who wish to pursue specialized scholarly study under the supervision of a full-time faculty member of the Faculty of Education. The degree can be taken in connection with any of the graduate program areas offered by the Faculty of Education; the focus of the degree is research. The degree requires a minimum of 5.0 units. Coursework will vary according to the background of the student. The thesis can count for a minimum of 1.0 unit and a maximum of 5.0 units.