Master of Arts in Professional Studies

at Shorelight Group - Towson University USA

The Mass Communication major consists of three tracks: Advertising, Journalism, and Strategic Public Relations. Students must complete one of the three tracks. Many students complete two of the three tracks and some complete all three.

Students who complete the Mass Communication major will have many career options, especially in the broadly defined fields of print, broadcast and online journalism, advertising, and strategic public relations. Majors are expected to learn how the various fields in mass communication are structured and function.

The Master of Education degree in Special Education is an applied professional program designed to meet the critical need for special educators. Two concentrations support this offering: Special Education and Special Education Teacher as Leader in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Please note: That only one degree in Special Education can be awarded; students who complete more than one concentration in Special Education will not receive two different degrees.

The Master of Science in Accounting and Business Advisory Services at Towson University is a joint program with the University of Baltimore. This program is designed to meet two important educational objectives.

First, when combined with a bachelor’s degree in accounting, the program allows students to earn the additional units necessary to meet the 150-hour requirement to sit for the Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam in Maryland and many other states. The CPA exam includes four sections: Auditing & Attestation (AUD), Business Environment and Concepts (BEC), Financial Accounting & Reporting (FAR) and Regulation (REG). Students planning to take the CPA exam will be best served by a program of study, such as our BS in Accounting and this graduate program, that emphasizes the same subject matter as the exam.

Second, by incorporating courses in the related disciplines of financial management and information technology, the program complements and expands the technical skills acquired in an undergraduate accounting education.

Graduates of the M.S. in Accounting and Business Advisory Services program will have the flexibility needed to accelerate their public accounting careers or pursue careers in other areas such as management accounting, internal auditing, accounting for governmental or other nonprofit entities, and management consulting.

• Students will possess Substantive Knowledge about Politics. They will be able to describe and understand the structure and nature of politics and government.
• Students will develop Critical Thinking Skills. They will be able to identify historical, cultural and socio-economic assumptions that underlie politics and explain how they affectperceptions and actions.
• Students will obtain an appreciation for the Affective Meanings of Politics. They will be able to explain the importance of politics in their attitudes and beliefs about current issues that affect local, national and international affairs.
• Students will acquire Skills for Learning and Life. They will be able to present articulate and persuasive arguments about politics in written and oral communications.

The Master of Music is an applied professional degree designed to develop a high level of musicianship, creative development and research skills within the discipline. Admission requires expertise in the area of concentration equivalent to having earned a Bachelor of Music degree in the area of specialization. Students are expected to have completed sufficient undergraduate courses to meet the requirements for admission.

The Allied Health program is designed to give practicing health care professionals the opportunity to advance their careers by expanding their skills in the health care marketplace. Students enter the program with a completed associate degree from a regionally accredited institution in an allied health field. The program builds on students’ existing associate degrees and clinical backgrounds and prepares them to assume additional responsibilities through advanced learning in health care administration and management, organization and funding, ethical and professional issues, and research findings that affect best practice. Graduates are better positioned for promotions, movement into related positions or job expansion.

The program is designed to prepare the degree candidate to:

• Provide specialized literacy instruction and assessment, in cooperation with other professionals, to students at all levels.
• Provide literacy services individually or in groups.
• Communicate with colleagues, parents and the community about literacy issues, including conducting professional development workshops on literacy topics.
• Coach and/or mentor colleagues.
• Advocate for literacy development among all populations.
• Read and interpret literacy research.
• Continue to grow professionally by reading professional journals and by participating in reading conferences and workshops.
• Master essential dispositions of educators (caring for all students, collaboration with stakeholders, and commitment to professional practice).

Towson University’s master’s program in global humanities fosters interdisciplinary inquiry into ideas related to the human condition. With its global focus on humanitarian and cultural issues, the program prepares graduates to serve as effective, ethical leaders and engaged citizens.

This program is a quality and affordable graduate degree for students pursuing careers in non-profit and NGO work, social justice and community engagement, education, arts management, economics, communications and public relations, and government career sectors. Students also use the degree as a stepping stone to competitive Ph.D. programs in humanities-related fields.

The Sport Management major is designed to prepare students for a changing sports industry. The curriculum develops critical and ethical sensibilities as well as practical skills with the intent of producing graduates who will be responsible business leaders and community advocates able to address commercial, economic, political and social issues related to sport.

Majors must complete 54 units. The program is divided into four parts, and writing skills are emphasized throughout.

• First, students must complete two introductory courses, one each in political science and economics, which acquaint students with the nature of law and its role in American society.
• Second, students will take four required courses: one at the lower-division, two at the upper-division level and an advanced writing course. These courses further situate students in American culture, politics, judicial policymaking and logical thinking.
• Third, students will have several options in choosing electives, which will be offered by several departments: Accounting, Mass Communication and Communication Studies, English, History, Philosophy and Religious Studies, and Political Science.
• Fourth and finally, students will undertake a 6-unit capstone experience of their choice and, if possible, design. Advanced students may wish to undertake a project in the workplace and then write an evaluative essay on that experience as it fits into the overall program. Other students will participate in a senior seminar, in which they will write a research paper on some aspect of the law or develop a thesis supervised by the program director.