Education, Social Emotional Learning Specialization, MEd

Master of Education

Description of Program

The MEd program is designed for students focused on developing the knowledge, skills, and dispositions required for advance practice and leadership roles within diverse fields such as PK-12 education, higher education, and adult learning environments. In this program, you will critically analyze a broad range of theories, trends, practices, and knowledge specific to your areas of interest represented in a distinct specialization. Your specialization prepares you for making informed, ethical decisions and improvements to current educational, organizational, and societal issues.

Click here for potential career opportunities within the MEd.

Learning Outcomes

Use technology to advance goals and outcomes in educational settings
Investigate evidence-based solutions for addressing educational, organizational, and community issues
Explain educational theories, research, and practices to diverse audiences
Recommend solutions to ethical dilemmas in diverse educational and organizational settings
Integrate professional standards into practice for leading and educating diverse groups

Basis for Admissions

Admission to an NCU master’s program requires a conferred bachelor’s and/or a conferred master’s or doctoral degree from a regionally or nationally accredited academic institution

Degree Requirements

Graduates of the NCU MEd program must complete 30 credit hours. Students will select a discipline-specific specialization of their interest, which complements the core coursework. The MEd program includes 9 credit hours of foundational courses. The foundational courses are taken by all students regardless of their undergraduate degree to form and strengthen fundamental skills. The next 18 credit hours in the program encapsulate a specialization aligned with a student’s career goals and interests. Specialization courses must be appropriate to the student’s degree program. Students end the program with a 3 credit-hour capstone course. Students who are considering any degree program are strongly encouraged to check specific state requirements carefully to be sure any degree program they consider will be accepted for purposes of certification or recertification, promotion, or advancement on school district salary schedules.

The MEd degree program has the following graduation requirements:

A minimum of 18 credit hours of graduate instruction must be completed through NCU
Successful completion of any PK-12 core course signature assignments with a “B” or better
Official transcripts on file for all transfer credits accepted by the University

The University may accept a maximum of 12 semester credit hours in transfer toward the Master of Education for graduate course work completed at an external accredited college or university with a grade of “B” or better. See the Transfer Credit Policy for additional information.

Time to Completion

NCU allows 5 years to complete all Master’s programs of 36 credits or less.

The median time to completion for this program is 21 months.

Time to completion varies depending upon the pace in which a student completes courses and the number of transfer credits accepted. As most NCU students are working adults, balancing educational, professional, and personal commitments, our academic and finance advisors will work with you to develop a program schedule that works best for your needs.

Students following the preferred schedule designed by the Dean for this program, and applying no transfer credits, can expect to finish in as little as 18 months.

Additional MEd Information

Course Sequence

The Master of Education program can be completed in 30 credits.

EDU-5000 - Foundations for Graduate Study in Education
Specialization Course 1
ED-5100 - Scholarly Writing and Using Research
Specialization Course 2
ED-5045 - Technology and a Vision for the Future - MEd -or- ID-5045 - Design Principles for Multimedia Learning - MEd *
Specialization Course 3
Specialization Course 4
Specialization Course 5
Specialization Course 6
ED-6500 - MEd Capstone
* May be substituted with a course from the student’s specialization with Dean approval.

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Specialization

The Social Emotional Learning (SEL) specialization is focused on the beginning to mid-career classroom teacher or professional learning community (PLC) leader. You will explore instructional strategies, classroom management, and discipline approaches that align with the five core competencies identified by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL): self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and social awareness. You will explore these competencies across classrooms, schools, homes, and communities. While individuals outside of the K-12 school context would benefit from the specialization, the courses do use a K-12 lens.

Specialization Courses – 18 credit hours

The following order is preferred, though students may petition the Dean for an exception: