Wednesday, January 24th, Watson Hall on the Slippery Rock University Campus Kyle Prudhomme/Butler Eagle (01/24/24) DME SRU
Kyle Prudhomme
Slippery Rock University offers 41 graduate programs divided into 30 master's programs, four doctoral programs, six certificates, and four endorsements.
Admissions Director Amanda Ale said the university's programs are offered both in-person and online and are specifically aimed at meeting educational and medical needs.
Twenty of SRU's 41 graduate programs are education-based. Most programs focus on specific subjects or age groups in elementary, secondary, or special education. Other graduate education programs teach school counseling, environmental education, and online education. Two doctoral degree programs prepare students for leadership positions in public administration.
The SRU administration is also addressing the needs of Butler County's health care workforce with the Health Professions Graduate Program. The university currently offers programs in health information and management, occupational and physical therapy, music therapy, physician assistant studies, and public health.
Some of the 41 programs are stand-alone certifications, while others offer master's degrees. One is the postmaster's certificate.
“We know that approximately two-thirds of our students are interested in earning a bachelor's degree or higher at some point in their lives,” Yale said. “These are adult workers coming back to us.”
When SRU began expanding its graduate and undergraduate programs around 2010, administration focused on the national teacher shortage and the School of Education and reconsidered the university's history as a teaching college, according to Yale University.
Approximately 37 of SRU's graduate programs can be completed in whole or in part online.
Last year, the university's School of Education awarded 277 graduate degrees or certificates, the School of Business Administration 53 and the School of Liberal Arts 42, according to the university's Office of Analysis and Decision Support.
The College of Health Professions and the College of Engineering Sciences, formerly the College of Health and Environmental Sciences, awarded 262 degrees or certificates last year.
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