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A professional master's program that the UA introduced in 2000 is among those across the nation that the National Research Council says requires more support to make the U.S. more competitive.

By La Monica Everett-Haynes, University Communications
July 15, 2008

A national organization and one of its affiliates is calling for increased support of a certain type of master’s degree program that The University of Arizona introduced when such a program was highly rare.

Citing a report by the National Research Council, the National Academies – which is comprised of four national organizations – is calling for the expansion and increased support of professional science master’s degree programs.

Doing so could improve the ability of the United States to remain competitive with other countries around the globe because such programs “typically build communication and problem-solving skills along with advanced scientific knowledge, and they often include interdisciplinary training,” The National Academies noted in a release issued last week. The University of Arizona had this in mind nearly 10 years ago.

In 2000, the UA introduced its professional science master’s degree program in applied science and business, or PSM, with a $400,000 grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. At the time, the UA was among the first institutions in the nation to offer such a program.

The workforce development program has since graduated more than 50 students. Most students remain in Arizona and earn at least $62,000 after graduating from the program, said Alaina G. Levine, who directs the UA’s professional program.

The program offers tracks in applied biosciences, applied and industrial physics. The newest addition is a sub-track in medical physics.

The workforce development program is a science and business model merger, incorporating both fields in a single strand of study. Such a notion has not always been popular, but recent talk at the national level further validates the work of the UA and other institutions across the nation, Levine said.

“It’s a new direction in graduate education and provides unique opportunities for science-minded students who want to work in industry,” said Levine, who is also the UA College of Science’s director of special projects.

Before a smattering of schools across the nation began offering the program, the option was either to push for a doctorate degree, or seek out entry-level work with a bachelor’s degree. What the PSM provides is a science and business oriented professional degree for scientists that is not unlike the juris doctorate for lawyers or the master's in business administration for business executives.

The UA’s program prepares graduates to work in scientific positions in industry or technology-based enterprises focusing on product and business development, information technology management, technology transfer and other areas.

Bob Assenzo, the executive director for education with the Critical Path Institute in Tucson, hired one of the program’s graduates and said the students who leave the program bring great “value” to industry.

“They are really great students, and they could be in a Ph.D. program if they wanted,” said Assenzo, who serves on the program’s board of advisers.

Assenzo said that, in his industry, doctorates come with highly specialized skills while PSM graduates have a broader base of interdisciplinary skills.

“In this particular program, there’s enough variety,” he added. “It’s really a multidisciplinary program, so these students fill that need.”

Students in the program take seminar classes, learn how to write and present business plans and connect with industry mentors. Some students in the UA’s PSM program also simultaneously earn certificates from the UA’s McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship. Several UA graduates of the program have gone on to become business owners and leaders on the national stage.

In all, the program provides “a seamless intersection of science, business, management, and even entrepreneurship curriculum,” Levine noted.

The Council of Graduate Schools reports that more than 125 such programs are offered at more than 60 universities across the nation.

“Over the last 10 years, salaries of master's degree holders in science and engineering have grown faster than salaries of those who hold either bachelor’s or doctoral degrees,” The National Academies also reported.

Last year, the U.S. Congress passed the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education and Science Act and allocated nearly $40 million to PSM programs across the nation.

Approval of the act, also known as America COMPETES, became the first time the federal government opted to spend federal funds on master’s degree programs in the sciences.

Levine said that this month’s National Research Council report and encouragement from The National Academies means that what the UA believed about the importance of PSM’s years ago is being understood nationwide.

“We wanted something that would open doors to industry for students so that they could apply their science and business skills,” she said. “We also had industry telling us this is something they needed."