Agricultural Education, MS
for the degree of Master of Science in Agricultural Education (on campus & online)
No Longer Accepting Applications - see Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications, MS
Graduate Degree Programs in Agricultural Education
Graduate Major:
The M.S. in Agricultural Education is a professional degree for training classroom-based educators and community and organizational developers to address issues as they pertain to teaching and learning in and about the agricultural, life, and environmental sciences. Students are typically interested in either furthering their career in Extension, agricultural classrooms in secondary education, professional organizations in training and supervisory roles, or community development.
Through the on-campus program, we also work with students interested in gaining licensure for teaching agriculture in Illinois public schools for grades 9-12. Agricultural Education can be pursued as an online degree. Please refer to http://aged.illinois.edu/grad/online-MS for more information.
Admission
We are looking for highly motivated students with strong academic records. Students with backgrounds in agriculture, education, behavioral or social sciences are especially encouraged to apply. The minimum undergraduate grade-point average for admission is 3.0 (A = 4.0). Applicants for the online/off-campus program are not required to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). International applicants from non-English-speaking countries must have official TOEFL scores of at least 575 (written version) or 233 (computer-based version) to be eligible for admission. To receive full consideration for admission (and financial aid opportunities if you are applying for the full-time, on-campus program), please apply by February 15 for possible admission the following fall semester or September 15 for possible admission to the following spring semester.
Each applicant’s undergraduate transcript will be evaluated for completion of general education courses required for certification by the Illinois State Board of Education. Students with deficiencies may be admitted with the stipulation that these be met before completion of the master’s program.
Financial Aid
We are committed to funding as many of full-time on-campus students who are making timely progress as possible. The duration and amount of our commitment varies. Funding may include fellowships, research assistantships, and/or teaching assistantships. These opportunities typically include stipends and tuition waivers. In some cases, fees are also waived. All applicants are automatically considered for all department funding opportunities; there is no separate application process. Federal and state financial aid is completely separate from the support provided by our department. For information regarding federal and state financial aid, please refer to www.osfa.illinois.edu/.
for the degree of Master of Science in Agricultural Education (on campus & online)
Thesis Option
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural Education Foundations 1 | ||
| AGED 400 | 3 | |
| AGED 420 | Curr Design & Instruction | 3 |
| Instructional Methods & Design | ||
| AGED 430 | Youth Development Programs | 4 |
| or AGED 490 | Adult Learning Principles | |
| Educational Research | ||
| AGED 545 | 4 | |
| Agricultural Education electives | 3-4 | |
| Electives in agriculture or education 2 | 10-11 | |
| Thesis Research – AGED 599 (min-max applied toward the degree) 3 | 4-8 | |
| Total Hours | 32 | |
Other Requirements4
| Requirement |
|---|
| Other requirements may overlap |
| Minimum 500-level Hours Required Overall: 12, 8 must be in the unit |
| Minimum GPA: 2.75 |
- 1
Requirement may be waived if taken as an undergraduate at UIUC. If waived, student may substitute this credit requirement with an agricultural education or technical subject matter elective.
- 2
Students may take up to four credit hours in agricultural education to fulfill the technical subject matter course requirements. This is only recommended for students completing a thesis (AGED 599 credits) or for students who desire to take an agriculture content course for teachers (i.e. AGED 500).
- 3
The applied research option requires the completion of a thesis, and the program development and online options require the completion of a project in the area of agricultural education, broadly defined, and submission of a research/professional paper.
- 4
For additional details and requirements refer to the department's Graduate Program Information and the Graduate College Handbook.
Non -Thesis Option
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural Education Foundations 1 | ||
| AGED 400 | 3 | |
| AGED 420 | Curr Design & Instruction | 3 |
| Instructional Methods & Design | ||
| AGED 430 | Youth Development Programs | 4 |
| or AGED 490 | Adult Learning Principles | |
| Educational Research | ||
| AGED 545 | 4 | |
| Agricultural Education electives | 3-4 | |
| Electives in agriculture or education 2 | 10-11 | |
| Independent Study Hours Required–AGED 549 3 | 4 | |
| Total Hours | 32 | |
Other Requirements4
| Requirement |
|---|
| Other requirements may overlap |
| Minimum 500-level Hours Required Overall: 12, 8 must be in the unit |
| Minimum GPA: 2.75 |
- 1
Requirement may be waived if taken as an undergraduate at UIUC. If waived, student may substitute this credit requirement with an agricultural education or technical subject matter elective.
- 2
Students may take up to four credit hours in agricultural education to fulfill the technical subject matter course requirements. This is only recommended for students completing a thesis (AGED 599 credits) or for students who desire to take an agriculture content course for teachers (i.e. AGED 500 ).
- 3
The applied research option requires the completion of a thesis, and the program development and online options require the completion of a project in the area of agricultural education, broadly defined, and submission of a research/professional paper.
- 4
For additional details and requirements refer to the department's Graduate Program Information and the Graduate College Handbook.
for the degree of Master of Science in Agricultural Education (on campus & online)
- Apply theories of leadership and learning to plan curriculum and deliver effective educational experiences in diverse instructional settings.
- Apply prior learning from past post-secondary experiences to deliver effective educational experiences in diverse instructional settings.
- Assess the human capital needs of a group, organization, or community and formulate a solution to an identified need.
- Create a plan of research inquiry or curriculum development that articulates the human capital challenges within a particular agricultural sector(e.g. education, industry, non-profit, governance)