The Graduate Program

Mission and Goals

Graduate study at the University of Montevallo is linked directly to the University’s overall mission through providing professional programs of focused study and avenues for continuing growth to students who have made a commitment to careers in a selected number of fields. According to the UM Vision Statement, “Our vision for graduate students builds on [the University’s] undergraduate foundation, using traditional and innovative instructional methods to foster growth in specialized skills and knowledge required by practicing educators, counselors, speech-language clinicians, scholars in the humanities, and other professional leaders, within a nurturing environment steeped in the unique ‘Montevallo experience.’” High-quality educational experiences will allow graduates to practice in and contribute to their chosen profession or field of scholarship at deeper levels of complexity, challenge, and specialization. Each program is designed to offer the graduate student opportunities to extend and apply knowledge and skills and to develop greater intellectual maturity and creative independence.

All eligible graduate programs that are offered at the University of Montevallo have received professional accreditation at the state and/or national level in their given field, and all programs are supported by the University’s base of liberal arts and sciences.

Graduate study at the University of Montevallo complements the undergraduate program, providing the same sense of community and quality of interaction between students and faculty. Further, the University creates an appropriate graduate environment by insuring adequate and up-to-date library resources, faculty-sponsored graduate student gatherings and paper presentations, advice from faculty regarding publication and conference channels, and a graduate seminar-like setting in many graduate classes.

Degrees and Programs

Initiated in 1955, the graduate program has grown to include four master’s degrees in a range of majors and concentrations, as well as the Educational Specialist degree in three areas and AA certification in two areas. The degrees offered by UM are:

Master of Arts (M.A.)
English 

Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.)
Business Administration 

Master of Science (M.S.)
Speech-Language Pathology 

Master of Education (M.Ed.)
Collaborative (Special) Education (K-6, 6-12)
Counseling
Elementary Education (K-6)
Instructional Leadership
Preschool to High School Education (P-12)
Secondary Education (6-12)

Educational Specialist (Ed.S.)
Instructional Technology

Graduate Honors Recognition

The Annual Graduate Honors Reception is held each spring to recognize outstanding achievement in each graduate program.

Qualified graduate students may also be invited to join most of the honorary organizations on campus, including Alpha Epsilon Lambda, Beta Gamma Sigma, Chi Sigma Iota, Kappa Delta Pi, Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Alpha Pi and Sigma Tau Delta.

Governance

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees at the University of Montevallo is charged with authority to approve the number and type of graduate degrees; the number and nature of departments, divisions, schools or colleges through which the curriculum is administered; and the extent to which the institution should offer distance learning programs.

Graduate Council

The charge of the Graduate Council is to recommend policy concerning the graduate program, to review and approve new and existing graduate curricula and programs (with such actions then referred to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs), and to consider such other business as may be submitted to it pertaining to graduate programs.

The member structure of the council is as follows: the faculty member who serves as program coordinator for each graduate degree program; Academic Deans (ex officio); Director of Carmichael Library (ex officio); the Registrar (ex officio), the Graduate Program Assistant for each college (ex officio); the Teacher Certification Officer (ex officio); the Director of Financial Aid (ex officio), and the Assistant Provost for Assessment and Accreditation/SACSCOC Liason (ex officio). Program Coordinators serve as voting members, while ex officio representatives serve in a non-voting capacity. The Chair of Graduate Council shall invite each department without a graduate program but with graduate courses to be represented when input/participation from that department is deemed necessary by the Council. The Chair of Graduate Council is elected annually by Council members.

The Graduate Council reports to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Administration of Programs

Graduate programs are administered primarily within the academic department and the appropriate college.

Graduate Faculty

The University of Montevallo employs faculty fully qualified and highly competent to provide sound and effective graduate instruction.

Curriculum

Graduate Courses

All graduate courses offered by the University of Montevallo are acceptable for credit as requirements or electives applicable to at least one University degree or certificate.

Cross-Listed Courses

Some departments at the University of Montevallo offer cross-listed graduate and undergraduate courses. In these cases, the department maintains a significant difference between undergraduate and graduate instruction. This difference is indicated clearly in course syllabi. Graduate students are expected to produce acceptable levels of research and/or performance through activities such as independent research, outside readings, and more comprehensive examinations.

Course Evaluation

The evaluation of graduate instruction is addressed annually as a part of the faculty performance review. Students are provided an opportunity to give feedback on the quality of instruction through the student course evaluation process.

Alternative Delivery Formats

Graduate courses offered in concentrated or abbreviated periods are designed to ensure sufficient opportunity for preparation, reflection, and analysis of the subject matter with at least one calendar week of reflection and analysis for students for each semester hour of credit awarded. Expectations for levels of student knowledge and competencies in graduate courses offered through distance, hybrid, or online are equivalent to those for courses delivered in traditional formats.