You are on CGS' Legacy Site.
Thank you for visiting CGS! You are currently using CGS' legacy site, which is no longer supported. For up-to-date information, including publications purchasing and meeting information, please visit cgsnet.org.
Professional Master’s Degree
The CGS Professional Master's Initiatives are designed to help member institutions respond to documented local and regional workforce needs and student interest in master's programs that prepare graduates for careers in business, government, and non-profit (BGN) employment sectors.
In the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities, baccalaureate graduates generally do not possess sufficient technical or disciplinary background to compete successfully for employment and would benefit from additional training that fosters mastery of professional skill sets and increases understanding of the non-academic workplace. However, in most liberal arts disciplines, few graduates (roughly 20% in the natural sciences and social sciences and 40% in the humanities) ever pursue graduate education, and those who do most often do so in education, business, or health fields rather than in their undergraduate major area.
Traditional disciplinary master's programs have historically focused on preparing students for doctoral study or for entering professional areas such as law or medicine. Three fields that are exceptions to this pattern—engineering, social work, and public administration—have developed master's-level programs that prepare students for non-academic careers. Professional master's degrees in these fields provide an alternative to doctoral education for those preparing for BGN careers.
To learn more about the CGS Professional Master’s Initiatives, please see below.
- CGS Professional Science Master's Initiative
- CGS Professional Master's in Social Sciences and Humanities Initiative
Contact
CGS is the leading source of information, data analysis, and trends in graduate education. Our benchmarking data help member institutions to assess performance in key areas, make informed decisions, and develop plans that are suited to their goals.
CGS Best Practice initiatives address common challenges in graduate education by supporting institutional innovations and sharing effective practices with the graduate community. Our programs have provided millions of dollars of support for improvement and innovation projects at member institutions.
As the national voice for graduate education, CGS serves as a resource on issues regarding graduate education, research, and scholarship. CGS collaborates with other national stakeholders to advance the graduate education community in the policy and advocacy arenas.
CGS is an authority on global trends in graduate education and a leader in the international graduate community. Our resources and meetings on global issues help members internationalize their campuses, develop sustainable collaborations, and prepare their students for a global future.
