​Integrating acceleration

Last Thursday, the Arts and Science Council considered the expansion of accelerated master’s degree programs at Duke. Currently, the University offers such programs in the Nicholas School of the Environment and Pratt School of Engineering. Among the proposed new programs are a master’s programs in global health and public policy. Eight other graduate units have expressed interest in accelerated degree programs. We hope to see accelerated master’s degrees brought to fruition, but believe that the current proposal for them must be slightly altered.

Accelerated master’s programs can provide immediate benefits to students. As mentioned by Provost Kornbluth, they greatly reduce the cost of the graduate degrees by reducing the number of semesters students must pay for. Moreover, accelerated master’s programs grant time and university credit for any graduate level class students may want to pursue during their undergraduate courses of study, allowing them the chance to move even further during their graduate program. Also, a master’s degree raises job prospects post-graduation: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports lower unemployment rates and higher earnings for those with master’s degrees compared to those with bachelor’s degrees.

Even recognizing these benefits, we echo the Arts and Science Council’s concerns about integrating the accelerated degree programs into the new curriculum, which encourages students to explore of a variety of subjects and emphasizes the liberal arts foundation of the University. Accelerated master’s programs will make it difficult for students to marry the exploration required by the new curriculum with the structure needed to accrue the requisite credits to earn a master’s degree in five years. Further, despite the lower cost of an accelerated master’s degree, we foresee students who rely on merit based and need based financial aid packages for their undergraduate degrees avoiding accelerated degrees for fear that their aid will not extend to a fifth year.

Recognizing these barriers, we encourage the Arts and Science Council to consider a few modifications to the degree programs as well as broader changes to the undergraduate curriculum. One modification we suggest is to allow incoming first-year students to apply to the accelerated programs, contingent upon their completion of the necessary coursework and exams during the first three years of their undergraduate program. This modification would not only allow students a chance to plot out their coursework early, ensuring ample room for the liberal arts, but also attract top students to Duke. A second modification we suggest to the Council is to improve the undergraduate advising system so that it provides opportunities for structured, robust and tailored mentorship to any students pursuing accelerated degrees. A third modification we suggest to the Council is to alter course overloading policies. Relieving current restrictions placed on overloading would allow students a chance to realistically explore the liberal arts while being able to fulfill the demanding requirements of an accelerated master’s. Finally, we suggest that Duke implement merit and need based aid programs to widen the pool of students who are able to apply to accelerated degree programs.

We encourage students to consider these accelerated program with the caveat that master’s degrees are neither critical nor well-fitted for each and every student. They should be sought by those interested in gaining in-depth knowledge about a subject matter or by those hoping to build connections with professors to ease a transition to a doctorate program.