Can you enroll into any graduate programs?

[collegechick]

I'm in the process of completing my Bachelor's. However, I'd like to know what the rules are in graduate school. For example, I'm aiming to complete a BA in Communication. Since it's an arts degree am I only allowed to pursue a MA or could I apply for MS in Management? How do credits work/applied in a graduate setting? If I wanted a MS, would I have to complete further undergraduate credits to make it applicable? Thank you for your response.

[davewill]

The answer is yes, no and maybe.

Seriously, it's not uncommon for Master's programs to take applicants with other degrees. Sometimes they will want you to fulfill certain course prerequisites in order to be accepted. In other cases, work experience can be considered towards filling the gap.

You also want to pay attention to GPA requirements. Those of us who use alternative credit often do not have many graded credits, or sometimes the ones we have are not in the AOS. Some schools may not care, others may care greatly, or again, be willing to overlook it if you have work experience. You need to look at the programs you would like to apply to and see what they are willing to accept. The criteria is usually set out fairly clearly. Also, because master's programs are usually profit centers, admissions counselors are often willing to work with you individually on determining eligibility.

It pays to do the legwork now and work backwards from the master's program admission requirements to determine to best way to finish your bachelor's.

[Prloko]

I'm in the process of completing my Bachelor's. However, I'd like to know what the rules are in graduate school. For example, I'm aiming to complete a BA in Communication. Since it's an arts degree am I only allowed to pursue a MA or could I apply for MS in Management? How do credits work/applied in a graduate setting? If I wanted a MS, would I have to complete further undergraduate credits to make it applicable? Thank you for your response.

In GENERAL, no. Having a BA doesn't pigeon-hole you into an MA.

But in a specific sense, each school will have their particular requirements. Some programs only require any Bachelors. Others require specific courses or degrees. For example, some Master's in economics requires lower level econ courses to be taken in your bachelors, or for you to have the ability to take them. A BA in communications will allow you to apply for many different types of master's programs. You will need to find a target program and find out what their specific requirements are.

The 'Arts' vs 'Science' designations many times just means the type of courses in your program. For example in Penn State, it means you took a language component. In other schools it means you took more liberal arts courses. And there's hundreds of other interpretations of the difference depending on the school. For all intents and purposes with a few exceptions BS and BA are basically interchangeable.

[rebel100]

And it really is school specific. When I went MBA shopping one thing that drew me to WGU was the lack of any significant pre-reqs or high level math.

In short, you can probably find what you are looking for, but you may have to be flexible in where you go if you want to make it easy.

I would research the requirements of your top programs and make sure you get whatever they want an applicant to have.

[cookderosa]

That's really a fantastic question, I don't think it's been asked before - but I remember wondering this too.

Everyone has already kind of hit on it, and that every school is different. I had no trouble going from a BA into an MS - I did have to take some courses that I hadn't take in my undergrad degree that were a requirement at THIS school (other schools didn't have that requirement) but as you start to look around, I think you'll find there are 9 green lights for every 1 red light you encounter.

[collegechick]

Thanks everyone who replied to this thread. I see one person likes WGU. What are some other online, cheap Master's schools that you'd recommend?

[dfrecore]

Here are some that I know off the top of my head that have been discussed on this forum about a million times:

ENMU (if you take 2 courses per fall/spring term and 1 course in the summer term max, then you can finish in 2 years for $260/cr - same as the in-state rate)

APU - $350/cr

Patten (all MBA's) - competency-based, $1996/4-mo term (there may be discounts available at times)

WGU - competency-based, $3250/6-mo term

Capella Flexpath - competency-based, $2400/12-week term

Hodges UPower - competency-based, $3250/6-mo term

I'm sure there are more, but those are just the ones I know. If you're interested, you just need to go look at each one and see what the admissions requirements are for each school.

For instance, at ENMU, their MBA requires that you take 9 core courses (econ, marketing, management, stats, etc.). You just need to incorporate those courses into your degree. BUT, if you haven't, they have their own testing-out option there for free. The person I talked to there was extremely helpful and knowledgable.

WGU on the other hand, doesn't have any of those requirements. BUT, I would say that if you've never taken a business course before, then you may struggle a bit with the Masters-level courses in the program. Not that everyone will, but most masters programs assume a level of proficiency coming in that you may not have.

APU also doesn't have requirements, and I like that you can take 8-wk courses there instead of the 16-wk courses at ENMU (16-wk courses are the bane of my existence, it's why I can barely get through a semester of school!).

[collegechick]

Here are some that I know off the top of my head that have been discussed on this forum about a million times:

ENMU (if you take 2 courses per fall/spring term and 1 course in the summer term max, then you can finish in 2 years for $260/cr - same as the in-state rate)

APU - $350/cr

Patten (all MBA's) - competency-based, $1996/4-mo term (there may be discounts available at times)

WGU - competency-based, $3250/6-mo term

Capella Flexpath - competency-based, $2400/12-week term

Hodges UPower - competency-based, $3250/6-mo term

I'm sure there are more, but those are just the ones I know. If you're interested, you just need to go look at each one and see what the admissions requirements are for each school.

For instance, at ENMU, their MBA requires that you take 9 core courses (econ, marketing, management, stats, etc.). You just need to incorporate those courses into your degree. BUT, if you haven't, they have their own testing-out option there for free. The person I talked to there was extremely helpful and knowledgable.

WGU on the other hand, doesn't have any of those requirements. BUT, I would say that if you've never taken a business course before, then you may struggle a bit with the Masters-level courses in the program. Not that everyone will, but most masters programs assume a level of proficiency coming in that you may not have.

APU also doesn't have requirements, and I like that you can take 8-wk courses there instead of the 16-wk courses at ENMU (16-wk courses are the bane of my existence, it's why I can barely get through a semester of school!).

Thank you for the informative and thoughtful response. I will check into these schools that you mentioned. Thanks again!