Quick Master's Degree Advice

[Dnightowl]

Greetings, Everyone,

I am in a unique situation. My Assistant Director abrutly resigned. I have to cover their position as the Acting Assistant Director and my position until a replacement has been identified. The position requires a master's degree and I won't be finished with my dual degree until May 2027. Is there a master's degree in Management, Human Resources, or Leadership that I can get quickly in the next few months. I anticipate that our HR department will have the position advertised by October at the latest, and I want to apply for it. I have placed the addendum below.

***BREAK****

Location: Tennessee
Your Age: 35
What kind of degree do you want?: Master's Degree in Management, Leadership or Human Resources. I am certain any kind of Master's Degree will suffice because my Bachelor's was in Healthcare Management and I still got hired for an entry level role in a human resources job.

Associate's Degree: AS in Liberal Arts (2019, Excelsior)
Bachelor's Degree: BS in Healthcare Managment (2024 Excelsior)

[b]Study.com Credits: 6[/b]
Applied Marketing (MAR308)
Psychology of Motivation (PSY315)

Sophia Credits: 78
Ancient Greek Philosophers
Art History I
Art History II
Business Law
Calculus I
College Algebra
Conflict Resolution 
Developing Effective Teams
Environmental Science
Essentials of Managing Conflict
Financial Accounting 
Human Biology
Introduction to Business
Introduction to Chemistry
Introduction to Ethics
Introduction to Information Technology
Introduction to Nutrition
Introduction to Statistics
Introduction to Web Development
Managerial Accounting
Principles of Finance
Principles of Management
Project Management
Spanish I
U.S. Government
U.S. History I
Visual Communications

University of Memphis Credits: 24 (Masters Level)
HADM 7101 Day One (0 credit hours)
HADM 7102 Healthcare Law
HADM 7105 Health Policy & the Org. of Health Services
HADM 7116 Administration of Health Services Orgs
HADM 7204 Healthcare Quality & Outcomes Mgmt.
HADM 7108 Health Care Finance I
HADM 7208 Health Care Finance II
HADM 7209 Quantitative Methods in Health Services
HADM 7605 Human Resources Administration

Summer Courses: (Currently Enrolled)
HADM 7190 Practicum/Field Experience (MHA Internship)
ECON 7100 Economics for the Global Executive 
FIR 7155 Global Financial Management
MKTG 7140, Global Strategic Marketing
SCMS 7313, Supply Chain Operations Management


Budget: Need something cheap
Commitments: I currently work full-time.
Dedicated time to study: A few hours in the morning and a few after work. I can also utilize my weekends to study. I can balance it with my dual degree.

Timeline: Trying to finish in the next four months. I can handle the stress of doing this and completing my dual degree.
Tuition assistance/reimbursement: Tuition Assistance and Financial Aid

Thank you in advance for your time.

[TINASAM]

You could speed run a Master degree on Walden or WGU. They let you go through the material as fast as you're able.
I did one in under 2 months.
RA colleges, so they're going to fit the bill for employers.

[FireMedic_Philosopher]

I would recommend speed running a WGU masters.

Just don't plan on having a life for a few months.

[Mint Berry Crunch]

You could speed run a Master degree on Walden or WGU. They let you go through the material as fast as you're able.
I did one in under 2 months.
RA colleges, so they're going to fit the bill for employers.

Wow! Was that your Master's that you did at Walden in your signature? How was it? Is it like UMPI's where it's all paper-based? Is it a single test/paper, or are there milestones per-course?

I've given Walden some serious thought in the past with their Tempo learning, but I don't know too much about them

[wow]

Wow! Was that your Master's that you did at Walden in your signature? How was it? Is it like UMPI's where it's all paper-based? Is it a single test/paper, or are there milestones per-course?

I'm not the person you asked, but I did the same program. It took me longer and probably more time than TINASAM as I lack the sociology background, although these helped: (1) having some master's level knowledge of research methods and statistics from my MBA and (2) previously completing all the requirements for the TESU BA Psychology (except the capstone). I took about 30 to 60 hours a week for 13 weeks, usually toward the higher end. The more readings you skip, the more time you will save. But unless you are already intimately familiar with the subject, you'll need to do some reading.

The first thing I did when opening a competency was look at the requirements in the assessment. That told me what I needed to focus on in the readings, and what might be less important. The next thing I did was message the instructor within the LMS. Then I took the pre-assessment quiz. Interaction with the instructor and completing the pre-assessment quiz are required for each competency; you cannot submit your assessment unless the instructor has marked both of those as completed. The quiz is just a gauge of how much you already know. It helps you and the instructor figure out what you need to focus on in the course. You can't fail it, you can only fail to do it.

There are additional quizzes you have to pass in order to submit your assessments (assignments), but the quizzes themselves do not count toward your grade. So all the actual graded assessments are papers or, in some cases, Powerpoints (narrating the Powerpoint was required in at least one course), spreadsheets, or Word templates where you answer questions (but are still expected to cite everything in APA). There were about 30 competencies, each with its own assignment. But some competencies had multiple assignments, especially later in the program. For example, in cognitive psychology, there were three competencies but six or 7 assessments.

I do not write papers quickly. My rate is about 1-2 pages per hour. This isn't just about how quickly one can get ideas on the page. Citations will slow things down, even with a good citation manager. That said, I always had far more than the minimum number of citations required. If you stick to only the number of required citations, I guess it would take less time, but also I don't know how people do that because every statement of fact that is not common knowledge needs to be cited, As well as every idea or opinion that did not originate in my own head.

Program content exceeded my expectations, and there is a ton of support for developing research, writing, critical thinking, and other academic skills if you need it.

I went in with a game plan, as I expect you would also. Since you already have an MAOL and are in a DBA program, I expect that you could skip a lot of the readings for an MBA so that most of your time would be spent on assessment completion. This is especially true if you have any previously read journal articles (and similar sources) organized into a system that allows you to access and cite them easily (I use Zotero). You could also look at transferring courses in; I don't know what their transfer policy is for the tempo program, though.

My unpopular take is that, for most people, completing a degree in one term is not achievable. You are most likely to succeed if you go in with (1) previous subject matter knowledge equivalent to the masters level; (2) previous academic success at the masters level; (3) thorough knowledge of and comfort with APA style; (4) willingness and ability to sacrifice/reprioritize other responsibilities and desires; (5) a bit of obsessiveness; and (6) a realistic but adaptable game plan.

Note that the fee for Walden Tempo has gone up, so the price for one term might be higher than for the entire degree at HAU. It depends on any discounts you can get.

[Charles Fout]

My constant refrain: Utilize your network.

Who you know will be of far more significance than any credential.

Engage in conversation with the decision maker(s). Ask what you can do to be competitive.

[Sagan]

You could apply noting that your degree is pending. If they really want to hire you and there isn't a legal requirement for a particular degree, they'll hire you. It might be conditional on completing the degree, but that would be okay.

[Stonybeach]

First of all, I think there has been some great advice given on this thread! My advice is to be strategic. With that said, I am also a graduate of USNY formerly Regents College formerly Excelsior College now Excelsior University, as well as State Universities and private colleges. It is a good school and served my purpose of getting admitted to even better schools. I personally recommend applying to a "better" graduate school to boost your CV/resume. State schools like UMPI would be ideal. I am not saying Excelsior College holds a "stigma." What I am saying is that having a degree from a "brick-and-mortar" school like UMPI will strengthen your CV overall. I have no evidence to support this comment, but I believe schools that allow you to knock out a degree in a couple of months look suspicious and subpar, RA or not!