Master of Arts in History

at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville USA

The fast change of pace in our society is creating new career opportunities for individuals trained in multiple disciplines. The Master of Science in integrative studies allows students to access expertise from two or three areas and integrate courses into a degree that meets the needs of an emerging career field.

Consider integrative studies if:

• You have diverse interests that span two or three academic disciplines and you want to blend these interests into one cohesive program
• You have a career interest in an emerging field that crosses academic disciplines, such as cultural heritage and resources management or marketing communications
• You want to advance in a non-traditional sector or start your own business

What can I do with a degree in Integrative Studies?
A Master of Science in integrative studies can lead to a multitude of career paths as well as entry into doctoral programs. The degree will meet the needs of students seeking knowledge for advancement in a specific industry, looking to move to an emerging field that is multidisciplinary or starting their own business. Employment outlook and salary information for these careers vary widely. A carefully designed plan of study will provide students with a unique combination of skills and knowledge that will be advantageous in the job market.

Organizational Design Thinking
The integrative studies degree with a focus area in organizational design thinking combines courses in applied communication studies with courses from instructional technology. Through this course work, you will learn to apply design thinking methodology at the nexus of communication, technology, and organizational training.

Your coursework will teach you how to effectively redefine organizational problems, ideate to envision possibilities, facilitate processes to bring those ideations to fruition, and test your solutions to ensure meaningful results. And, what’s more, you will learn to do all of these within a design process that helps you create a culture of empathy among all stakeholders.

The study of communication involves the development of theories and research tools to analyze, explain and improve human interaction. The applied communication studies program is offered in the College of Arts and Sciences through the Department of Applied Communication Studies. Departmental courses focus on two-person interaction, small-group decision making, communication patterns in organizations and other complex systems, public relations, and speaker-audience interaction in public speaking.

What can I do with a degree in Applied Communication Studies?
In America, employers increasingly recognize the need for more effective communication. As a result, job opportunities for graduates trained in applied communication studies are prevalent in business and industry, government agencies, educational systems, nonprofit organizations, and community-based resource centers. Graduates often have several career choices. Examples of communication careers departmental graduates have entered are: teaching and administration; management, training and consulting in organizations; public relations; human relations and employee assistance programs; sales; and government service. Graduates find employment in various types of for-profit and nonprofit organizations locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. Applied communication is also an in-demand minor for students majoring in areas such as, business, mass communications, political science and sociology. Our graduates are also well-prepared for graduate school.

The environmental sciences undergraduate program, in the College of Arts and Sciences at SIUE, is interdisciplinary, and is designed to cultivate students' perspectives of environmental issues, and to provide them with refined knowledge of environmental issues on a local, regional and global scale. The curriculum within the Department of Environmental Sciences will increase students’ technical competence in addressing these environmental issues, their origins, ramifications and resolutions. The program will promote experiential learning and professional education to prepare students for career opportunities in a wide variety of workplaces.

What can I do with a degree in Environmental Sciences?
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, employment of environmental scientists and specialists is projected to grow 8% through 2028, which is faster than the average for all occupations in the U.S. Graduates with a Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts with specializations in environmental health, environmental toxicology and environmental management will have career opportunities in their areas of interest. For example, a licensed environmental health practitioner can be employed for inspection, sampling and reporting for sanitary, food safety, sewage and waste disposal, drinking water, pest control, or industrial hygiene.

Environmental Management
The environmental management specialization prepares students for careers in management and protection of natural resources, and for providing services related to environmental quality and sustainability. The curriculum offers an interdisciplinary approach to deal with various environmental management issues, including:

• Pollution control
• Regulations
• Remediation
• Hazardous waste disposal
• Sustainability

The program also includes hands-on technical training, such as geographic information systems (GIS) and environmental risk assessment. Examples of careers for graduates include environmental consultants; environmental educators; social and environmental impact analysts; resource policy analysts; natural resource planners; managers of wildlife, parks, forests and rangelands; conservation officers; watershed managers; soil conservationists; and sustainability officers.

Our comprehensive program, offered through the School of Engineering, allows students to pursue a graduate degree in civil engineering while gaining expertise in the field. Students may choose a concentration in environmental/water resources, geotechnical, structural or transportation engineering. Whether students are working professionals or full-time students, the graduate program introduces them to the skills and knowledge they need for professional advancement. Students will have opportunities to conduct field and lab-based research, and learn from highly qualified faculty who are experts in their respective fields.

Why earn a master's in Civil Engineering?
Future professional engineering (PE) licenses might require a Master of Science. Our program prepares students to meet engineering education requirements established by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).

Improve your ability to take and pass the Practices and Principles of Engineering exam.

• Our graduate program allows you to complete one year of experience toward your PE license, a benefit that does not apply to an MBA. (Learn more.)
• Learn materials relevant to the PE exam.
• Take advantage of courses to refine your study skills for preparing to take the PE exam.
• Textbooks from your master’s courses are useful references for the PE exam and to build your personal library.

What can I do with a degree in Civil Engineering?
A graduate degree in civil engineering from SIUE opens doors for students in a variety of areas. Potential employers consist of consulting engineering companies, government agencies, industries, or academia. With the right experience and advanced education, students can become self-employed consultants. An education from SIUE prepares students for advancement opportunities and places them in a better position to get the job they want in a competitive employment market.

Geotechnical Engineering
Geotechnical engineering includes the design of  shallow and deep foundations, slopes, retaining walls, levees, subsurface exploration programs, underground openings such as tunnels and mines, base/subbase/subgrade of roadways, and soil improvements under static, hydrostatic, and earthquake loadings.

Immediate application of new physics knowledge is not what drives physicists, but rather, an inherent curiosity about everything around them. Physics explores the big questions about the universe, and students who are motivated, curious, mathematical, inventive, and wish to explore these big questions will find their place at SIUE. Students in the College of Arts and Sciences are taught by world-class scholars in state-of-the-art laboratories, with small class sizes to help ensure that students are not just faces in a crowded lecture hall. In the Department of Physics, students are welcomed into a community of faculty committed to providing the best education possible.

What can I do with a degree in Physics?
Earning a bachelor’s degree in physics can open many doors. Throughout the United States, approximately one-third of students graduating with degrees in physics go on to graduate school to continue their education in physics or other science disciplines. Our graduates have recently gone on to pursue their education at the University of Arizona, University of Colorado Boulder, and University of New Mexico, as well as other quality programs. Some students, finding the rigor of physics excellent preparation for professional schools, pursue advanced education opportunities in medicine or law.

The graduate program in speech-language pathology from SIUE's School of Education, Health and Human Behavior combines classroom instruction, research and practical experiences. A full range of courses and practicum opportunities prepares students to work with a variety of individuals with communication needs in various work settings. The program is typically completed in five to six full-time semesters. For the past several years, 100% of our students have achieved a passing score on the PRAXIS examination. Courses and clinical experiences are provided during the day with some evening offerings. This program is completed entirely on the Edwardsville campus.

The speech-language pathology program within the Department of Applied Health offers unique opportunities for practicum experiences on-and off-campus. The program has agreements with nationally and internationally known hospitals, agencies, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes and educational facilities. The program can provide students with exceptional experiences with children and adults with neurological disorders, hearing impairments, autism, speech and language impairments, aphasia, stuttering and voice disorders.

Why Speech-Language Pathology?
A career as a speech-language pathologist is extremely rewarding, and the need for professionals in these fields is expected to increase over the next decade. Opportunities in various work settings are numerous and include educational facilities, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, home health, colleges and universities.

What can I do with a degree in Speech-Language Pathology?
The career outlook for speech-language pathologists continues to be very positive. One hundred percent of students graduating with a master’s degree in speech-language pathology from SIUE are employed within the first year of graduation and many students are employed before they graduate. In addition to a positive career outlook, most of our students complete the program within the expected time frame and pass the national PRAXIS examination.

The mass communications program in the College of Arts and Sciences at SIUE prepares students to succeed in careers in one of the fastest growing and most dynamic areas: the mass media.

The Department of Mass Communications at SIUE is accredited by the highly selective Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (ACEJMC). This means our students get one-on-one attention from their instructors due to small class sizes and curriculum that keeps with changes in the media industry. Our students have access to state-of-the-art facilities and faculty members who dedicate themselves to serving the professional and intellectual needs of the students.

The Department of Mass Communications offers three sequences: journalism, media production, and advertising and strategic media. While most of the curriculum is a shared experience by all majors, students take advanced courses specific to their chosen sequence. This approach is in keeping with the converged nature of today’s media industries. At its heart, our department is all about teaching students how to tell stories, whether in the form of advertising campaigns, news stories, documentaries, or any of an almost limitless use of this major. Students who major in mass communications but choose not to enter the media industry will be well-prepared, thoughtful and effective communicators.

What can I do with a degree in Mass Communications?
Graduates of the Department of Mass Communications choose various career paths. Our graduates have become reporters, editors and photojournalists for newspapers, magazines, and online publications. Others work in radio and television, for advertising agencies, and in marketing and communications positions at major corporations and non-profits; many become the social media experts in their positions. Some graduates take an entrepreneurial approach and create careers as independent videographers, event planners, graphic designers, web developers, and freelance communications specialists.

The study of history begins with questions about the past; how things came to be as they are or were. These questions can contribute to a greater understanding of ourselves, others and the world in which we live.

Historians approach the study of the past from various perspectives, but all analyze the patterns and causes of change in human thought and action across space and time and the consequences of those changes. Some, working within or across national histories, focus on the trajectory of particular social institutions, such as the family, government, business or religion. Alternately, historians can investigate the historical development of ideologies or of cultural concepts such as race or gender. Historians borrow investigative strategies freely from other disciplines. For some historians, the methodologies of the social sciences become critical tools for the study of the past, while others prefer a historical approach involving the methods of the humanities and literature. Most adopt some mixture of methodologies.

In the College of Arts and Sciences at SIUE, the Department of History emphasizes the study of primary sources beginning with our freshman-level survey labs, through the senior research projects. We also provide numerous opportunities for hands-on learning through class projects and internships at many venues in the greater St. Louis region and in the Metro East. A specialization in applied historical methods is also available for those interested in museums, editing and digital technology. The social science secondary education minor for licensure in teaching is housed in the Department of History.

What can I do with a degree in History?
Traditionally, a bachelor’s degree in history was thought to primarily provide a knowledge base for two careers: licensure in teaching, or as a foundation for attending law school. While teaching and attending law school are still viable options for students with a degree in history, the degree is becoming broadly recognized as a foundation for many other careers. Students are pursuing careers in local, state and federal government, including the Foreign Service and city or town management; nonprofit organizations; politics, including political advising; curatorial and archival management in libraries, museums and art galleries; media, public relations, digital editing and film consulting; and business, in corporate training and development.

The SIUE School of Engineering offers a Master of Science in industrial engineering within the Department of Industrial Engineering. There are four areas of concentration: systems optimization, manufacturing engineering design, enterprise and production control, and quality engineering. Core courses are offered in the areas of engineering optimization, quality control, production planning, and manufacturing design.

What can I do with a degree in Industrial Engineering?
More professionals are earning graduate degrees, adding to the competitive nature of the marketplace. It is imperative to explore graduate education as an avenue to achieve a higher level of career success. Whether students want to move up the ladder, find a niche teaching in higher education or pursue consulting opportunities, they can leverage themselves with a graduate degree in industrial engineering from SIUE. Companies like The Boeing Co., Emerson Electric and Covidien hire many SIUE graduates. A graduate degree places students in a network of highly skilled and educated professionals who work in the region, across the country and around the world.

International studies is an interdisciplinary degree program designed to help students reflect on and engage in the complex social, political, economic, and cultural interrelations that exist among nations and regions of our increasingly globalized world. The program offers a broad range of curricular options in the College of Arts and Sciences, allowing students to explore, in regards to various peoples and across populations, aspects related to geography, history, religion, government, trade, communication, languages and literatures, music and arts, social justice, and environmental challenges. Students in the program will learn critical and analytical problem-solving skills that they can apply to contemporary global issues.

What can I do with a degree in International Studies?
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree in international studies are qualified for many positions in diplomacy or with nonprofits, governmental organizations and businesses. Students can apply their knowledge of globalization, language and culture in workplace settings in the areas of foreign service, foreign aid or international intergovernmental organizations. Examples of government agencies seeking these graduates are the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of Defense, the National Security Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency. In recent years, there have been hundreds of thousands of export related jobs and employment opportunities with foreign firms in Illinois and in the St. Louis metropolitan area. Possible job titles include: foreign service specialist; human rights advocate; lobbyist and administrative/legislative aid; Peace Corps officer; teacher of English as a foreign language in international settings; family and community support service provider for humanitarian agencies in the United States and internationally; and business consultant in international firms.

International Relations and Diplomacy
Students who choose this concentration have a career interest in the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups, governments or international organizations. Students gain the skills to engage in international relations through the intercession of professional diplomats with regard to issues of peacemaking, war, trade, economics, environment, culture and human rights.