Student Affairs Administration and Leadership, M.Ed.

Carlson Hall, Room 118
Telephone: (203) 576-4201
Fax: (203) 576-4200

Student Affairs Administration and Leadership (SAAL) is a hybrid degree program that prepares candidates for student affairs positions in college and university settings as well as in business and industry, nonprofit organizations, and foundations. Coursework is designed to ensure that graduates understand how student affairs administrators and leaders directly contribute to the social development, academic success, and overall well-being of the whole person. Advanced coursework in this concentration includes classes in career and lifestyle development, organization and administration of higher education, and college student development. This program is 34 credit hours and may be completed on a full-time or part-time basis. No special licensing post-degree is required for a career in student affairs administration and leadership.

Program Objectives

Upon completion of the program, students demonstrate:

• Application of a lifespan approach to career and lifestyle development;
• The ability to perform career assessment and career guidance;
• An understanding of assessment tools used in advisement centers;
• The knowledge, skills, and dispositions required of a leader: collaborative engagement to envision, plan, and affect change within organizations;
• The ability to contribute to the advancement of holistic wellness of others through advisement and supportive services;
• An appreciation of how social justice and inclusion competencies contribute to their practice by meeting the needs of all groups, raising social consciousness, and providing equitable services and opportunities for all;
• The ability to apply developmental theory to improve and inform best practices and services within colleges and universities, business and industry, nonprofit organizations, and foundations;
• Expertise in how to write, submit, and publish graduate-level research that will increase one’s marketability in future career paths.