Five new master’s degrees approved by Board of Trustees

The addition of five new master’s degrees was approved by the Board of Trustees March 30. This will potentially bring the total number of graduate degrees offered by the university to eight. The proposed degrees are Master of Computer Science; Master of Public Service; Master of Social Work; Master of Accountancy; and Master of Science in Cybersecurity.

The addition of these degrees will go to the Utah State Board of Regents in August  and the accreditation of the Northwest Commission on College and Universities in the following months for approval before they begin to be implemented. The degrees are projected to be added to the curriculum by the fall of 2017.

“Today’s announcement marks the culmination of a major effort to expand the range of, and give institutional support to, graduate education at UVU. This is a monumental step forward for the University,” said President Matthew S. Holland in a written statement. “By design, these five programs respond to some of the area’s most pressing needs in business and the social sector. The new student opportunities this creates for learning and employment are just outstanding.”

The degrees were created to meet regional demands for graduate degrees in the area. An Office of Graduate Studies was established in January 2015 along with a Graduate Council to provide the framework for these degrees to be offered, each College has a faculty member on the Graduate Council.

Currently Master of Business Administration; Master of Education; and Master of Nursing are offered by the university. 20 different master’s programs were explored, and ultimately these five were settled on to help meet market demand.

“Can you feel the momentum?” said Elaine S. Dalton. “It’s just thrilling to me.”

The degrees will range in time from two semesters to two years. This will be the only Master of Public Service in Utah, and UVU will be the first institution to offer a Master of Science in Cybersecurity degree.

“UVU takes its mission to meet the educational needs of our service area seriously,” said Jeff Olson, senior vice president for academic affairs. “We have carefully reviewed those needs and identified five programs that build on present strengths to address a variety of them. Other programs will be proposed in the future to address important remaining needs.”