After carefully considering feedback from former, current, and prospective students, Southern’s School of Education, Psychology, and Counseling will offer its Master of Science in Education’s Instructional Leadership degree entirely online starting in June 2015.

Each class will last seven weeks, and the program can be completed in two years and one semester; previously, it took three years. The new format not only reduces program duration, but it also allows greater flexibility for students whose geographic location or other obligations make it difficult for them to come to campus.

“Many students interested in this program are principals or other employees whose job duties continue through the summer,” said MSEd Program Director Bonnie Eder. “Even though they may have had interest or need, they just were not able to leave home for one or two months at a time.”

Two different tracks or emphasis are available in the MSEd Instructional Leadership program: content area and administration.

With the administration emphasis, students are prepared for administrative positions and experience greater employability in leadership roles, such as principals and administrators. Students in this emphasis will take all classes online through Southern.

Content area emphasis students will take 18 semester hours of their core classes online through Southern. However, these students will be able to take the 15 hours of additional masters-level courses in their content area (e.g. music, math, English, history, etc.) from another accredited university and transfer the credits. 

For more information, email beder@southern.edu.