School Administration
Welcome to the School Administration program homepage. Our programs offer the Master of School Administration (MSA) and the Education Specialist (EdS) degrees. The MSA degree is in compliance with the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) requirements leading to North Carolina Licensure as a school principal. The EdS degree requires a pre-requisite of an MSA degree and leads to North Carolina Licensure as a superintendent.
With the growing shortage of school administrators, the timing is excellent for pursuing either of these degrees. Completed applications (which include GRE or MAT scores, sealed transcripts and letters of recommendation) are due March 1st for MSA on-campus and EdS cohorts for fall admission. For MSA spring admission, completed applications are due November 1st. MSA off-campus cohort applications are due April 1st. Please take a moment to explore our links.
If you have further questions about either of the school administration programs, please email Dr Ken Jenkins or Lori Dean in the LES department. To apply to the program, go to the graduate school website.
MSA, EdS and Add-on Licensure curriculums are offered off-campus in specific locations. The cohorts are a group of students who begin the program, complete all coursework, and graduate together. Students outside of the cohort are not allowed to take classes at these sites unless seats are available and the professor approves the additional student. The intention is to enable these students who do not have the opportunity take classes on-campus to be able to develop and maintain close relationships with their peers throughout their coursework.
Cohorts are set up depending on interest level and number of students who apply. Generally these curriculums run in Rutherford, Alexander, Caldwell, Catawba, Forsyth, Burke and McDowell counties, but when they begin depends on available faculty and student interest. For additional information about off-campus MSA cohorts you may contact Ms. Lisa Freeman at (828) 262-2906 or freemanlh@apptate.edu. For general information about distance learning and/or cohorts you may contact the Office of Extension at (828) 262-3113 or email Mr. Tom Fisher at fishertw@appstate.edu.
The following is the MSA program checksheet and schedule of courses for the Winston-Salem cohort. This is for informational purposes only, remember no one can start a cohort any other time than in the beginning and all in the cohort complete coursework and graduate together. Please look over this information to get an idea of what participation in a cohort would involve.
- There is no residency requirement. However, individual instructors may require on campus attendance for a portion of their courses.
- Course work for all the cohorts will be available during the fall, spring, and summer terms. Extension courses will operate on the same calendar as on campus courses.
- All 36 hours of course work will be offered through the office of extension services.
- Tuition for all off-campus course work will be charged at the Extension Service rate.
- Enrollment will be limited to no more than 20 students. The students must be officially accepted into the graduate program before they are permitted to register for any courses. Put simply, students must have completed applications in the Graduate Office.
- The sequence of courses and electives will be the responsibility of the Department of Leadership and Educational Studies. Students will be consulted.
- There will be a minimum of 2 courses offered each semester until completion of the degree. During summer there will be no more than 1 course taught in any summer term.
- The minimum clock hours per semester for the internship are 130 hours.
- All courses will be cohort. As a result, all students will begin, proceed, and finish together. No more than 9 credit hours may be taken out of, or transferred in to, the cohort.
- Upon enrollment the applicant must have completed three years of teaching experience in an accredited school.
