What Do They Master? Perceived Benefits of the Master's Thesis Experience
This qualitative study explores the learning outcomes achieved by students undertaking a master's research thesis. Interviews were conducted with 24 alumni of a higher education/student affairs program who matriculated between 1986 and 1996. Program faculty, student support staff, and graduate assistantship supervisors were also interviewed. Students experienced the thesis process in eight clearly identifiable stages, with learning outcomes associated with each stage. Four areas of growth were attributed to completing a thesis: personal development, skills development, content expertise, and relationship development. Faculty advisors were identified as critical to the success of the thesis. Implications for student-advisor interaction are discussed.
Contributor Notes
Dr. Ada Demb, Ed.D., joined the active teaching faculty of the graduate program in Educational Administration and Higher Education of The Ohio State University, in the fall of 1994, after serving as Vice Provost for International Affairs from 1992 through 1994. Her advising responsibilities include 15 master's students and 18 doctoral candidates. She teaches graduate courses in Administration of Academic Affairs, Strategy and University Leadership, and Internationalizing Colleges and Universities and is also responsible for supervising The Practicum, the master's internship experience and associated coursework.
Dr. Demb has been active in research and research management since 1974. Her current research interests include the changing structure of higher education as an industry, institutional decision making in a strategic context, the meaning of the master's thesis experience, and how international and domestic students learn to appreciate and value “other-ness.” She received her Ed.D. from Harvard University in Administration and Social Policy in 1975.
Kelly Funk received her Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in 2000. Her dissertation is titled “Becoming ‘One of Us’: The Assistantship Experience and Professional Identity Formation of Master's Degree Students.” Her graduate assistantship experience included positions in Admissions and Student Affairs in the College of Optometry and the Office of the Vice President for Finance. Most recently her work involves retention research through the Office of Institutional Analysis at The Ohio State University. Her current research interests include professional identity development of higher education administrators, off-campus employment and student involvement, and learning outcomes of master's thesis students. Her previous professional experience includes strategic planning; institutional self-study; college and professional school admissions; and student retention, including first-year experience programs for undergraduates.
She received her M.S. degree in Higher Education Administration and College Student Development from Mankato State University, Mankato, Minnesota, completing her thesis, “Parents' Comprehension of the Family Financial Statement” in 1985. From 1987 through 1995, she served as the Director of Financial Aid at Clarke College in Dubuque, Iowa.
