Degree Definitions

Associate degrees are awarded only on Kent State’s regional campuses and are designed to permit a student to complete the freshman and sophomore years of a baccalaureate program and/or to prepare students for immediate employment in a technology-related field. The degree requires a minimum of 60 semester credit hours and should not exceed 65 hours unless it can be shown that the additional coursework is required to meet professional accreditation or licensing requirements.

Associate degree programs requiring hours beyond 65 hours in order to meet accreditation or licensing requirements are expected to align similarly to like programs at other Ohio public institutions and shall not exceed 73 semester credit hours. The degree should not exceed four semesters of full-time study.

The Associate of Arts (A.A.) and Associate of Science (A.S.) degrees provide a planned program of study that is generally equivalent to the first two years of a baccalaureate. The program may also be used for students desiring two years of a general education with emphasis in the arts, social sciences or humanities (for the A.A. degree) or in the natural sciences and mathematics (for the A.S. degree).

The curriculum structure of the A.A. and A.S. degrees at Kent State University:

1. Electives are chosen in the students’ area of interest and/or to meet the requirements of the bachelor’s degree they are wishing to pursue.

Ohio Administrative Code 3333.1.04 Standards for Approval of Associate Degree Programs states the Associate of Applied Business (A.A.B.) and the Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degrees are “awarded for the successful completion of a planned program of instruction in a technology, the primary objective of which is the preparation of individuals for paid and unpaid employment in that technology, or for additional preparation for a career requiring other than a baccalaureate or advanced degree.”

The curriculum structure of A.A.B. and A.A.S. degrees at Kent State:

1. A technical major constitutes an area of specialization and may include concentration requirements.
2. Non-technical requirements (including Kent Core, orientation and courses related to the technical field) should comprise approximately 50+ percent (i.e., minimum 30 credit hours) of total program.
3. One course from each of the following five categories: (1) Composition, (2) Mathematics and Critical Reasoning, (3) Humanities or Fine Arts, (4) Social Sciences and (5) Basic Sciences.

The Associate of Technical Study (A.T.S.) degree is an individually planned program of study designed to respond to the need for specialized technical education and clearly identifiable career objectives. The Ohio Department of Higher Education divides the ATS degree into two types:

• Type A allows students to develop, in consultation with a faculty advisor, a coherent combination of technical courses selectively drawn from two or more technical programs offered at Kent State to serve a career objective that is not adequately addressed by one of the existing programs alone. Students in the A.T.S. degree type A declare the Individualized Program major at Kent State.
• Type B provides associate degree completion based on a technical certificate or other formal technical training programs. Students are awarded a maximum of 30 credit hours toward the degree for college-level courses completed or training received from other institutions of higher education, career centers or other educational enterprises judged by Kent State to be of college level and for which Kent State awards degree credit. Students in the A.T.S. degree type B declare the appropriate university-approved major in their field.

The curriculum structure of the A.T.S. degree at Kent State University is the following:

1. The major should comprise a minimum 30 credit hours of technical coursework, which may include maximum 30 credit hours of articulated credit.
2. Non-technical requirements include courses closely related to the technical field.
3. One course from each of the following five categories: (1) Composition, (2) Mathematics and Critical Reasoning, (3) Humanities or Fine Arts, (4) Social Sciences and (5) Basic Sciences.

The bachelor’s degree (baccalaureate) is usually the first academic title or rank conferred on a student by the university for satisfactory completion of a prescribed four-year course of study, and it is authenticated by a diploma signifying the achievement. Its purpose is to enable a student to acquire a certain amount of liberal learning and to become proficient in a particular branch of learning.

The degree requires a minimum of 120 semester credit hours of coursework; bachelor’s degree programs should not exceed 126 semester credit hours unless it can be shown that the additional coursework is required to meet professional accreditation or licensing requirements.

The curriculum structure of the bachelor’s degree at Kent State University is the following:

1. Concentrations must include a minimum of 50 percent of the curriculum within the major, see 23 for more information.
2. The major must include an upper-division, writing-intensive course (WIC). Although students must complete a WIC with a minimum C grade to earn a bachelor’s degree (as a university requirement), the major course designated as WIC does not need to be specified with a minimum C grade as a graduation requirement for that particular major.
3. Diversity-designated courses are not required to be specified in a program’s curriculum. Students complete the diversity requirement by selecting one course from the Kent Core and one course from the Kent Core, a declared program, an elective or a semester of study abroad (the latter with dean’s approval).
4. The experiential learning requirement (ELR) may be a major or elective course, a component of a course or a non-credit paid or unpaid experience (e.g., internship). An ELR-designated course is not required to be specified in a program’s curriculum.

Within this structure, the content of programs determines the type of bachelor’s degree:

Majors within the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree usually are aimed at liberal learning; they tend to teach qualitative methods of scholarship, and they ordinarily have a small major and a relatively large number of electives, which makes the degree flexible.

Majors within the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree generally are oriented toward more specialized preparation; they tend to teach quantitative methods of scholarship, and they usually have a large number of major requirements, which somewhat limit the flexibility of the degree.

The Bachelor of Integrative Studies (B.I.S.) degree permits students to construct their own areas of focus within structured limits.

The Bachelor of Technical and Applied Studies (B.T.A.S.) is an adult-completion degree designed to accommodate varied educational backgrounds.

Professional bachelor’s degrees tend to have a greater percentage of required courses in the content of the discipline as they prepare graduates for a specific profession. These programs usually require a core of professional studies that conforms to the standards of an accrediting agency or other professional/ licensing body. The size of the professional core ordinarily restricts the number of hours that are available outside the associated major.

Kent State University offers nine professional or technical undergraduate degrees:

• Bachelor of Applied Horticulture (B.A.H.)
• Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.)
• Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.)
• Bachelor of Music (B.M.)
• Bachelor of Radiologic and Imaging Sciences Technology (B.R.I.T.)
• Bachelor of Science in Education (B.S.E.)
• Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (B.S.I.T.)
• Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.)
• Bachelor of Science in Public Health (B.S.P.H.)

“2+2” Bachelor’s Degree Programs: Several baccalaureate programs at Kent State University can be completed with approximately two years of additional full-time study after completion of an associate degree. An example is the Bachelor of Science degree in Respiratory Care, which is a two-year program for students who hold an accredited associate degree in respiratory therapy/care and are registered respiratory therapists.

In broad terms, entry into a master’s degree indicates that the student has sufficient preparation in a field of study to pursue greater specialization in that field. The degree program is designed to assure mastery of specified knowledge and skills, rather than an accumulation of credits beyond the baccalaureate.

The master’s degree normally requires two years of full-time study and the completion of a minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate credit beyond the baccalaureate. Some specialized master’s degrees may require more than this minimum. The basic components of the degree may vary in emphasis, but generally include a common core in the discipline; an integrative experience such as a seminar or practicum to synthesize the program’s content and/or to translate theory into practice; and a summative experience to measure achievement and intellectual growth such as a thesis (6 credit hours), project, research paper and/or comprehensive examination.

Academic credit applicable to the master’s degree is only awarded for those courses designed to expand and strengthen skills beyond the level of the baccalaureate. Degree credit is not awarded for courses that are remedial or designed to fulfill prerequisites for admission. No more than 50 percent of the program’s coursework may be at the 50000 level (i.e., graduate courses slashed/co-scheduled with undergraduate courses).

Majors within the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree tend to emphasize liberal learning and qualitative methods of scholarship within a specific discipline. M.A. degree requirements often favor electives outside the discipline of the major.

Majors within the Master of Science (M.S.) degree tend to emphasize professional preparation and quantitative methods of scholarship within a specific discipline where scientific methodology predominates. M.S. degree requirements often favor requirements within the major.

Professional master’s degrees implies preparation for professional and/or clinical practice. Generally, professional graduate degrees represent terminal degrees in their field. The resulting professional activity usually involves the giving of service to the public in the chosen field.

Kent State offers 20 professional master’s degrees:

• Master of Architecture (M.Arch.)
• Master of Arts in Economics (M.A.E.)
• Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.)
• Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.)
• Master of Digital Sciences (M.D.S.)
• Master of Education (M.Ed.)
• Master of Engineering Technology (M.E.T.)
• Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) via Northeast Ohio Master of Fine Arts (NEOMFA) consortium
• Master of Geographic Information Science (M.G.I.Sc.)
• Master of Healthcare Design (M.H.D.)
• Master of Landscape Architecture I (M.L.A.1)
• Master of Landscape Architecture II (M.L.A.2)
• Master of Liberal Studies (L.S.M.)
• Master of Library and Information Science (M.L.I.S.)
• Master of Music (M.M.)
• Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.)
• Master of Public Health (M.P.H.)
• Master of Science in Accounting (M.S.A.)
• Master of Science in Nursing (M.S.N.)
• Master of Urban Design (M.U.D.)

The Educational Specialist (Ed.S.) degree is considered an “Intermediate” professional graduate degree that signifies work beyond the professional master's degree yet remaining short of a professional doctoral degree. The basic components of the degree may vary in emphasis but will generally include the following: a set of core courses, a demonstration of relevant competency in research, a clinical field study experience and electives designed to assist the student in achievement of career goals. The program normally includes one or more experiences that provide opportunity to integrate theory and practice and a summative experience as a context for measuring achievement and intellectual growth.

The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree is designed for students interested in becoming professional scholars, college and university teachers or independent research workers and leaders in industry and private or government research institutions. It builds on the breadth and study-in-depth provided by a baccalaureate and the specialization acquired in the master’s degree. Its specific purpose is to give students the analytic and research skills to function as a scholar in a discipline. The Ph.D. represents the highest level of academic certification at Kent State University and assures that its graduates have the scholarly skills to discover, interpret, integrate, apply and communicate the accumulated knowledge of a discipline.

The curriculum of the Ph.D. degree combines core coursework, a cognate (related) field, a comprehensive written and oral examination and a written cumulative product (dissertation) that shows the results of a scholarly work of original resource and is presented orally to a professional audience of scholars. The degree requires a minimum of 90 semester hours beyond the bachelor’s degree, or 60 hours beyond the master’s degree, of which 30 credit hours are for the dissertation.

Professional doctoral degrees educate students for professional practice, rather than the research-focused Ph.D. The degree is awarded after a period of study such that the total time to degree, including both pre-professional and professional preparation, equals at least six full-time equivalent academic years.

Kent State offers four professional doctorates:

• Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) via Northeast Ohio Audiology Consortium (NOAC)
• Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
• Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.)
• Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (D.P.M.)