MSHE Curriculum

To earn the master's degree in Higher Education Administration and Policy students must complete 15 graduate level courses, including core courses and electives.

Required Courses:

1. MS_HE 406 Research and Analysis I: Question Development and Literature Review
2. MS_HE 407 Research and Analysis II: Research Methodology and Data Collection
3. MS_HE 408 Research and Analysis III: Analysis, Interpretation and Dissemination
4. MS_HE 460 Proseminar in Higher Education
5. MS_ HE 462 The College Student
6. MS_ HE 464 Learning and Teaching in Higher Education
7. MS_ HE 465 Law and Ethics in Higher Education
8. MS_ HE 466 Budgeting and Finance in Higher Education
9. MS_ HE 467 History and Philosophy of Higher Education
10. MS_ HE 468 Higher Education Policy
11. MS_ HE 484 Leadership and Professional Pathways in Higher Education
12. MS_ HE 485 Higher Education Internship* / Elective
13. Elective Course
14. Elective Course
15. Elective Course

*Students who have significant full-time work experience in higher education administration can petition to waive the internship course and take an elective in its place.

Elective Courses

MSHE students take three elective courses (four if they waive the internship requirement.) Each year the MSHE Program offers at least three elective courses in the spring and summer terms (typically one course in spring and 2 courses in summer.) Some MSHE elective courses are offered every other year, and the program often offers new elective course on timely topics in higher education. MSHE elective courses include:

• MS_HE 471 The Comprehensive Community College
• MS_HE 472 Assessment in Higher Education
• MS_HE 473 Structure and Governance in Colleges and Universities
• MS_HE 474 Comparative Higher Education: Impact of Globalization
• MS_HE 475 Crisis Management and Mental Health Issues
• MS_HE 476 Enrollment Management Theory and Practice

Students can also choose graduate-level courses in other Northwestern University schools and programs as elective courses (pending advisor approval, course availability and permission from these programs).  Past students have taken courses in areas such as athletics administration, counseling, educational policy, nonprofit management, organizational development, psychology, sociology and research methods.

Selecting Elective Courses

You can search through the table on the suggested electives page to get an idea for classes which might be of interest from other programs at Northwestern. This list of electives is a good starting place but is not an exhaustive list - you can also search CAESAR for other courses you may be interested in taking. 

It is a good idea to consult with your advisor about elective courses, and you must gain approval from your advisor if you want to take a course that is not on the suggested electives list.  The MSHE program does collect feedback from students about their experiences in courses offered through other programs at NU, and this feedback can help your advisor steer you towards electives that will be most useful. It is important to keep in mind, however, that courses can change from year to year, especially if the course is being taught by a different instructor. It is the student’s responsibility to investigate the course’s content and requirements by reviewing the course description and syllabus before enrolling. Course descriptions and syllabi are often available on the web page of the program offering the course, or on the course descriptions page of the Registrar’s website.

Course Syllabi

Each course has a syllabus which contains information about all of the assignments and expectations for the course. Course syllabi are available in a few places. The first (and easiest) place to find the syllabus for a course you are already enrolled in is in the course’s Canvas site. 

Some instructors want students to have done some work or preparation before the first class meeting. Therefore, it is a good idea to consult the course syllabus before the first day of class.