Graduate education represents mastery of an academic discipline.
As distinct from undergraduate education, graduate education
provides advanced knowledge in a field of study that is
characterized by specialized training in the discipline’s
theory, research methodology, and critical analysis.
Specialization, however, is not narrow or limited. Specialized
training means concentrated learning in the depth and breadth of
the discipline. Since graduate education is concentrated,
learning is more self-directed, and involves more individualized
instruction and mentoring than does learning for a baccalaureate
degree. A master’s degree provides a student with the skills
necessary to generate new knowledge and to apply existing
knowledge. It also provides the student with the professional
ethics and values of the discipline. Master’s degrees may have a
variety of orientations or goals. Some degree programs stress
the traditional orientation of emphasizing theory and basic
research. Other programs are designed to meet p