Description and Rationale
The Program of Graduate Studies (PGS) defines the courses and hours that an M.Ed. student in Special Education will enrol in and complete to meet the program requirements for graduation for each of the concentrations in the Special Education (SPED) Area of the Educational and Counselling Psychology and Special Education (ECPS) Department in the Faculty of Education at the University of British Columbia. The courses include those required by the concentration, as well as elective courses that are determined in consultation with the graduate student’s Program Advisor.
A completed PGS serves several purposes. The PGS: (a) provides guidance and predictability to students in regard to the courses they will enrol in each term during their graduate study; (b) helps to ensure that students enrol in and complete all of the courses required within their disciplinary concentration; (c) allows for customization of the student’s program of studies based on their professional interests and the elective hours that are available within their concentration area; (d) allows for adjustment to elective courses based on the student’s changing interests during their graduate studies or new course opportunities during their graduate studies; and (e) provides a formal document delivered by the ECPS Department to the Faculty of Graduate and Post-Graduate Studies (G+PS) that provides evidence necessary for G+PS to approve the student for graduation with an Masters of Education Degree in Special Education. Importantly, the process of completing one’s PGS and making changes in one’s PGS in consultation with one’s Program Advisor also provides a formal context for establishing an ongoing, supportive relationship between the graduate student and their Program Advisor. For all of these reasons, the establishment of a set of policies and procedures for the completion and ongoing maintenance of students’ PGS has institutional value.
Policies and Procedures
Any policy and procedure document necessarily will benefit from flexibility in regard to adherence to any established policies and procedures, based on the professional judgement of a student’s Program Advisor and each graduate student’s individual circumstances. For this reason, it is understood that the policies and procedures described below allow for adjustment and customization to both the Program Advisor and graduate student.
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Within each SPED area concentration, prior or early in the student’s first term, their Program Advisor will schedule an advisement meeting. For SPED concentrations in which students begin their program of study in September (Winter 1 term), the advisement meeting will occur in the late spring or early summer before the Winter 1 term begins in September. For SPED concentrations in which students begin their program of study in July (Summer 2 Term,) the advisement meeting will occur during the first week or two of the Summer 2 term. The first advisement meeting with newly admitted students may be conducted with a group of students or individually with students. During this meeting, students will receive an orientation to the concentration that includes a review of course requirements, course electives, the completion of the PGS, the generation of M.Ed. goals, and the relationship between coursework and M.Ed. goals. For students whose concentration includes the EPSE 590 Graduating Seminar, the Program Advisor also will inform students of the relationship between their M.Ed. goals and EPSE 590 (i.e., creating an e-portfolio and conducting a public presentation on a topic related to their M.Ed. goals). Lastly, students will be advised as to what courses to enroll in for Winter 1 term and Winter 2 term during their first year of graduate study.
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In consultation with their Program Advisor, students’ will complete their PGS and generate 2-3 professional goals that they aim to work on during their graduate studies. They will be informed that they can work on these goals through course work and through opportunities that their paraprofessional or professional employment may provide. The PGS and students’ professional goal statements will be completed by the end of their first term at UBC. To facilitate this timeline, foster community among students and faculty, and clarify procedures, the SPED Area Coordinator will organize and host an initial meeting in September of each year that SPED faculty and students are required to attend. The Coordinator of EPSE 590, SPED Area Coordinator, and Faculty who instruct EPSE 590 will collaborate to provide a brief overview of the SPED graduate concentrations and the development of professional goals for their program in consultation with their Program Advisor. Once completed, their Program Advisor will submit students’ PGS and professional goals to the Graduate Program Assistant. The Graduate Program Assistant then will submit the document to the ECPS Graduate Advisor for their signed approval. Exceptions to this standard of practice include: (a) students who take a deferral of the start of their program of studies due to personal reasons; and (b) students who need more time to understand the elective course offerings available, and to determine their professional interests and goals in relation to elective course offerings.
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Graduate students who have completed their PGS and M.Ed. goals, and who may wish to make changes in either, will inform their Program Advisor and seek their advisement and assent prior to making these changes; that is, they will not make changes to their PGS on their own but do so after consulting with and gaining the assent of their Program Advisor. The Program Advisor will then make the changes to the student’s PGS, written in the course add/drop section at the bottom of the form, and submit the updated PGS to the Graduate Program Assistant for final approval by the ECPS Graduate Advisor.
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When students complete their Annual Progress Report (APR), and submit it to their Program Advisor, the Program Advisor will: (a) evaluate the extent to which students are on-track for completing their program of graduate studies; (b) discuss with students their progress on M.Ed. program goals; and (c) advise, as may be helpful, to ensure that students are actively seeking opportunities to work on their program goals within their coursework and relevant employment. For students who will enroll in EPSE 590, the Program Advisor will remind students of the relationship between their M.Ed. goals and the assignments within the EPSE 590 graduating seminar.
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When a SPED faculty member goes on sabbatical leave or partial or full medical or personal leave, the following steps will be taken to ensure that the students for whom the faculty member serves as Program Advisor will receive timely and ongoing advisement and support. Depending on the circumstances of the leave, this will be done in the following ways:
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Prior to a SPED faculty member going on a planned leave of absence (e.g., sabbatical leave; maternity leave), the faculty member, in dialogue and coordination with other SPED faculty, will proactively identify a faculty member who agrees to serve as interim Program Advisor for the students who are the advisees of the faculty member planning to go on leave.
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When a SPED faculty member goes on an unplanned, sudden leave of absence due to individual circumstances (e.g., medical leave, personal leave), other SPED faculty will, as soon as possible, identify a faculty member who will serve as interim Program Advisor for the students who are advisees of the faculty member who has gone on sudden leave of absence.
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When two or more faculty members go on leave, SPED faculty will share responsibility in providing advisement to the on-leave faculty member’s students by agreeing to take on advisement of multiple students with assignment of students to interim faculty advisors that is equitable. This will be done proactively for planned leave, or as soon as possible for unplanned leaves of two or more faculty.
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A central task for interim Program Advisors is to ensure that students’ PGS and, where relevant, M.Ed. goals, are completed and added to the students’ file, and that the students’ have been given guidance on the pursuit of their M.Ed. goals during their graduate studies.
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*To download the Special Education Area Policy and Procedure for Completing Program of Graduate Studies (PGS) and M.Ed. Professional Goals document, please click here.