Hi everyone,
I’ve finalized my list of schools for graduate study. I researched all the schools state-wide that contained my program (health education) and I came up with the following’
The College at Brockport near Rochester, NY
The Sage Colleges (Esteves School of Education) in Troy,NY
New Jersey City University
Hofstra in Long Island NY
Salem State in MA
Springfield College in MA
Bridgewater State University in MA
I wanted a school with a good reputation. I am not sure of the reputation of these schools. I did some research and they seem decent. I looked into Boston University and Columbia University but I don’t like their programs.
Can you please give me any input you have on any of these schools?
I live in Massachusetts. The program that I like the most is at Springfield college however, Springfield College is a private school which will be costly for me (I already have student loans) and I wanted to also study Spanish and they do not offer that as a major there. Is it possible to take on a Masters and a Bachelors at the same time? I would like a Bachelors in Spanish.
Also,I don’t really want to be in rural area. I’ve spent about 3 years in a rural area for undergrad. I want a more city environment. In addition, I am looking to settle wherever I move to so I need a good place for kids.
If you are already an MA resident, then I think you should choose one of the two public MA universities on your list. None of the schools you listed are particularly well-known or prestigious for health education, so they are about on par with each other (Hofstra and SUNY Brockport might have a slight overall edge, but not necessarily in health/health education). Given that, you should keep your costs low.
What didn’t you like about BU and Columbia’s programs? Both of those universities are very costly anyway, but they are very well-known and well respected in the areas of public health and education, so they would be very good choices.
I’m confused about you asking about the bachelor’s. It sounds like you already went to undergrad (3 years in a rural area for undergrad). and that you are looking for an MA in health education. Why would you want a bachelor’s in Spanish? If you are trying to go for an MA in health ed, then no, it is not possible to earn a BA in Spanish at the same time.
Hi Juillet,
Thank you for answering.
I want to become fluent in Spanish as well as earn my masters and so I was wondering whether I could simultaneously earn both a bachelors and masters. I will have my B.S. in public health and for my next step I want to work on a masters in health education. I felt that being fluent in a second language would increase my chances of employment.
What I didn’t like about B.U. and Columbia’s program is that they both seemed to lack courses in health (sexuality, A&P, nutrition, mental health, violence etc…) but I am guessing that it is expected for students to come in with those prerequisites already filled. I didn’t have any of those courses during my undergrad and so I am worried that I will be under prepared when it comes time to teach. Maybe I just have this urge to move out of state that I am overlooking B.U.'s program.
B.U. and Columbia are also pretty costly and I don’t want to go further into debt but I do want a school with a good name and an equally good program. Springfield college is pretty costly too and so I don’t want to go into debt for a school that doesn’t have that great of a reputation. Maybe I will look back into B.U.'s program. What I like about Columbia is that most of the program you can complete online.
I guess a big factor in making my decision would be on where it is I want to teach. I would like to teach in the inner city ideally on the east coast or possibly even the west coast.
I don’t know Springfield’s reputation, but I can say that the other two you listed from MA are something I might call a perfectly fine liberal arts college. By that I mean that if all you need is a degree from a brick and mortar or maybe some specialty course (eg ESL), there’s nothing wrong with them. They aren’t great, but they’re also not the University of Phoenix. Unless they just happened to have well known, highly ranked graduate programs in your field, I would not get a graduate degree there unless it was paid for by an employer and got you a raise. More than that, I would absolutely NOT pay sticker price for any of these programs. That’s not even a good idea at a place like Harvard, much less at an unknown college. If someone offers you a full ride AND a stipend, then it’s worth considering, but that’s about it.