SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL

 

TROY – The Alabama Commission on Higher Education today gave its approval to three new master’s degrees at Troy University.

 

“We are very pleased the Alabama Commission on Higher Education approved three new and exciting graduate programs for Troy University. We look forward to initiating the MS in Biomedical Sciences, Master of Social Sciences and Master of Arts in History programs,” said Dr. Dianne Barron, Associate Provost and Dean of the Graduate School.

 

The Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences degree becomes Alabama’s only such master’s-level program and is aimed at preparing students for future entry into medical and other health sciences professional schools. The program will be offered on the Troy Campus, and its Anatomical Sciences course will be taught off-site at the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine in Dothan.

 

The University’s first graduate-level degree in history also received the go-ahead. The Master of Arts in History is a 36 semester-hour program taught online and on the Troy Campus. The new program offers two fields of study: American history and European history. Additionally, students will have an option to pursue a thesis or a non-thesis track.

 

The Master of Social Science degree will be the only such degree offered by a state university, and aims to prepare students for a dynamic social sciences career field and provide them a basis for both research in the social sciences and advanced graduate study.

 

All of the new programs are scheduled to be implemented by August 2014.

 

The Commission also approved the Graduate Certificate in Health Practice Management. This program consists of 12-semester hours of courses designed to provide students with business knowledge and skills to manage a contemporary health care practice or clinic addressing health care economics, financial management, reimbursement for services, law and health care policy, business case analysis, database management, and small business practice management.