Master's difficult/expensive to get?

[cookderosa]

OH! English is one of the fields offered at Western New Mexico University. More than one former member here has earned degrees there. In a nutshell, you pick 2 concentrations (each 18 credits) in anything they offer. It's also super affordable.

http://interdisciplinary.wnmu.edu/graduate/masters/

18 credit concentrations are the magic number because having a masters with 18 in a field is a minimum college teaching qualification in all 50 states, so in theory, you'd be qualified to teach at a community college in both of your concentrations.

Choose 2:
Bilingual Education
Business
Criminal Justice
Education
Educational Leadership
English
History
Instructional Technology & Design
Management Information Systems
Political Science
Psychology
Reading Education
Special Education
Writing

All of the New Mexico colleges have this really strange tuition policy surrounding 6 credits. I don't know why they do it, but it must be a state-wide thing since they all do this. I copied/pasted below, but in essence, as long as you take 6 credits- it's one cost, if you try to take 9, they sandbag you.
Also, summer sessions are CHEAPER than full semesters, the exact opposite of what many colleges do. If you enrolled in 2 classes per term year round, you're looking at under $6000 per year.

6 credits summer = $1498
6 credits fall/spring= $2224
9 credits summer = $2248
9 credits fall/spring= $5527

[dfrecore]

ENMU also has that low rate for out-of-state online tuition, where if you take 6cr or fewer, you only pay $286.25/cr. So for 6cr, it's only $1717.50 per semester.

They have an English degree, as well as a Communications degree. I'm not certain if they allow the same type of thing as WNMU, where you choose 2 concentrations.

[Kev]

Thanks for the info and degrees. I'm thinking things over, and... 

Compared to undergraduate degrees, where credits can be taken somewhere else and transferred (such as from Study.com, etc.) rather than taking courses directly from the university, and therefore making the cost of the degree much lower, master's degrees aren't the same at all—you can't really transfer from Study.com and others, but need to take all credits from the university itself? Meaning you need to pay a lot more and study a lot more as well?

So, would it be accurate to say that master's degrees, at the lowest, cost around $9000 ($250/credit)?

[RANSOMSOUL]

Meaning you need to pay a lot more and study a lot more as well?

So, would it be accurate to say that master's degrees, at the lowest, cost around $9000 ($250/credit)?

A Master degree is more challenging by design - advance degree/master of the subject. Transfer options are very limited outside of continuing education courses and then you are still restricted by the number of outside credits a school will accept. Term-based schools like Hodges University, Patten University & Western Governors University are significantly cheaper if you can finish in 4 - 12 months.

[dfrecore]

Thanks for the info and degrees. I'm thinking things over, and... 

Compared to undergraduate degrees, where credits can be taken somewhere else and transferred (such as from Study.com, etc.) rather than taking courses directly from the university, and therefore making the cost of the degree much lower, master's degrees aren't the same at all—you can't really transfer from Study.com and others, but need to take all credits from the university itself? Meaning you need to pay a lot more and study a lot more as well?

So, would it be accurate to say that master's degrees, at the lowest, cost around $9000 ($250/credit)?

I would say that if you can find one for less than $10k, it's a good find (not counting competency-based schools, none of which have the degree you want anyway).

[RANSOMSOUL]

WGU & Hodges were mentioned because the OP already expressed thinking outside of the box with interest in the writing & communication degree at ENCU. WGU has a MA in Teaching English & Hodges has a MA in Visual Communications - we could think of these as a stretch or a creative way to secure a master degree at a great value and fast. Spend the extra time crafting how you navigate your resume (your story).

[Kev]

Meaning you need to pay a lot more and study a lot more as well?

So, would it be accurate to say that master's degrees, at the lowest, cost around $9000 ($250/credit)?

A Master degree is more challenging by design - advance degree/master of the subject. Transfer options are very limited outside of continuing education courses and then you are still restricted by the number of outside credits a school will accept. Term-based schools like Hodges University, Patten University & Western Governors University are significantly cheaper if you can finish in 4 - 12 months.

To complete a master's (Teaching, English) at Western Governors University in 6 months, how many hours per day would that represent (rough estimate)?

[sanantone]

Meaning you need to pay a lot more and study a lot more as well?

So, would it be accurate to say that master's degrees, at the lowest, cost around $9000 ($250/credit)?

A Master degree is more challenging by design - advance degree/master of the subject. Transfer options are very limited outside of continuing education courses and then you are still restricted by the number of outside credits a school will accept. Term-based schools like Hodges University, Patten University & Western Governors University are significantly cheaper if you can finish in 4 - 12 months.

To complete a master's (Teaching, English) at Western Governors University in 6 months, how many hours per day would that represent (rough estimate)?

It would be extremely hard to do in 6 months. WGU has two types of education programs: for certified teachers and for those looking to become certified. If aren't already certified, you will be required to do student teaching for a semester.

[cookderosa]

Thanks for the info and degrees. I'm thinking things over, and... 

Compared to undergraduate degrees, where credits can be taken somewhere else and transferred (such as from Study.com, etc.) rather than taking courses directly from the university, and therefore making the cost of the degree much lower, master's degrees aren't the same at all—you can't really transfer from Study.com and others, but need to take all credits from the university itself? Meaning you need to pay a lot more and study a lot more as well?

So, would it be accurate to say that master's degrees, at the lowest, cost around $9000 ($250/credit)?

$250/credit is for sure the lowest of the low-cost options. I think that the reason for this is based on military tuition assistance / GI Bill programs- they are all willing to pay $250/credit, so to go lower is the college leaving free money on the table.

Average public graduate credit is closer to $550/credit whereas private schools are just over $1100/credit.

Transfer - yes, you're right, you really will be earning most if not all of your credit in house with the school, so for that reason, you should look at the classes that make up the degree. Master's degrees are only 10-12 classes, but if they sound boring or you don't have a lot of options, that can be 10-12 classes too many. (example, I couldn't imagine taking even ONE business class - yuck)

Also, look at the rotation of classes. When I did my master's, there was one class I really wanted to take, but it was only offered every other year. So, I had to either wait to enroll, or stay an extra semester- the timing was off by 1 term. In the end, I opted not to take the class, but I still think about "going back" and just taking it at some point in the future. (I got permission in writing before I graduated lol)

Oh, I forgot to add- be SURE you find out the exit requirement before signing up. Almost every graduate program makes you "do something" to get out. It might be writing a paper (thesis), a project, a capstone class, conducting research, etc. My thesis included original research, whereas my husband's MBA exit requirement is simply a class. Knowing what I know now, I probably would NOT sign up for another situation where I had to conduct research, but that's just me. YMMV

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I think this list only shows in-state tuition rates, but some public schools have one rate for online programs

https://www.bestmastersdegrees.com/top/a...ish-degree

Thanks for that. I found an awesome online writing and communications master's at East Carolina University (#3 cheapest university in the list), but sadly the tuition is $230/credit for North Carolina residents and $900/credit for non-residents (for an online degree).

Other than moving there, I don't think there is a way to go around the $900/credit tuition?

North Carolina participates in a residency verification program - there's no way around it. https://ncresidency.cfnc.org/residencyInfo/

[rlw74]

Master's courses by nature are time consuming. It's nothing like taking a study.com course. Expect to read and write a lot. I imagine an English degree will be even more so. But if you love the content it should be stimulating instead of a chore. The number of study hours will probably depend on how much background knowledge you have, how fast you can read/write, how much interest you have in the topic, etc. For example, every one of my classes requires two big papers - either research or essay. Most require at least 10 scholarly sources so it means being widely read. If you read and write fast you won't find this a problem. Something competency based might allow you to move at a faster pace whereas a school with set terms will keep you moving along at a steady pace and give you set deadlines. I highly recommend finding the right degree. Otherwise I can see it being pure drudgery. Pay extra and take more time if that is what it takes. Otherwise you'll be pretty miserable. Check box degrees at undergrad level are somewhat painless. For a master's, totally different.