Snhu ba general studies concentrations

Ross discussion:

I attended Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) for my undergraduate program. My program was a bachelor’s in liberal arts: General Studies. The program outcomes are located at https://www.snhu.edu/online-degrees/bachelors/ba-in-general-studies.

A general studies degree allowed me to bring over credits that I had earned earlier in life, while allowing me to focus on my area of concentration. The program outcomes included learning how to apply critical thinking into the areas of study that were of interest. It provided a broad base of courses that I was able to customize to my needs ("General Degree," 2019).

Southern New Hampshire University’s mission, vision and goals are as follows “SNHU transforms the lives of learners. Our success is defined by our learners’ success. By relentlessly challenging the status quo and providing the best support in higher education, SNHU expands access to education by creating high-quality, affordable, and innovative pathways to meet the unique needs of each and every learner” ("About Us," 2019, para. 2). The SNHU vision states, “Make the world a better and more just place through our work, one learner at a time” ("SNHU Strategic Plan," n.d., p. 9, para.2). Core values are key to the university, exude passion, challenge the status quo, do the right thing every time, exhibit grit and embrace diversity.

The mission and vision and core values can be found at: https://snhu-externalaffairs.app.box.com/s/7k526w442reszti50fdtceyrre2f1il8.

In my experience the university met not only the program outcomes, but it also met it’s mission, vision and core values in my undergraduate program. I was supported by the university, challenged and was offered educational opportunities that were greater than the status quo found at other institutions. The staff and instructors were passionate about the material being taught and always treated me with the utmost respect and when I had concerns or issues with grading or materials they always sought to offer me options that were right for me and my learning disabilities.

Program assessment begins with a clear explanation of the mission, vision, gals and desired learning outcomes of the program. Statements should include what the graduates of the program should know, do and value by the time they complete their studies. The assessment of learning outcomes will help to identify if the program is accomplishing what has benn set to provide and allow for continuous improvement of the program (Banta & Palomba, 2015).

Mark Discussion:

I attended Granite State College for my undergraduate degree in Human Resources Management. The program has since changed the title to Human Resource Administration. As can be seen in many individual program’s outcomes, there is a general failure to tie back to the overall organization’s mission, vision and goals.

Granite State College’s mission and vision can be found at https://www.granite.edu/about/mission/ . From there follow the link to the 2016-2019 Strategic Plan - https://www.granite.edu/wp-content/uploads/file_uploads/GSC-Strategic-Plan-2016-2019.pdf - to view the institution’s goals.

The outcomes for the B.S. in Human Resource Administration can be found athttps://www.granite.edu/degree-programs/bachelors-degrees/human-resource-administration/

When department heads write goals for their programs, they do so with all good intentions of letting students know what to expect from their learning experience within the department but sometimes approach it with a myopic view that doesn’t consider how that reinforces the institution as a whole. Whether it is the development of program outcomes or missions visions and goals, communication between instructors, students, administrators and even community members and employers that are served by graduating students should all play a part. In the case of Granite State College, a review should be done, and changes made to ensure this happens.

References:

Granite State College (n.d.) Mission. Retrieved August, 2019 fromhttps://www.granite.edu/about/mission/

Granite State College (n.d.) Strategic Plan 2016-2019. Retrieved August, 2019 fromhttps://www.granite.edu/wp-content/uploads/file_uploads/GSC-Strategic-Plan-2016-2019.pdf