Project TIEM.Online: Master of Arts

School of Professional and Continuing Studies

Northeastern University

Program Description and Objectives
Northeastern University and Project TIEM.Online are excited to announce a Master's Degree Program for interpreting educators. The program offers a full degree program, with most courses being offered online via the World Wide Web. For updated information about this program, please visit the School of Professional and Continuing Studies Graduate Programs Information Page .

The outcomes-based curriculum includes 5 domains:

1) Teaching & Learning,

2) Instructional Design,

3) Assessment and Evaluation,

4) Research, and

5) Mentoring.

The goal of the curriculum is to provide learning opportunities for current and future interpreting educators that combine in-depth knowledge of post secondary teaching practices, adult learning, and the field of interpreter education with learning-centered, reflective teaching approaches. This knowledge is put into practice through learning-centered, collaborative, and problem-based approaches designed to encourage reflective self-assessment of teaching practices. In addition, the courses are designed to model the practices that educators will be learning, practicing, and reflecting upon during their studies.

A further goal of this curriculum and delivery approach is to impact the programs, classrooms, and professional development activities in which these educators practice, thereby resulting in professional interpreters who themselves value and practice learning-centered activities in their own work and professional development.

The MIP courses have been designed to build on faculty preparation core courses developed by the School of Professional and Continuing Studies (SPCS). The program can be completed over a 2 year period of full-time study; part-time students will also be able to enroll, completing the program at a slower pace. Students will take the core courses offered by Northeastern University's cross-disciplinary core program, and will take, either concurrently or sequentially, the field-specific courses related to teaching interpreting. A portion of this program will result in students receiving a certificate of teaching at the post-secondary level.

Additional aspects of the Master of Arts: Interpreting Pedagogy program that make it unique include:

Expert participation - As an online program, experts in the field will be able to participate as consultants and faculty, regardless of their geographic location.
Effective professional networking--Students will have contact with a wide variety of peers from different areas, settings, and interests from around the country.
Competency-based curriculum - the curriculum has been developed through research and input from content and curriculum experts as well as from a wide spectrum of stakeholders.
Reflective learning - a component of all courses is the application of concepts to teaching design, practice, and assessment.
Action Research - Students will experience the scholarship of teaching and learning that is essential for reflective practice.

This degree program is designed to serve a wide-spread audience of working professionals and will be primarily offered at a distance using web-based courses. Optional study institutes and other face-to-face opportunities will be available at different times throughout the program.

This MIP degree is designed as a primarily distance-based program because prospective students are found in small pockets across the US, many of whom are unable to leave family and community to attend a degree program held in a single city. Moreover, this is a group of highly motivated, experienced practitioners of interpreting, characteristics that predict success in distance programs. The online design and approach is currently in use in another program developed by Project TIEM.Online, the Master Mentor Program. The online format has proven to be effective at serving the Master Mentor Program. Optional on-site opportunities will be available during the coursework for the MA degree.

Progress/Time to Completion
Operating during the three regular quarters of the academic year--fall, winter, and spring--the program can be completed by someone taking two courses per quarter in two years. In the first year the student would complete most of the common core and begin courses in teaching interpreting. In the second year the student would complete the core and MIP courses. The Research/Capstone Portfolio will begin during the second year of courses, and can be completed concurrently with, or after Spring semester of Year 2. A student proceeding at a rate of one course per quarter could finish in three-four years, if she were able to challenge any courses with demonstrated previous experience or if the core courses are offered during summer sessions. As is the case with all other Northeastern University master's programs, the MLA must be completed in seven years or less.

Tuition and Financial Aid
Tuition for the courses is determined by the School of Professional and Continuing Studies. For updated information regarding the application process and tuition, please see the SPCS Application Information Page.

Financial aid may be available through Northeastern University resources; more information is available online at the SPCS Funding Information Page.

Continue on to read about the Anticipated Admissions Process and the Proposed Curriculum...