Why choose an accelerated option?
It shortens the time to earn your degrees. Earn graduate credit that you can apply to your bachelor's degree.
Save time and money. Finish with two degrees.
It shortens the time to earn your degrees. Earn graduate credit that you can apply to your bachelor's degree.
Save time and money. Finish with two degrees.
If you meet the admission requirements listed below, you can start earning graduate credit in your junior or senior year.
Work with your advisor or our department to complete a mixed credit form.
Up to 12 hours of graduate credit will count toward your bachelor’s degree.
Elizabeth King, Program Director
Hill Hall, Room 305; Phone 417-836-6961
EKing@MissouriState.edu
The graduate program in Early Childhood and Family Development is designed for individuals who work with, or who are interested in working with, young children and/or families. The three pillars (Ethical Leadership, Cultural Competence, and Community Engagement) of the Missouri State Public Affairs Mission are an integral part of this degree throughout required courses, elective offerings and opportunities provided by program faculty, the college and the university. This degree is appropriate for a large number of persons working with children and families in a variety of settings. In addition to a core of required courses, students will choose electives that best meet their professional needs. This flexibility allows students to develop a program of study to meet their needs. Although it is not a certification program, some of the courses may be able to be taken for certification credit. This will be done individually for each student. The program has a core set of courses that provide a strong early childhood and child development background. There are also a wide variety of electives that can be taken to round out the degree according to the individual needs of the student.
Admission requires the following minimum criteria:
Courses may count only once in meeting the 32-hour program course requirement.
Course code | Course title | Credit hours |
---|---|---|
CFD 701 | Orientation to Early Childhood and Family Development | 1 hr |
CFD 750 | Advanced Human Development Studies | 3 hrs |
ECE 725 | Inquiry in Early Childhood and Family Development | 3 hrs |
CFD 761 or ECE 726 |
Advanced Family Studies or Programming and Policy Issues for Early Childhood Settings |
3 hrs or 3 hrs |
ECE 727 | Children and Families in a Diverse Society | 3 hrs |
CFD 765 | Research Methodology in Early Education, Child Development, and Family Studies | 3 hrs |
ECE 771 | Proposal Development | 4 hrs |
ECE 762 | Seminar in Early Childhood and Family Development | 3 hrs |
Courses may be selected with the recommendation and approval of student’s advisor. These courses can include a variety of classes from our program and related programs. Below are examples of some course electives, however, other course options are available in consultation with your advisor.
Course code | Course title | Credit hours |
---|---|---|
ECE 601 | Home/School/Community Relationships with Young Children and Their Families | 3 hrs |
ECE 705 | Field Experiences in Early Childhood Education | 1-3 hrs |
ECE 724 | Foundations of Early Childhood Education | 3 hrs |
ECE 728 | The Educational Role of Play | 3 hrs |
ECE 729 | Literacy in Early Childhood | 3 hrs |
ECE 730 | Family Literacy | 3 hrs |
CFD 702 | Community Engagement | 3 hrs |
CFD 632 | Family Advocacy | 3 hrs |
CFD 633 | Principles of Family Life Education | 4 hrs |
CFD 662 | Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect | 3 hrs |
ELE 713 | Advanced Theory and Practice in the Teaching of Communication Arts | 3 hrs |
ELE 720 | Advanced Theory and Practice in Student Assessment and Evaluation | 3 hrs |
PSY 604 | Forensic Child Psychology | 3 hrs |
PSY 629 | Psychological Tests and Measurements | 3 hrs |
LTC 640 | Analysis and Correction of Difficulties in Literacy | 3 hrs |
LTC 700 | Relationship of Language to Literacy and Intellectual Development | 3 hrs |
The Accelerated Masters Program option in Early Childhood and Family Development provides an opportunity for outstanding undergraduate child and family development majors, early childhood education majors, elementary education majors, and psychology majors to begin their graduate course work during their junior or senior year.
If accepted into the accelerated program, up to a maximum of 12 hours of graduate courses taken after admission into the program may be given credit for both undergraduate and graduate programs.
Before enrolling in a course to be counted as both undergraduate and graduate credit and to count the course toward the masters degree, an undergraduate student must be accepted into the accelerated program, and receive prior approval from the graduate program advisor, and complete a "Mixed Credit" form. This form can be obtained from the student's department or the Graduate College. Mixed credit registration must be done in person.