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The mission of the College Student Personnel Administration (CSPA) program is to develop a strong academic community of critical scholar-practitioners to advance social justice in their practice of higher education and student affairs. We seek to develop socially just scholar-practitioners who are highly engaged in the field of higher education and student affairs. Diversity and critical social justice concepts are addressed across the curriculum, specifically in the College Student Development and Diversity in Higher Education courses. The CSPA program is dedicated to addressing the intersectionality of identity, gender expression, gender preference, socioeconomic class, privilege and culture.

Students develop an individualized capstone project to connect theory to practice under the supervision of faculty members. Students will also complete a comprehensive portfolio, driven by their professional growth and development throughout the program.

Degrees Available at SIUE

• Master of Science in Education in College Student Personnel Administration

Program Format

Evening classes are offered for both part-time and full-time students. A mix of hybrid and online courses are offered. However, many classes are on-campus classes.

Program Learning Outcomes

The CSPA program features a distinctive graduate experience, which requires core coursework, a professional portfolio and a final capstone project integrated. The CSPA curriculum is distributed across the four competencies adapted from ACPA/NASPA Professional Competencies: student development; social justice and inclusion; advising and support; and assessment, evaluation, and research with an emphasis on critical social justice.

Students develop an individualized final capstone project focused on contemporary or historical issues in higher education. The final capstone project is supervised by a full-time faculty member.

Career Opportunities

Jobs included in this category are entry-level professionals and other positions in multiple areas in colleges and universities, such as financial aid, housing, career services, intercollegiate athletics, advising, fraternity and sorority life, service learning, international programs, and others. Recent graduates have found employment as academic advisors, residence hall directors, first-year experience coordinators and in student activities at both private and public postsecondary institutions.

Why Choose SIUE

• Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion: The CSPA program fosters a strong commitment to increasing awareness of the diversity of student populations and to social justice. The SIUE campus has been recognized regularly for its commitment to diversity. The University received the 2020 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education. SIUE’s LBGT-Friendly Campus Climate index score is 4.5 out of 5 stars.
  
  
• Location and Affordability: SIUE is located 25 minutes from downtown St. Louis, allowing graduate students to benefit from the boundless opportunities St. Louis offers. In-state tuition is available for all U.S. graduate students.