Agricultural and Extension Education

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The Agricultural and Extension Education Program in the School of Human Sciences offers graduate courses leading to the following degrees:

Master of Agriculture with a concentration in Agricultural and Extension Education

Master of Science in Agricultural and Extension Education with concentrations in:

• Community and Extension Education
• Agriculture Teacher Licensure
• Teaching and Learning

Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Sciences with a concentration in Agricultural and Extension Education

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Master of Agriculture (non-thesis, available on campus and online)

The Master of Agriculture degree is a non-thesis advanced degree designed to prepare graduates for careers or professional schools. Students develop a program of study with approval of the student’s graduate committee in accordance with Graduate School policy and course requirements for the concentration.

Students are required to complete 30 hours of coursework as approved by the student’s graduate committee. Some Directed Individual Study courses, numbered at the 7000-level, may be approved to meet 8000-level course requirements. Not more than 6 hours of graduate credit may be earned in Directed Individual Study courses. Students will also complete a scholarly project focused on their career goals and subject area. The student must pass the final defense of a scholarly project and complete an oral comprehensive examination over all coursework completed. This program is offered through MS State Online.

• AELC 8203 – Advanced Communications in Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8243 – Administration and Supervision in Agricultural and Extension Education or AELC 8413 – Methods of Planned Chang
• AELC 8503 – Program Planning and Development or AELC 8513 – Curriculum Development in Agricultural Education
• AELC 8593 – Historical Foundations of AEE
• AELC 8703 – Evaluation of Agricultural and Extension Education Programs
• AELC 7000 – Directed Individual Study (Project)
• Committee Approved Electives

NOTE: Courses may be substituted depending on a student’s area of interest and course availability. Major Professor approval will be required in advance. For thesis option students, at least 9 semester hours of coursework, exclusive of thesis credits, must be at the 8000 level. For non-thesis option students, at least 12 semester hours of coursework, exclusive of creative component credits, must be at the 8000 level. Not more than 6 semester hours of graduate credit may be earned in Directed Individual Study (7000) courses. If the student wishes to share credit hours from a degree program to a subsequent program at the master's level, he or she may be allowed to share up to 12 hours of graduate credit.

Students should be aware of the Graduate School policy on grades and degree completion. A graduate student cannot graduate with 1) a GPA lower than 3.00 for all courses attempted for graduate credit after admission to the degree program, or 2) a grade of D or lower for any courses attempted for graduate credit after admission to the degree program, or 3) a grade of I on their transcript (see the Graduate Catalog).

The following outlines qualifications for admission into the MAg program with a concentration in Agricultural and Extension Education. Pay particular attention to the required documents for admission into an AEE graduate program. 

• GPA 3.00 (on a 4.0 scale)
• GRE - Not require
• CV or Résumé - Required
• Statement of Purpose - Required
• Writing Sample - Not Required
• Letter of Recommendation 3 - At least one from a faculty member/professor within the last two years or most recent employer/supervisor

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Master of Science in Agricultural and Extension Education (thesis and non-thesis)

A minimum of 30 hours of coursework in a planned program of study must be completed for the M.S. degree. A minimum of one-half the total credit hours on the program of study must be at the 8000 level. Students wishing to complete a thesis must take at least 6 credit hours of research/thesis (6 of these credit hours substitute for coursework hours) and an approved statistics course.

A written or oral final comprehensive examination is required for the student in the non-thesis option. A student in the thesis option must pass a final thesis defense and submit the thesis.

Community and Extension Education concentration

• AELC 8203 – Advanced Communications in Agricultural and Extension Education 3
• AELC 8203 – Advanced Communications in Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8243 – Administration and Supervision in Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8503 – Program Planning and Development
• AELC 8703 – Evaluation of Agricultural and Extension Education Programs
• AELC 8803 – Applying Research Methods to Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8853 – Statistics for the Social and Life Sciences in Agriculture
• AELC 8000 – Research/Thesis (thesis option) OR AELC 8100 Creative Component Project (non-thesis option)
• Electives (6 hours)

Agriculture Teacher Licensure concentration

• AELC 6403 – Development of Youth Programs
• AELC 6613 – Teaching Agricultural Mechanics
• AELC 6723 – Pedagogy of Agriscience Programs
• AELC 6873 – Professional Seminar in Agricultural Education
• AELC 8403 – Directing Learning Experiences in Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8603 – Teaching Internship in AEE I
• AELC 8613 – Teaching Internship in AEE II
• AELC 8693 – Philosophical Foundations of Agricultural and Extension Education
• EDX 8173 – Special Education in the Regular Classroom
• AELC 8000 Research/Thesis (thesis option) OR AELC 8100 Creative Component Project (non-thesis option)

Teaching and Learning concentration

• AELC 8203 – Advanced Communications in Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8503 – Program Planning and Development
• AELC 8703 – Evaluation of Agricultural and Extension Education Programs
• AELC 8803 – Applying Research Methods to Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8853 – Statistics for the Social and Life Sciences in Agriculture
• AELC or Education electives (6 hours)
• Agriculture Subject Area electives (6 hours)
• AELC 8000 – Research/Thesis (thesis option) OR AELC 8100 Creative Component Project (non-thesis option)

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Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Sciences with a concentration in Agricultural and Extension Education

The minimum requirement for the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree is the completion of 90 semester hours of graduate credit on an approved program of study above the bachelor’s degree. Required courses for the Ph.D. include 30–36 hours of graduate credit in Agricultural and Extension Education; 16 graduate credits in statistics, research, and evaluation; 12–18 graduate credits in a minor or supporting area, 0–12 graduate elective credits; and 20 credit hours of dissertation research. Students must pass a written and an oral comprehensive examination in both the major and minor/supporting area.

To be eligible for the preliminary/comprehensive examination, a graduate student must have a 3.00 GPA on all graduate courses taken after admission to the degree program. Students must also pass the final dissertation examination. The student’s graduate committee supervises the dissertation and examinations.

Doctor of Philosophy curriculum

• AELC 8413 – Methods of Planned Change
• AELC 8693 – Philosophical Foundations of Agricultural and Extension Education
• COGNATE (Communications, Extension, Teaching/Learning, or Youth Development) or Minor in appropriate department, or disciplines (12 hours)
• RESEARCH, EVALUATION, AND STATISTICS
• AELC 8703 – Evaluation of Agricultural and Extension Education Programs
• AELC 8803 – Applying Research Methods to Agricultural and Extension Education
• AELC 8833 – Instrument and Data Collection Procedures in Social Science Research
• AELC 8853 – Statistics for the Social and Life Sciences in Agriculture
• EPY 9453 – Introduction to Qualitative Research
• CHOOSE QUANTITATIVE SERIES OR QUALITATIVE SERIES
• Quantitative Series to include AELC 9103 (Applied Multivariate Analysis in Agricultural Science) or EPY 9213 (Multivariate Analysis) and AELC 9583 (Analysis of Data in AEE)
• Qualitative Series to include EDF 9463 (Qualitative Data Collection) and EDF 9473 (Qualitative Data Analysis)
• AELC 9000 Research/Dissertation

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Health Promotion Emphasis

Ph.D. students in Agricultural and Extension Education may select an emphasis in health promotion by taking courses in the Food Science, Nutrition, and Health Promotion Department's Health Promotion curriculum. These courses must be approved by the Health Promotion graduate coordinator. This program is designed to equip students for careers as public health educators, health promotion specialists, and health scientists. Students in this emphasis may sit for the Certified Health Education Specialist exam offered by the National Commission on Health Education Credentialing when they have successfully completed at least 25 hours in the Health Promotion area.