The University of Wisconsin Madison appears in our ranking of the Top 20 Most Affordable Accelerated Master’s in Educational Psychology Online.
The University of Wisconsin system as a whole offers a number of master’s degree programs for students online, but some of those programs are only available from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Most of these programs are in engineering or science such as the online Master of Science (MS) in Cartography and Geographic Information Systems. It looks at the ways in which professionals use satellites and GPS to determine coordinates and chart locations around the world. A civil and environmental engineering program is also available online, which includes some offline work.
Students in the MS in Clinical Nutrition program take 30 credit hours and have the choice between finishing the program in one or two years. Some of the program’s required courses include Human Energy Metabolism, Advanced Nutrition Assessment, and Advanced Community Nutrition. Students also take clinical nutrition courses to learn about working with children and other special groups and how to design nutrition plans for those individuals. Some of the classes that clinical nutrition majors take to prepare them for their future careers, include Professional Ethics, Managing Digital Information, and Professional Writing. Those who need more field experience can do practicums through the university too.
The only educational psychology program available online from this system is the University of Wisconsin-Madison program. This is a professional education program that is only open to licensed teachers and other professionals. It includes an eight-week on-campus session in the summer, but all other classes are on the web. Those courses include Engaging with Education Research, Technology Integration for Teaching and Learning, Current Issues in Educational Psychology, and Teaching Diverse Learners. Other programs designed for online graduate students include those in physician assistant studies, mechanical engineering, library and information studies, and general engineering.
About the University of Wisconsin Madison
The University of Wisconsin Madison is the flagship branch of the University of Wisconsin system. Established in 1848, it is both the state’s oldest university and the oldest campus in the system. Known as the University of the Territory of Wisconsin when first founded, it would offer classes in local buildings before finally building a campus on 50 acres of land in the heart of Madison. One of its early leaders created the Wisconsin Idea, which is a concept still used by the university that helps it reach students from other states and around the world. Called the University of Wisconsin for many years, it adopted the University of Wisconsin Madison name after other campuses opened in Milwaukee and other cities. In addition to its full name, the university now uses other nicknames, including UW, UW Madison, Madison, and Wisconsin.
According to U.S. News and World Report, Madison is now the 49th best college in America and the 28th best university in the world. It also ranks more than 30 of the university’s degree programs among the country’s best, including those in engineering and library and information studies. UW also ranks on lists of the nation’s colleges with the best research opportunities and community service programs. It is now part of the Big 10 Alliance, which includes other campuses in the US and has an enrollment of more than 40,000 students.
University of Wisconsin Madison Accreditation Details
The online graduate programs offered by UW have the same regional accreditation that the on-campus programs do. That accreditation is what lets Madison grant financial aid to students who use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and also what lets it accept credits after evaluating a student’s transcript. This accreditation is from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Other programs with accreditation at UW include those in pharmacy education, psychology, occupational therapy, and medical education.
University of Wisconsin Madison Application Requirements
UW requires that all online graduate students meet the general admissions requirements of its graduate schools. Those requirements include having a bachelor’s degree from a college or university with institutional accreditation and a grade point average of 3.0 or higher. Students must also submit all documents and an application by the date set by a program or department. This deadline can range from the middle of the summer for the fall semester to the beginning of May for the summer semester. The educational psychology program only allows new students to start in the summer and has a final deadline of May first, though it recommends that students apply prior to that date.
Most programs ask for two years of professional experience too. The educational psychology program looks for students with experience in a K-12 setting, while the engineering programs look for experience in engineering fields. Online graduate students can have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 or the same GPA over the last two years of classes or the last 60 credit hours of work attempted. Students can submit their transcripts online with an email attachment or through the mail. They can submit unofficial transcripts before they graduate and official transcripts before starting the program.
Tuition and Financial Aid
Graduate students can save money at Madison before the university’s online programs charge a flat rate based on how many classes a student takes and does not charge any extra fees. All students pay $800 per credit hour, which brings the cost of their courses up to $2,400 per class. Some courses may be worth more credits and cost more though. Most of the funding available from the university only goes to traditional students, including assistantships and fellowships. Those programs require that students do work for Madison on the campus.
With the FAFSA, students can see if they qualify for direct unsubsidized loans. The government allows grad students to borrow just over $20,000 a year but will only let students borrow a set amount at one time. If a student borrowed more money as an undergrad, he or she may not qualify for as many loans in grad school. PLUS loans also come from the government but only go to students with a good credit score and strong credit history. Some students may find that they need to apply with a co-signer. They can also use a co-signer when applying for alternative loans. The Office of Student Financial Aid at the University of Wisconsin Madison can help students get financial aid before they enroll in the university’s online graduate programs.
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