About the Program Links

Master of Science in Child Development

An advanced degree program for child development career professionals.

Integrating practical and theoretical concepts, this advanced degree program is designed for child development professionals and supervisors who wish to increase their understanding of the physical, intellectual and emotional development of children. Through coursework emphasizing the study of children and the theories and issues of their growth and development, students develop capabilities to assume leadership roles in all phases of the child development field. Students sharing personal and professional ideas and progress is one of the program's strengths.

Upon completion of the M.S. degree in Child Development, students are qualified to teach in a community college.

Admission Requirements

Master's degree candidates must meet the following criteria:

A bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university that includes courses in child development, nutrition and human development, plus the following specific courses:

Child Psychology
Early Childhood Curriculum
Practicum or Fieldwork

A GPA of 3.0 or above for the last 60 semester units of undergraduate study and a GPA of 3.0 for any graduate study.
Three positive references attesting to the applicant's academic / professional competency
Demonstrated ability to write at an acceptable level for graduate study
Internet access capability

Academic Requirements

This advanced degree program requires 33 semester hours in the following combination:

Core Courses - 9 semester hours
Area of Concentration - 15 semester hours
Electives - 6 semester hours
Culminating Activity - 3 semester hours

Courses

(All courses are three semester hours)

Core Requirements

EDUC 501	Educational Assessment
EDUC 504	Methods of Research
EDUC 503	Educational Psychology

Area of Concentration

EDUC 550	Human Development
EDUC 551	Studies in Attachment
EDUC 518	Language, Reading, and Concept Development
EDUC 558	Cognition and Brain Development
EDUC 559	Developmental Curriculum

Electives
6 semester hours

Culminating Activity
EDUC 596 Graduate Seminar

Program Requirements

Students in the master's degree program must maintain an academic achievement of at least a 3.0 grade point average. All degree coursework must be completed within five years of registration as a graduate student.

Transfer Credit

Up to six semester hours of credit may be transferred form an accredited university or college to the University of La Verne's graduate degree program if:

the units are applicable to the chosen degree program at the University of La Verne,
the units were acceptable as graduate degree coursework in the transferring school,
a grade of "B" or better was earned for the units, and
the coursework was taken from an accredited institution within five years prior to transfer to the University of La Verne.