Issues and Issues and Outcomes in Outcomes in Graduate Graduate EducationEducation

Christopher D. Ingersoll, PhD, ATCJoe H. Gieck Professor of Sports Medicine

University of Virginia

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Issues1. ATCs are advising students to pursue graduate

degrees in something other than Athletic Training

2. Concerns that Post-Certification Athletic Training Graduate Programs are not delivering advanced knowledge

3. There are relatively few Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training programs (accredited or not)

4. Reasons students select graduate programs

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1.ATCs are advising students to pursue graduate degrees in something other than Athletic Training

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Common Advice to New ATCs

• “Since you did your undergraduate work at an accredited program, you don’t need to attend an accredited graduate program.”

• “You need to get your Masters in something else because athletic training alone is not enough to get a job.”

• “It doesn’t matter what you get your Masters degree in as long as you have one.”

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“Since you did your undergraduate work at an accredited program, you don’t need to attend an accredited graduate program”

• Graduate programs used to be a route to certification– Programs had to meet needs of “advanced” and “entry-

level” students– Graduate programs of study used to look very similar to

undergraduate courses of study– Students from accredited undergraduate programs may

have not been challenged during this time

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“You need to get your Masters in something else because athletic training alone is not enough to get a job”

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“It doesn’t matter what you get your Masters degree in as long as you have one”

• Unfortunately, this is probably true, but is this an idea we want to perpetuate?

• We haven’t done a good job educating employers

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2. PCGE Programs Not Advanced?

• Accredited PCGE programs:– “are different from entry-

level programs in purpose, design and content” (II.B.)

– have a mission “to expand the depth and breadth of the … knowledge and skills of entry-level certified athletic trainers” (II.B.)

– are “characterized by advanced systematic study and experience” (II.B.)

– provide “instruction in advanced skills and knowledges” (II.C.)

– provide “advanced educational experiences designed to enhance … ability to function in clinical, teaching, administrative, or research environments” (II.C.)

– “include new and advanced, in-depth educational experiences designed to enhance … professional practice” (II.C.)

Note: Parenthetical information refers to section in Standards & Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs

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3. Very Few PCGE Programs

• 3007: # students taking BOC exam for first time in 2003 (BOC 2003 Annual Report)

• 13: # accredited graduate programs

• 160: approx. # of students accepted into accredited PCGATEPs ea. yr.

• 10: approx. % of students pursuing advanced study in AT (including non accred. progs.)

• 70: approx. % of ATCs with graduate degrees

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Very Few Students Pursuing Advanced Study in Athletic Training

•10%• We need more

programs!

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4. Reasons Students Select Graduate Programs

• No data on this (we need some)• Often influenced by mentors

– Program directors– Clinical coordinators– Clinical instructors

• Anecdotally, many pick graduate programs based only on the clinical experience– Thought of as a job where they have to take classes– Meeting clinical responsibilities takes priority over

learning

More

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4. Reasons Students Select Graduate Programs, cont.

• Some apply based on reputation of the program, without regard for what they will learn

• Other reasons– Location– Finances– Duration of program

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What Students Should Know About PCGATEPs• Nearly 100% placement in jobs or professional

programs• Accredited GATEPs are targeted for job

placement and networking• Research and mentoring with expert scholars and

clinicians• Instruction in advanced skills and knowledges that

directly relate to AT• Programs meet rigorous standards and guidelines

that assure quality

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Outcomes• What the Standards

and Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs document has to say about outcomes

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General Principles of Graduate Education• Mastery of subject matter• Critical thinking• Theoretical understanding• Proficiency in research and/or creative activities• Service orientation• Diverse representation of perspectives

– Standards & Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs, II.A.1-6.

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Philosophy of PCGAT Programs

• Graduate Education Programs are different from entry-level programs in purpose, design and content.

• The mission of a PCGATEP is to expand the depth and breadth of the applied, experiential, and propositional knowledge and skills of entry-level ATCs, expand the athletic training body of knowledge, and to disseminate new knowledge in the discipline.

• Graduate education is characterized by advanced systematic study and experience—advanced in knowledge, understanding, scholarly competence, inquiry, and discovery.

– Standards & Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs, II.B.

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Principles of PCGAT Programs

• Instruction in advanced skills and knowledges, the preparation of ATCs for leadership roles, and a research experience are considered to be the distinguishing characteristics of graduate education in athletic training.

• Advanced educational experiences designed to enhance the ATC’s ability to function in clinical, teaching, administrative, or research environments are considered to be essential components of the PCGATEP.

• While minimal graduate courses and resource requirements are specified in this document, flexibility and innovation in curricular development are encouraged. However, the program must demonstrate its contribution to advanced education of athletic training practitioners.

– Standards & Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs, II.C.

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Principles of PCGAT Programs

• The NATA EC has developed a comprehensive list of AT educational competencies and clinical proficiencies in order to provide guidance and direction in the professional preparation of entry-level AT students. They represent guidelines for curriculum design, development of individual course content, and structuring of clinical experiences for the entry-level programs.

• Development of an effective PCGATEP depends on a thorough assessment of those education experiences typically offered at the entry-level.

• PCGATEPs include new and advanced, in-depth educational experiences designed to enhance the athletic trainer's professional practice.

– Standards & Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs, II.C.

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Outcomes• The Standards and Guidelines

is an advocacy document aimed at encouraging thought and empowering institutions and program directors so they can develop programs around their unique strengths or points of distinctiveness.

• There will be much greater variety in program design, content, and foci amongst graduate programs than amongst undergraduate and entry-level graduate programs.

• Institutions have increased freedom to innovate, experiment with new ideas and approaches, and venture into the unknown.

• Successful innovations will be retained and shared with colleagues and will therefore lead to stronger graduate education programs, stronger graduates, and a stronger profession.

– Standards & Guidelines for Post-Certification Graduate Athletic Training Education Programs, I.B.

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Assessment (scan environment)

Identify/revise strengths and weaknesses

Identify/revise points of distinctiveness

Build/revise mission statement

Develop/revise goals and objectives

Develop/revise program to support POD

Measure outcomes

Self

Stu

dy

Site Review

Develop/revise outcomes

Facilities, community, facultyThese come

from your assessment

These are strengths. Distinctiveness is not

necessarily uniqueness. May have

more than one.

Must support points of

distinctiveness, but may include other

things

Must support points of

distinctiveness, but may include other

thingsCourses, clinical

experiences, research experiences should support POD

Define what program is

supposed to doQuantitative and/or qualitative, show you are accomplishing what you

said you would

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We Need to Become Experts

• “Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day.”

• Thomas Jefferson, 1816

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Thanks• Graduate Education Committee

– Kenneth Knight, PhD, ATC: Brigham Young University

– Leamor Kahanov, EdD, ATC: San Jose State University

– Joni Roh, EdD, ATC: California University of Pennsylvania

– Jeffrey Seegmiller EdD, ATC: Ohio University

– Eric Sauers, PhD, ATC: A.T. Still University

– Charles Swanik, PhD, ATC: Temple University

– Gary Wilkerson, EdD, ATC: UT - Chattanooga

– Richard Williams, PhD, ATC: University of Northern Iowa

• Graduate Review Committee– Bruce Barnhart, EdD, ATC:

California University of Pennsylvania

– Michelle Cleary, PhD, ATC: Florida International University

– Mitch Cordova, PhD, ATC: Indiana State University

– Kevin Guskiewicz, PhD, ATC: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

– Carl Mattacola, PhD, ATC: University of Kentucky

– Bonnie Van Lunen, PhD, ATC: Old Dominion University

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Questions?