Talking Stick - November/December 2010 - 40

conversations

What I Wished I Had Learned in Grad School
Academics are great, but here members identify the practical or onthe-job knowledge they wished their graduate program had offered in courses.
KEvIN JACqUES
Participating in this conversation are Kevin Jacques, director of residence life at the University of North Alabama in Florence; Ali Martin Scoufield, assistant director for residential life and assessment at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas; Sirena Parker, director of community living at the Mississippi University for Women in Columbus; Aramis Watson, assistant director of housing and residential education at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City; and Carla Green, residence hall director at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.

ARAMIS WATSON

Kevin Jacques: I am going to throw three items
out there that I wish were covered in depth (stand-alone classes) in my master’s program: 1) finances and budgeting – the down and dirty of it from creation to cuts and everything in between; 2) power and politics – navigating the road of both and how they impact everything we do; and 3) the value and importance of assessment in creating growth and change.

ALI MARTIN SCOUFIELD

organizational leadership class, more like the functions of presidents, provosts, academia, student affairs divisions, vice presidents – the inner workings so as to have an idea of everyone’s role before actually working at an institution. This of course would vary by public, private, religious affiliation if any, size, etc. Other things I wish I knew include (this list could go on forever) tips for advancement within a department (supervising your peers, considerations of a mid-level manager), balance (living in/on, having families, being on-call, interacting with students), the value of partnering with parents and building faculty partnerships (faculty-in-residence, livinglearning communities).

Ali Martin Scoufield: Those grad classes
sound great. Beyond specific classes, I wish my program just offered more practical knowledge. I think my program had a great assistantship with practicum experience, but in terms of course work, what we read and the assignments we did were all very theoretical. Theory is certainly a good foundation, but it doesn’t really matter how well I understand the theoretical principles of Baxter-Magolda, Chickering, Astin, and Cross if I don’t have actual examples of application – especially in crisis and critical need situations. Other classes that would have been helpful to me would include those about legal issues and multiculturalism and diversity issues in higher education and something about the inner workings of a university – beyond an

SIRENA PARKER

Sirena Parker: The times are changing, that
is for sure. I think graduate school professors should take a look at the current issues each year and work hard to incorporate those into the classes. I agree with offering a class on budget and strategic budget planning. I did not receive any course that even mentioned budget items. I am currently working on my doctoral degree and have not seen a course address this area.

CARLA GREEN
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Talking Stick - November/December 2010

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