Expanding Extension programs to offer full degrees beneficial to students
Who goes to UCLA Extension?
Average age = 37 years old
Range: 15-100 years old
61 percent female, 39 percent male
45 percent have already earned a bachelor's degree
24 percent have earned a master's degree
73 percent are employed full-time
Top occupations of Extension students:
Education
Art, design, entertainment, media
Business and finance
Management consulting and other professional services
Sales and sales related
Architecture and engineering
SOURCE: Cathy Sandeen, dean of UCLA Extension
By Sean Greene
Nov. 24, 2010 1:32 a.m.
With only an undergraduate degree in art administration from Scripps College, Kate Sims was going to need something more to advance in her dream career.
In interior design, a master’s degree means the difference between working as a decorator or a designer and having the ability to tear down walls, re-configure plumbing and “transform spaces,” Sims said.
Through UCLA Extension, Sims was able to work full-time and complete a certificate program in architectural interior design.
“That was perfect for me,” she said. “The certificate program … was pretty intense.”
In fact, the program was so complete in its coursework that the courses were allowed to transfer over to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Now, with a few more classes, Sims and other students can earn a master’s degree at Cal Poly Pomona.
It’s for students like Sims that UCLA Extension hopes to begin offering similar degree programs by partnering with UCLA’s academic departments, said Cathy Sandeen, dean of UCLA Extension.
Students who complete an Extension program can currently only earn a certificate; a degree would be of higher value.
Programs would be offered according to what employers want in new hires, among other factors. There is a high demand for quantitative skills, Sandeen said. Given this demand, Extension proposed a master’s degree program in applied statistics, which is currently under review by the Academic Senate.
Providing high-demand degrees to the community presents an opportunity to generate extra revenue for the university, Sandeen said. While there are no specific profit goals yet, she said she expects the program in applied statistics to go beyond break-even and become financially sustainable within three years.
The Extension programs operate self-sufficiently, relying only on funds they can generate from tuition paid by Extension students.
Tuition to cover costs of instruction, staffing and facility rental can range from $1,000 to more than $5,000 for a certificate program, Sandeen said. Degree programs would cost more, she added.
UCLA’s program is not the first to offer full degrees. Sandeen named four other University of California Extension programs that offer degrees in a variety of fields.
“The fact that (these programs) are still going and (are) sustainable tells me there is demand in those areas,” she said.
Part of Extension’s draw is its instructors’ practical approach to classes, said Kamer Yuksel, a former marketing Extension student.
“They give you a nice blend of theory and experience,” she said. “You’re getting a really beautiful combination of knowledge.”
