The National Conference on Current Trends in
Conflict Resolution in Higher Education

Concurrent Workshops I

Developing Effective Methods to Gather Student Feedback of
Graduate Conflict Resolution Programs

Workshop Presenter

    Amy Rebecca Gay is the Assistant Director of the Graduate Programs in Dispute Resolution at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Her research focuses on community and court-connected mediation, institutionalization, and volunteer mediators. Her other on-going projects include surveying alumni of graduate conflict studies’ programs, biennial Conflict Studies Conference, and the Dispute Resolution newsletter. She earned a Ph.D. in social science from the Maxwell School in Citizenship and Public Affairs and was an affiliate of the program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflict at Syracuse University.

Workshop Notes

Dispute Resolution Career Survey

• Surveys post Graduate Students of Dispute resolution at the University of Massachusetts Boston

• 2 Graduate programs being studied are an 18-credit certificate program and a 36-credit Masters program

• The purpose of this survey is to establish exactly

• 240 Surveys where sent out to Graduated Masters and Certificate students

• 98 Surveys where returned, 29 from Masters and 69 from Certificate Students

• This was a pilot survey in future surveys there will be an increase in size

• All surveys where kept strictly confidential

• The survey showed that students who all ready held degrees preferred the certificate program

• The survey shows that many graduates of the certificate programs apply for the Masters program

• The survey showed greater career mobility (especially for those interested in working for a corporation)

• Masters Graduates found more jobs than Certificate Graduates did

• The mid career Program is receiving younger students each year

• Mid Career Students are less likely to move to pursue job opportunities than younger Graduates are

• After completing the program Graduate’s salaries usually increased or remained the same

• Trends show an increase in various domains such as job satisfaction

• This survey is not applicable for changing the curriculum

• New careers pursuing this training are Flight Attendants and Nurses

For more information on the Dispute Resolution Career Survey contact
Amy Rebecca Gay, Ph.D.
Graduate programs in Dispute Resolution
100 Morissey Blvd.
UMass Boston
Boston, MA 02125-3393
(617) 287-7415
amy.gay@umb.edu
www.disres.umb.edu

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