Colorado State University offers a plethora of master’s programs to graduate students. Among these is Student Affairs in Higher Education, known as one of CSU’s most diverse master’s programs. The program prepares students for a multitude of careers within higher education and university settings and has a 100% job placement rate.
Currently, there are two program options available: one residential at CSU and one online. However, the residential program is not taking applications at this time. This is the beginning of numerous changes being made to the entire SAHE program.
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A CSU alumnus and recent graduate of the SAHE program discussed their experience with the program as well as what they know about the program’s future. They are undocumented, which greatly impacted their experience in graduate school, and they prefer not be named for safety purposes. In addition to being interested in this graduate program, they disclosed that SAHE was one of the only programs they reached out to that was able to support an undocumented student.
Regarding the actual changes being made, there will no longer be a residential version of the program, only an online one.
“Fall semester of 2022, we received the news that the program was being restructured … and that they were lowering the credit requirement,” the CSU alum said. “That was like the first change we started observing. … It truly was a dramatic change between the curriculum.”
Along with curriculum changes, the program was put on pause for the incoming class. The cohort of students already in the program will continue their studies, but there will not be new students entering. However, there were many students who had already been admitted.
“Like two weeks later — it was, like, a very short turnaround — … we all find out that the program is being put on this pause,” the alum said.
While not a complete pause, as the 2022-24 cohort will continue, the dynamic of the program shifted with the loss of incoming students.
The alum discussed the feelings among SAHE students at the time this was happening and how they “started to be concerned about how … the university (is) prioritizing our program,” they said. “Like, do they care about us? Are they investing in our program? The people who are produced by our program — we’re practically the backbone of the university. … There’s just a lot of feelings there.”
Student affairs jobs are everywhere at CSU: housing and dining, financial aid, academic advising and more. These are the people students interact with every day.
Beyond this first shift, there was hope.
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This past spring, students were told the program would start back up again like usual, but that hope didn’t last very long. There will be students admitted to the residential program this fall who will get their full two years, but after that, the program will be completely virtual.
“It was just kind of disheartening to see, once again, this … reduction of the program, … kind of like they’re phasing it out,” the alum said. This move to a virtual-only experience will likely look very different from the on-campus experience. “I definitely have trust that they will do their best, but I do think it will impact the quality of the education that is provided.”
Alex Lange is the current coordinator of SAHE and provided some information about the changes and their impact on students.
“Unfortunately, the residential version of the program will no longer be offered after (the spring 2026) semester,” Lange said. “So future students wishing to apply to a residential SAHE program will look to other institutions for potential enrollment. The students in the online version of the program will experience no changes in course structure as a result of these changes. What may change over time is the faculty who teach in the program.”
As seen throughout the United States, many programs in both secondary and higher education have been undergoing changes or been cut completely. CSU is not exempt from this, and it has to do with budget cuts throughout the various colleges, including the College of Health and Human Sciences.
“The school of education is absorbing most of our college’s budget cut,” Lange said. “The SOE’s structure will align with two academic priorities. First, undergraduate PK-12 educator preparation and new existing graduate programs surrounding schools and communities will be the focus of our residential offerings. Second, those programs focused on higher and adult education will be delivered online, which includes the SAHE program. So budget challenges prompted this organizational shift that directly affects the SOE — and thus SAHE — where the program is housed.”
With downsizing due to budget cuts and the upcoming tuition increase, it remains to be seen what other changes might be in store for programs at CSU.
Reach Aubree Miller at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @aubreem07.
