Postgraduate Certificate in Online Education (PGCO) - PGradCertOEd

This program is offered only to continuing students. No new admissions will be accepted. Students who are interested in this study area should contact us.

Notes

This program does not qualify you for teacher registration with relevant teaching authorities. If you are interested in a program that enables you to qualify for teacher registration, please refer to the Graduate Diploma in Learning and Teaching.

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Program focus

This program is designed to provide:

• an understanding of how current teaching/learning theories contribute to the design, delivery and development of online education programs

• the capacity to evaluate the effectiveness of online education programs in specific teaching situations and learning contexts

• the ability to identify those critical issues that have influenced the emergence of online education as a force in all sectors of education and training and in a wide range of education settings

• the use of pedagogical techniques that will enhance the attainment of those concepts identified as being critical for teaching online

• an understanding and appreciation of the appropriateness of different ‘media mixes’ for designing and delivering online education programs.

We are currently redeveloping our programs for 2009. This area of study will remain available, with greater flexibility.

Program aims

The program is designed to meet the professional and continuing education needs of a wide range of professionals in a variety of online education settings. It caters for those in both formal education settings and off-campus services - specifically teachers and educational designers moving to a more sophisticated application of online education. Similarly it caters for those working in corporate environments: these include, but are not limited to, training and organisational development units of businesses and those industries operating online or other distributed learning networks. The main focus of the teaching and learning will be to develop critical thinking, intellectual engagement and the students’ ability to design, develop, facilitate and evaluate programs in online and blended learning environments. A key feature of the program is that it prepares graduates who value diversity and inclusiveness, who are innovators and navigators of sustainable change. Students are encouraged to become engaged professionals and collaborative members of a learning community.

Program objectives

Graduates of the Program will:

• apply contextually relevant contemporary teaching/learning theories in the design, facilitation and development of online education programs

• develop their capacity to evaluate the effectiveness of online education programs in specific teaching and learning contexts

• analyse critical issues that influence the emergence of online education in all sectors of education and training across a wide range of educational settings

• critique, develop and apply pedagogical techniques which enhance teaching online (collaborative learning, engagement, interactivity, social presence).

Admission requirements

Normal Entry To be considered eligible for admission to the Postgraduate Certificate of Online Education, applicants must normally have:

1. completed an undergraduate degree or equivalent from a recognised university

2. access to an educational environment, e.g. formal education setting, workplace training in business and industry, distributed learning networks

3. appropriate resources to facilitate ready access to the Internet

4. ready access to a personal email address

5. the skills required to access and manipulate materials delivered electronically. International applicants must meet the University’s requirements for English proficiency.

Special Entry

Persons who do not hold an undergraduate degree, but who can demonstrate a significant history of work in online learning environments would be eligible for enrolment. Requirements at dot points 2, 3, 4 and 5 above would still apply.

International applicants must have met the University's English language requirements or have completed the University's ELICOS/UNIPREP program.

Program fees

Student contribution amount

For domestic students who are offered Commonwealth supported places, the Government pays some money directly to the University, but students are also required to make a contribution. This contribution is called the ‘student contribution’. For more information about student contribution amounts, including the calculation of fees for a particular program of study, refer to USQ fees.

Tuition fee

Domestic fee-paying places are funded entirely through the tuition/direct fees paid by the student. Tuition/direct fees vary depending on the courses that are taken. For more information about Tuition Fees, including the calculation of fees for a particular program of study, refer to USQ Fees.

International fees

International students pay tuition fees. For details about international student fees, refer to the International Fee Schedule provided by USQ International.

Program structure

The Postgraduate Certificate of Online Education is comprised of four postgraduate courses drawn from a suite of courses offered within the Master of Online Education (8 Units).

To be awarded a postgraduate certificate, students must complete:

• four units of study from the following suite of courses. This must include one unit from Foundation Studies

• no more than two units at level eight.

Under exceptional circumstances, at the discretion of the Program Coordinator, one unit may be completed at level 4.

Required time limits

Students have a maximum of 3 years to complete this program.

Exemptions

Exemptions for courses in the Postgraduate Certificate program may be granted where applicants can demonstrate that they have successfully completed an equivalent postgraduate course or have otherwise achieved the objectives of the relevant course. Exemptions may be granted on the basis of professional development activities or extensive work experience if it can be demonstrated that through those activities the student has achieved learning outcomes equivalent to those of a relevant postgraduate course. Where a student's program of study includes electives, exemption may be granted for one or more electives where students can demonstrate successful completion of work of a type and standard equivalent to an elective study ..

Students intending to apply for exemptions should consult the University Academic Regulations. Applications for exemption will be expected to comply with the relevant USQ and Faculty regulations and should demonstrate that the objectives of the course for which exemption is sought have been achieved. Within the framework of those regulations, the following points should be given particular consideration:

• the maximum number of units which may be exempted in the Postgraduate Certificate is two

• students may not claim exemption for work on which they relied for admission to the program

• exemptions will not normally be granted for study completed more than five years prior to submission of the application for exemption

• applications for exemption on the basis of study completed prior to entering the program will NOT normally be accepted beyond the end of the first semester of enrolment in the Postgraduate Certificate.

• credit will not normally be granted for work undertaken concurrently with the Postgraduate Certificate unless the application is submitted and approved before the work is undertaken with credit subject to satisfactory completion of the approved work.

Students should seek advice from the Program Administrator before applying for exemptions. Detailed information about requirements for exemptions may be available for specific courses.

Credit for courses passed in an incomplete program may be transferred where those courses form part of the Postgraduate Certificate in Education.

Recommended enrolment pattern

To be awarded a postgraduate certificate in the Faculty of Education, a student must have normally completed 4 units at postgraduate level, of which no more than two can be at level 8. Under exceptional circumstances, at the discretion of the Program Coordinator, one unit may be completed at level 4.

The enrolment pattern should follow the Program Structure as previously indicated.

Notes:

• It is recommended that the program of study commence with one of the courses in the Foundation Studies section of the table.

• It is recommended that courses listed as Year 1 in the table below be completed before courses listed as Year 2.

• It is recommended that course FET5601 Learning Design for Flexible Contexts, be studied prior to courses FET8601, FET8603 or FET8604.

• It is recommended that course FET5602 Theories for Learning Futures, be studied prior to course FET8603 or FET8605.