Although educational planning is actually a process that starts when you start working with your mentor and can stretch throughout your time with Empire, it’s also a course that can exist under many different names.  Don’t worry, though – the actual course itself only lasts for one term.  Educational planning courses focus on important decision points, knowledge, and skills related to your degree.

You can think about the content of educational planning in different ways.

Content Based on Degree Type

If you look at the university’s Undergraduate Programs/Degrees page https://catalog.esc.edu/undergraduate/areas-study-degrees-certificates/ you’ll see a list of degrees that generally fall into two types:

1. Specific Degree titles

(e.g., Accounting, Allied Health, Business Administration, Digital Media Arts, Nursing, and more)

If you look at the Program Details link for these specific degree titles, you’ll see lists of specific course titles that are required core courses.

Usually, educational planning courses for the more specific degrees focus on some investigation that supports and enhances understanding of the profession, since many of these specific degrees lead to participation in a profession.

2. General Degree titles

(e.g., Cultural Studies, Educational Studies, Historical Studies, The Arts, and more)

If you look at the Program Details link for these general degree titles, you’ll see required areas of foundational knowledge that can be fulfilled with your choice from a variety of courses listed under each foundation, depending on your focus for your degree.

Usually, educational planning courses for the more general degrees focus on the reasoning behind course choices and how they fulfill the required foundational knowledge areas in a way that creates a coherent degree given your focus.

Content that Acknowledges Experiential Knowledge

You and your mentor might include doing prior learning credit requests in your educational planning course.  Prior learning credit requests focus on how to identify and explain college-level knowledge that you’ve gained on your own, through work or life experience.

There’s also a separate 2-credit, 8-week course focused on Prior Learning Assessment.

Content that Deals with Transferable Skills and Investigations Related to Degree Planning

You and your mentor might include investigations into professional requirements and skills in your educational planning course.  There are also many courses that focus on particular investigations and skills related to planning.

Search the Term Guide or Course Catalog for the Attribute of “Educational Planning” to see an array of courses, in addition to a course called Educational Planning, that are available to you.

Conclusion

No matter what your degree type and goals, all educational planning courses result in some research and writing related to your degree, so all educational planning courses involve the skills of critical thinking, informed decision-making, effective communication/writing, and information literacy.

You and your mentor will choose educational planning courses that best address your goals and type of degree.