Online Master of Science Research Design and Analysis

A critical feature of the master’s degree in RDA is the individual mentoring system designed to monitor each student’s academic motivation and career aspirations. Our RDA faculty will assist students from entering the program by providing information on RDA careers, mentoring them on how to build the knowledge base of RDA, how to interpret data and apply it to select fields.

The faculty’s frequent contact via online/remote communication tools (e.g., Zoom) will help to keep students engaged throughout the degree program. Specifically, each RDA faculty member will monitor four to five students and maintain close relationships with students to ensure learning quality, timely progress, and psychological health.

The RDA program utilizes cloud computing through online learning and FIU eLabs to offer students quality online instruction and access to remotely accessible research software. Specifically, FIU Online is well-known for its support services and online resources such as virtual tutoring and IT assistance for students and faculty. The FIU eLabs is equipped with quantitative and qualitative software and provide assistance through a multiplatform system in a virtual environment or through remote workstations.

Job outlook

Currently, there is strong national demand for professionals in the areas of RDA, including research design, analysis, testing and measurement, and program evaluation. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS), Occupational Outlook Handbook reports that employment of research methodologists is projected to grow 35% by 2029, much faster than the average for other occupations. Growth is expected to result from the more widespread use of data analysis to inform healthcare, educational policy decisions, and business strategies for growth. The BLS also reports the median salary in 2019 as $92,030 per year, and research methodologists with a master’s degree are preferred in national job markets.

In line with national data provided by the BLS, Florida Employment data also projects robust employment of research methodologists with an estimated 33.9% growth between 2019 and 2027, compared with an increase of only 9% for all occupations and 9.9% for all education, training, and library occupations. Educational services in Florida are ranked as the third fastest-growing industries between 2019 and 2027, with a projected growth rate of 14.4%, only following ambulatory health care services and social assistance. In particular, South Florida has several public and private sectors that currently seek RDA specialists, such as the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of Energy, Calc Stat, Florida Blue, Fort Lauderdale Airport, Miami Airport, ADT, Assurant, and Amazon.

Career opportunities

RDA graduates may gain employment as research methodologists, psychometricians, and program evaluators in government, research and testing agencies, and community organizations. Further, graduates from this program may utilize their research skills as administrators of educational institutes and organizations involved in the advancement of education and other areas such as mental health, counseling psychology, and school psychology.

Career Path

Director of Assessment and Accreditation

Evaluation Consultant

Senior Program Associate

Data Manager/Programmer

Policy Associate

Survey & Research Specialist

Research or Data Analyst

Institutional Research Analyst

Enrollment Data Analyst

Research Specialist/MEthodologists

Institutional Research Data Specialist

Coordinator of Accountability & Research

Director of Institutional Planning, Research and Assessment

Psychometricians

Government Program Evaluator

Educational Administrator

Innovation Specialist, Design/Brand Strategist

Product Designer

Consumer Insights

Grant Writing

Market Research Analyst

Non-traditional Career Paths

Human Resources

Marketing

Forensic Science

Archeology

Geology

Historian

Income Range

$36,000 - $144,000

Industry Outlook

FL: 32% ⬆️

US: 25% ⬆️

( Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics and onetonline.org)

Cohorts of 15-25 students are enrolled per year. Students complete the program within 12 months. The fully online M.S. in RDA program requires students to complete 30 credit hours that are sequentially structured over the course of 12 months.

Each semester, students enroll in three or four core research methods courses, each covering research design, data collection, data analysis, graphing, and program analysis.

In the last semester, students will gain hands-on research experience through conducting a research practicum to apply their learned knowledge and skills to specific research projects.

In particular, the analysis project is designed for students to organize the analysis outcomes and communicate with researchers and practitioners in other fields with colloquial language. In this way, RDA graduates will generate both research expertise and pragmatic experience, which will serve them well as they transition to future employment.

Note: The following course structure allows students to start the degree in the spring and complete the degree within one year. It also uses the “A” and “B” elements of the semesters, so students do not have to take all of the courses at once—instead students will have courses in condensed time periods throughout the year.

Semester 1 (4 courses: 12 credits): Spring

• Spring A: Introduction to Educational Research (EDF5481): Yuxi Qiu
• Spring B: Research Methods in Education (EDF6472): Yuxi Qiu
• Spring A: Single-Subject Research Design in Education (EDF6425): Martha Pelaez
• Spring B: Measurement and Evaluation in Education (EDF5432): Andy Pham

Semester 2 (3 courses: 9 credits): Summer

• Summer A: Advanced Analysis in Educational Research (EDF6486): Mido Chang
• Summer B: Application of Measurement and Assessment in Educational Research (EDF 6482): Kevin Coughlin
• Summer C: Qualitative Foundations of Educational Research (EDF 6475): Aaron Kuntz

Semester 3 (3 courses: 9 credits): Fall

• Fall A: Application of Statistical Model to Education (EDF6414): Mido Chang
• Fall B: Introduction to Statistical Software in Education (EDF 6414): Yuxi Qui
• Fall: Research Practicum in Education (EDF6XXX): Mido Chang or Aaron Kuntz

Admission standards: The RDA master’s program is designed to provide students with strong research design and analysis training for applied research settings. RDA master's degree will be an attractive graduate degree for students with a bachelor in various education, social sciences, and business fields.

RDA applicants are required to submit:

• An online application to the Office of Graduate Admissions
• Three letters of recommendation (at least one from an academic source)
• An autobiographical statement

Candidates are admitted by the Department's Graduate Admission Committee's decision based on GPA scores in a bachelor's program, quality and source of letters of recommendation, and the candidate's career aspirations and goals.

An applicant must have a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution or international students from an institution comparable to or equivalent to U.S. degrees for further study at the graduate level. An applicant must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher for the last 60 hours of the upper division of coursework. An applicant with less than a 3.0 GPA may be granted conditional admittance. These applicants must take 12 graduate credits and earn a 3.25 GPA to be considered for full admittance.

Graduation requirements: The students are expected to complete a minimum of 30 credit hours at the graduate-level while achieving a GPA of a minimum of 3.0 earned for courses required by the program. A student must maintain an overall GPA of 3.0. No grade below "C" will be accepted.

International Students

• Proof of English Language Proficiency. If you earned a bachelor's degree in a country whose official language is not English, you must demonstrate English language proficiency by earning a passing score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). TOEFL required minimum score: 550 (paper-based exam) or 80 (internet-based). IELTS required minimum score: 6.5. When requesting official scores, please refer to FIU Institution code 5206. TOEFL / IELTS scores are valid for two years. View list of TOEFL/IELTS-exempt countries.

  • Graduate programs can use the Duolingo English Test.

  • Please visit Duolingo English Test for more information about how to register for the exam.

  • FIU Minimum Duolingo English Test Score: 110

• Course by Course Evaluation. If your post-secondary educational history includes coursework outside the United States, you must submit a course-by-course credential translation and evaluation, with grade point average (GPA) calculation included, for all non-U.S. coursework. FIU accepts evaluations/translations from any NACES member evaluation service.

  FIU accepts evaluations/translations from any NACES member evaluation services, below are a few FIU recommends:

  Josef Silny & Associates, Inc., International Education Consultants
  7101 SW 102 Avenue
  Miami, FL 33173
  Phone: 305-273-1616 | Fax 305-273-1338
  www.jsilny.org | info@jsilny.com
  Visit the Josef Silny & Associates FIU Form for details

  World Education Services
  PO Box 745
  New York, NY 10113-0745
  212-966-6311
  www.wes.org | info@wes.org 
  
  Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc.
  PO Box 514070
  Milwaukee, WI 53203-3470
  414-289-3400 | www.ece.org
  

• As a fully online degree, this program is ineligible to grant/provide F-1 Student visas.

Effective January 15, 2023 for Graduate applicants: If your post-secondary educational history includes coursework outside the United States, you must submit a course-by-course credential translation and evaluation, with grade point average (GPA) calculation included, for all non-U.S. coursework. FIU accepts evaluations/translations from any NACES member evaluation service. Please visit the NACES website here: NACES | Credentials Evaluations Provided by NACES Members

Pursuing your graduate degree is one of the best investments you can make – one that will open doors to personal and professional opportunities. Our tuition costs represent some of the best value in higher education, and we also offer financial aid support to help you reach your goals.

The total cost of the online M.S. in Research, Design and Analysis is $17,700. Students pay for courses at the beginning of each semester. All fees are subject to change.

Mido Chang
Professor
Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology

Aaron Kuntz
Professor; Chair, Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology
Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology

Yuxi Qiu
Clinical Assistant Professor
Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology

Andy Pham
Associate Professor; Director, EdS in School Psychology
Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology

Martha Pelaez
Professor
Counseling, Recreation and School Psychology

Learn more about the details of our program by listening in to our information session.