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Why Should I Choose a Master’s Degree in Adult Learning and Training?

  • Adult education and training is a growing field — According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of postsecondary teachers is projected to grow 11 percent by 2028, much faster than the average for all occupations. Additionally, there are about 55 million students enrolled in K-12 education; however, there are more than 255 million adults in the U.S. who increasingly participate in formal post-secondary education, training and informal classes.
  • Career preparation for a wide range of settings — Adult educators and trainers work in higher education, corporations, health care, adult social services, technical and trade schools, government and nonprofits. They often work as administrators and train students in a wide variety of subjects beyond the high school level.
  • Strong Salaries — The median annual wage for postsecondary teachers was $78,470 in May 2018. Postsecondary education administrators who oversee student services, academics and faculty research at colleges and universities have a mean salary of $93,340.

Courses & Topics

Some of the courses in our Master of Arts in adult learning and training cohort graduate program include:

  • Issues in Adult Education
  • Instructional Methods for Adult Learners
  • Administration and Supervision in Adult Education
  • Program Management
  • Online Teaching: Design and Delivery
  • Curriculum and Instruction
  • Human Diversity Issues in Education
  • Practicum

Faculty bring industry experience and expertise to the online classroom

Courses are taught by faculty taught who have years of real-world experience both as teachers and administrators in the education field.

Meet the faculty
Pictured is Professor of Education Vincenne Revilla-Beltran, Ph.D.
FACULTY SPOTLIGHT
Vincenne Revilla-Beltran, Ph.D.
  • 40 years of experience in education working in a variety of roles
  • Pennsylvania Licensed Counselor and National Board Certified Coach
  • Worked in online education for nearly 20 years

Practicum Experiences

Our Master of Arts in adult learning and training students have worked with leaders and mentors at the following practicum sites:

  • ALCOSAN
  • Allegheny County Mental Health Agencies
  • American Society for Training and Development
  • Art Institute of Pittsburgh
  • BNY Mellon
  • Bombardier Corporation
  • Bradford School
  • Community College of Allegheny County
  • Community College of Butler County
  • Duquesne University
  • Educational Management Corporation
  • Gateway Health Plan
  • Goodwill Industries
  • Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council
  • Highmark
  • Institute for Research, Education and Training in Addictions
  • ITT Technical Institute
  • Jewish Community Day School
  • Manchester Bidwell Corporation
  • Mt. Lebanon Center for Theater Arts
  • Pittsburgh Technical Institute
  • Quest Diagnostics
  • Reed Smith Law Firm
  • Sanford Brown
  • Shadyside Academy
  • St. Barnabas Senior Care

Alumni Success

Learn where our graduate education alumni have gone on to build their careers.

More profiles
Pictured is curriculum and instruction and adult learning graduate Raymond Houston.
Raymond Houston, Ed.D.
Dean, School of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering, SUNY Westchester Community College

"The graduate classes I took at Point Park in curriculum and instruction and adult learning prepared me for the wide range of students I would meet as a faculty member, as well as the students I work with now as dean."
Pictured is curriculum and instruction and adult learning graduate Kimberly Rassau.
Kimberly Rassau, Ed.D.

Executive Director, Bidwell Training Center

"My graduate education classes opened my eyes to the true power of effective instructional design as a critical component for improving learning retention in adult learners."

Career Success

Our adult learning and training graduates work in a wide variety of professional career settings: 

  • Area director of education outreach, Pittsburgh
  • Clinical student supervisor, Purdue University
  • Director of education outreach, Young Life
  • Director of training and education, Institute for Research and Training in Addictions (IRETA)
  • Educational development specialist, Suffolk University
  • Faculty, Community College of Allegheny County
  • Firefighter and disaster training professional, Pittsburgh
  • Lead, global learning and organizational development, Matthews International Corporation
  • Manager of training and quality customer service, Gateway Health Plan 
  • Program manager of the Disabilities Resource Center, UPMC
  • Program specialist, United Cerebral Palsy
  • Provider advocate, UPMC
  • Regional director of training, Quest Diagnostics
  • Team leader of continuous development and improvement, CIGNA
  • Technical writer and instructor, Bombardier Corporation

Program Objectives

Upon successful completion of this program, a student will:

  • Analyze the characteristics of diverse populations of adult learners for the purpose of adult education and training.
  • Manage, develop and evaluate human resources in adult education settings across the lifespan of lifelong learners.
  • Design, develop, and implement adult learning methods which incorporate technologies and learning theories for use in face-to-face, hybrid and online instruction.
  • Facilitate and evaluate curricula for a variety of content areas that incorporate diverse adult learner populations and settings across the lifespan of the adult lifelong learner.
  • Design, develop and manage adult education learning programs from the needs analysis to the evaluation process.
  • Analyze the settings of adult education and apply program planning models based on contingency variables.
  • Apply andragogical best practices and management/leadership skills from current research to a variety of adult education settings.
  • Design and deliver online course content based on current research based best practices.
  • Apply qualitative and quantitative research methods to solve problems in adult education settings.
  • Apply and incorporate andragogical methods to address the learning needs of diverse adult populations in a variety of educational and training settings.

News & Features

Cassandra Scannella '16
Wednesday, April 1, 2020 Meet Cassandra Scannella, an instructional designer for Columbia University in NYC, who earned a Master of Arts degree in curriculum and instruction, with a focus in adult learning and training, fully online from Point Park.
From Peru to Point Park: Peruvian Delegates Learn from Education Faculty and Students
Wednesday, December 18, 2019 The School of Education at Point Park University recently welcomed executive-level government officials and academic leaders from various higher education institutions in Peru to campus for a training session focused on improving workforce development.
School of Education Hosts Workshop with Leaders from the Association for Talent Development and LUMA Institute
Wednesday, October 23, 2019 The Pittsburgh Chapter of the Association for Talent Development — the world’s largest association dedicated to empowering professionals to develop talent in the workplace — recently collaborated with the School of Education at Point Park University for a workshop on campus featuring guest speaker Bill Lucas from the LUMA Institute.