Applied Behavior Analysis MS
Admission Requirements
Applicants must meet the general graduate admission requirements of the Graduate School, described in the UMSL Bulletin. Students are considered for admission to the graduate program in Applied Behavioral Analysis only after they have formally applied for admission through the Graduate School. Applications may be completed on-line.
In addition to Graduate School admission requirements, the following requirements apply:
- An undergraduate degree with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0
- Letter of Intent/Statement of Purpose (1-2 pages)
- One Letter of Reference
Degree Requirements
To earn an M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis, students must complete at least 23 credit hours of graduate-level course work, 10 credit hours of practicum experience, and at least 6 credit hours of Thesis Research for which students will be required to write and defend a thesis.
Required Foundation Courses
Students are required to complete the following courses within the first 15 credit hours of study.
| SPEC ED 6641 | Basic Principles and Concepts of Behavior Analysis | 3 |
| SPEC ED 6642 | Behavior Assessment | 3 |
| SPEC ED 6643 | Research Methods in Applied Behavior Analysis | 3 |
| Total Hours | 9 | |
Required Courses
Students are required to complete the following courses.
| SPEC ED 6644 | Behavior Interventions in Applied Behavior Analysis | 3 |
| SPEC ED 6645 | Ethics and Professionalism in Applied Behavior Analysis | 3 |
| SPEC ED 6646 | Verbal Behavior Concepts and Applications | 3 |
| SPEC ED 6647 | Advanced Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis | 3 |
| SPEC ED 6648 | Behavior-Based Consultation and Supervision | 3 |
| Total Hours | 15 | |
Required Practicum Courses
Through the course of five semesters, students are required to complete practicum courses in order to accrue the minimal hours of supervised experience required by the BACB to qualify for the BCBA exam.
| SPEC ED 6651 | Practicum I in Applied Behavior Analysis | 2 |
| SPEC ED 6652 | Practicum II in Applied Behavior Analysis | 2 |
| SPEC ED 6653 | Practicum III in Applied Behavior Analysis | 2 |
| SPEC ED 6654 | Practicum IV in Applied Behavior Analysis | 2 |
| SPEC ED 6655 | Practicum V in Applied Behavior Analysis | 2 |
| Total Hours | 10 | |
Required Research Courses
Students take a minimum of 6 thesis credit hours (no more than 3 per semester) starting in year two of the program.
| SPEC ED 6661 | Thesis in Applied Behavior Analysis | 6 |
| Total Hours | 6 | |
Thesis Requirement
Students are required to complete a total of 6 credit hours of thesis. The student will engage in sustained and self-motivated study through the research process, conferring with advisors, and drafting and revising a manuscript. The thesis proposal must be approved by the committee and successfully defended. A committee chair will be identified, who will consult with the student on selecting two other members for the committee.
Students will work with their committee chair to identify a thesis project such as the following but not limited to a literature review, a scholarly tutorial, or an empirical study. The thesis project should be a scholarly work related to behavior analysis.
Students are expected to follow all other general requirements of the Graduate School regarding master’s degree and thesis requirements.