Originally developed in 1984 under a national grant from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), the Master of Arts Program in Applied Professional Studies (MAAPS) serves as both a model for professional education and as an innovative response to society’s pressing need for a more adaptive workforce. Unlike many traditional graduate programs which are discipline-based and/or lead to a major in a specific field, MAAPS is designed to provide students the framework within which to study a particular area of focus. Their individualized curriculum is combined with a series of seminars which facilitate the learning of broad, general skills deemed critical for all professionals, i.e., the skills of liberal learning.
 
A pre-existing area of focus in Parenting Education and Support is a new option for the curriculum at  http://www.snl.depaul.edu/prospective/parenting.asp 
 
As its overarching aim, the MAAPS seeks to enable practitioners to enhance their effectiveness as both professionals and leaders and to respond dynamically to the changing conditions and expectations in their work contexts. Thus, the two central goals of the Program are to assist practitioners:
 
(1) to achieve expertise in their areas of study by building on and integrating a base of personal
     and enhanced professional knowledge; and,
(2) to integrate skills of liberal learning into their performance and practice as professionals
     and as socially responsible individuals.
 
These two goals are accomplished through the Program’s unique approach to graduate education—–an approach that integrates theory and practice, enhances professional performance, seeks to create new knowledge in emerging professional fields, and educates “Master Practitioners” who are able to make significant contributions to their professions and society as a whole.
 
http://www.snl.depaul.edu/prospective/maaps_index.asp

THE MAAPS CURRICULUM PLAN

To accomplish its goals, the Master of Arts Program in Applied Professional Studies is comprised of six major components: Assessment and Planning, the Focus Area, the Liberal Learning Curriculum, Assessment Sessions, Program culmination options, and the Graduation Review. A sample program schedule is shown below:

First Quarter	Secound Quarter	Third Quarter	Fourth Quarter
Learning  Plan Research & Development Seminar (LPRD)	Learning Plan Review Applying Research Methods Seminar Focus Area Professional Competencies	Understanding Personal and Organizational Change Seminar Focus Area Professional Competencies Assessment & Integration I	Improving Team Effectiveness Seminar Focus Area Professional Competencies Assessment & Integration II
Fifth Quarter	Sixth Quarter	Seventh Quarter	Eighth Quarter (and beyound, if necessary)
Valuing Human Differences Seminar Focus Area Professional Competencies	Engaging Ethical Reasoning Seminar Focus Area Professional Competencies Assessment & Integration III	Exercising Effective Leadership Seminar Focus Area Professional Competencies Assessment & Integration IV	Culmination Options: Integrating Project Or Supplemental Professional Competencies Graduation Review