Proposals for two new master's degree programs -- in quantitative finance and in biomedical science -- once again raised Academic Council questions Thursday about the cumulative effect of the growing number of master's degree programs.
The proposals follow an academic year in which the council approved six new master's programs, prompting some faculty earlier this year to express concerns about the intellectual vision behind the programs and their effects on graduate education and research. Graduate School Dean Paula McClain is leading a study of the trend.
At Thursday’s session, faculty members renewed questions of where the trend was leading Duke and whether the new degree tracks could be managed through existing master's programs. There were few specific challenges to the actual proposals, which have already been endorsed by the departmental faculty and the Academic Programs Committee as showcasing the strengths of university faculty.
The program in quantitative finance in the Department of Economics is meant to address the study of the increasingly complex and globally interconnected financial markets that are driven by esoteric financial instruments, some of which have created "financial havoc," said professor Emma Rasiel. She said there is a need for more students to be formally trained to do research on these products with a specialized training that includes education in ethical responsibility.
It's already a strong area of research and interest for department faculty, Rasiel said.
The biomedical science degree program, which would be housed in the School of Medicine, would target prospective applicants and re-applicants to medical school and others looking for a career in biomedical sciences. The 11-month program would include interdisciplinary, team-based teaching and would provide both clinical and service components.
In other items, the Division of Neurosurgery is poised to become a full department following council approval of the change of status.
Ted Pappas, vice dean for medical affairs, told faculty members that neurosurgery already is financially sustainable with a "robust clinical practice" and noted research program. If finalized, the new department would already be second in the country among neuroscience faculty for National Institutes of Health funding.
He added that most of Duke's peers already have neurosurgery departments. "We are competing with schools that have their own neurosurgery departments," Pappas said in October. "Clearly the national model is for neurosurgery to be a separate department."
The division is currently part of the Department of Surgery, but Pappas said the loss of the division would not be financially detrimental to surgery. One reason is that instead of building a new administrative structure, the new neurosurgery department would share overhead with the Department of Surgery.
"This is the first time we have addressed that issue, saying to a new department that we cannot just replicate [administrative services]," Pappas said. "Between neurosurgery and surgery, we are sharing to the tune of about $500,000 worth of overhead between the two, which is big money. I think this is a direct acknowledgement that we can’t just willy-nilly duplicate resources."
The Board of Trustees must approve the decision before it goes into effect.