KSU is primarily an undergraduate institution of higher education which offers a few select programs at the master's level. Designated as the Commonwealth's public liberal arts institution with a common liberal studies core curriculum for all students and baccalaureate programs in the traditional arts and sciences, KSU's academic offerings are further enhanced by a variety of baccalaureate and associate degree programs in career and career-oriented disciplines such as business, computer sciences, education, public administration, nursing, and agriculture, food and environment (AFE). The nursing program continues to meet the high demand for health care professionals with full capacity classes and wait lists for each session. Pre-professional programs in law, dentistry, medicine, veterinary medicine, optometry, allied health, and engineering are also offered. The university's liberal studies focus is further enhanced with various centers of study for enhancing student success. Academic support services include a broad, diverse range of services for all KSU students. The Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) supports the traditional student with personalized, supplemental instruction while emphasizing necessary academic success strategies during the student's college experience. FRIENDS (Finding Resources in Education for Non-traditional Students) provides assistance for the adult learner, the non-traditional student, to encourage continued matriculation and the appropriate self-reliance needed for success.
The Master of Business Administration program emphasizes a solid grounding in graduate business education, combined with sufficient elective course work to provide individual preferences and career enhancement. The KSU Master's in Environmental Studies (MES) program has as its main goal the pursuit and dissemination of knowledge in the interdisciplinary field of environmental studies. The program will broaden the scope of scientific and technological studies of the environment through a multidisciplinary approach based on ecological principles encompassing the social and legal aspects of environmental concerns. KSU's Master of Special Education has enrolled several cohorts of students and will help to address the critical shortage of special education teachers in Kentucky, especially well-qualified minority practitioners. This program offers an alternative route to certification for qualified candidates wishing to teach K-12 students with learning and behavioral disorders. These programs are indicative of the work KSU is doing to address its public agenda responsibilities.
Measures/Performance Indicators: In the 2012-2013 academic year, KSU awarded 301 degrees; 45 Associate, 206 Baccalaureate, and 50 Masters. Each KSU graduate is expected to acquire skills and first-hand experience in verbal and written communications; mathematical computation and reasoning, while at the same time being exposed to the enduring importance of the methods and subject matters of the humanities, foreign languages, the natural sciences, the social sciences, and the fine arts.