College of Education & Human Services

Academics - College Student Personnel

The Learning Environment

Student Affairs Track (Macomb)

The CSP program is grounded in our belief that people and organizations grow through an experiential process that is mutually shaped, socially constructed, and historically situated. In small cohort-based classes you will discuss, question, experiment, research, wrestle with, and debate the issues, and the roots of those issues, that face student affairs professionals. Faculty and student affairs professionals across campus partner with you in this process. And, your cohort coming from a wide range of student affairs experience, locations, and backgrounds, add another layer of learning and growing during your time in the program.

The CSP program emphasizes the ACPA/NASPA Professional Competencies in the classroom and practical experiences, and meets the standards established by the Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) for student affairs programs. Providing quality education in student affairs, as well as a sound background for individuals interested in pursuing future doctoral degrees in higher education is at the forefront of our mind.

Student Learning Environment
Student Learning Outcomes

Students who graduate from the College Student Personnel program at Western Illinois University will be able to:

  • Describe the concepts and principles of student development and learning theories that advance intrapersonal, interpersonal, and cognitive complexity;
  • Articulate histories, values, and philosophies of higher education;
  • Identify approaches to address contemporary issues facing higher education;
  • Define and assess organizational and human resources including, but not limited to: policies, practices, procedures, and structures;
  • Gather, apply, and deploy methods of research and assessment to improve, shape, and benefit student learning and higher education; and
  • Demonstrate leadership (as a role and process) to create learning environments (virtual or in-person) that support the inclusion of all students and members of campus communities while attending to issues of privilege, power, and oppression.

Higher Education Leadership Track (Quad Cities)

The CSP program is grounded in our belief that people and organizations grow through an experiential process that is mutually shaped, socially constructed, and historically situated. In small cohort-based classes you will discuss, question, experiment, research, wrestle with, and debate the issues, and the roots of those issues, that face student affairs professionals. Faculty and student affairs professionals across campus partner with you in this process. And, your cohort coming from a wide range of student affairs experience, locations, and backgrounds, add another layer of learning and growing during your time in the program.

The CSP program emphasizes the ACPA/NASPA Professional Competencies in the classroom and practical experiences, and meets the standards established by the Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) for student affairs programs. Providing quality education in student affairs and higher education leadership is at the forefront of our mind.

The Higher Education Leadership courses are offered in a hybrid format (75% online, 25% in-person meetings three Saturdays per semester) at the WIU-Quad Cities campus in Moline, Illinois. This blend of synchronous and asynchronous learning allows our students to continue working in their full-time positions at colleges and universities while simultaneously earning their Masters degree.


Admission Requirements  |  Degree Requirements  |  Course Descriptions  |  Graduate Catalog - College Student Personnel

Classroom Projects

Institutional Site Visit

During the first semester in the CSP Program, you will enroll in CSP 554: Organization and Administration of Student Affairs. This class provides a macro view of colleges and universities including governing boards, organizational structure, institutional leadership, and how student affairs as a field fits into organizational structures. (Being able to analyze organizational structures and institutional leadership helps you advocate for students and funding in your future professional roles!) To help diversity your perspective of structural options, increase your awareness of the impact on student affairs functions, and refine your analytical skills, you and your classmates select, visit, and interview professionals at a college or university of your choice including the Chief Student Affairs Officer. Past institutions groups have visited include the University of Wisconsin at Madison, the University of Missouri, and the University of Iowa!

Classroom Projects
What Students Say About Site Visits

"Our site visit was a great experience all around, and we really enjoyed the practitioners and students we met and conversed with. During our visit to the University of Kansas, we learned a lot about the operations of their campus, ranging from their advising center procedures to their unique student Code of Conduct. We met with three different functional areas and the Vice President of Student Affairs. It gave me a broader perspective of how varying student affairs can be on a certain campus and I appreciated going through this experience with my group."

Laura Casey ‘20

“My site visit group chose to attend the University of Wisconsin at Madison! Only having significant administrative experience working at Western, a mid-sized school, it was so interesting to see how a Big 10 school ran things. Our group also met up with all of the CSP alumni currently working at UW Madison and we had an amazing lunch connecting over CSP, Western, and our experiences in Macomb. Overall it was a great experience!”

Erin Childers ‘21

"Having the opportunity to meet with an array of Student Affairs professionals through our virtual site visit with Iowa State University was an eye-opening experience. Although not in-person due to COVID-19, I left our discussions with a great understanding of the Universityand their Student Affairs philosophy."

Eiran Saucedo-Rodarte ‘22

Program Intervention

One favorite project of both the faculty and the students is the program intervention you will do in your third semester CSP 597: Theory to Practice I course! In this course, you will spend the whole semester putting together an intervention to support the success of a specific student population. In addition to putting together an intervention, students also create a plan to access student learning based on your intervention. This year some intervention titles included: Each Other's Keepers: A Hazing Prevention Workshop for Fraternity and Sorority Life Students, Programming and Policy Across SOGI Spectrum, and Learn to Thrive, Not Survive: Mental Health for Graduate Students.

"Begin Changing"

A highlight during the third semester is CSP 555: Advising & Helping Skills where you examine the major theories of counseling and gain an understanding of basic counseling skills in the college student personnel setting. While seemingly minor, one on-going project throughout the course is to “make a change about yourself”. In addition to changing, you keep a journal on the experiences while going through this change. One of the course objectives is to develop self-awareness about personal attitudes as well as emotional disposition, and engage consistently in reflection on this process.

“This assignment is important for perspective taking. We ask other people to make changes all the time without a good understanding of the stages of change and how ambivalence influences motivation. When we live it, we know it. This first-hand knowledge allows us to normalize ambivalence and relapse thus reducing shame around change.”

- Amy Buwick
Adjunct Faculty & Director of the University Counseling Center

Graduate Assistantships and Practica Experiences

Graduate assistantship and practicum experiences align with the theory-to-practice value philosophy of the College Student Personnel (CSP) program. While holding an assistantship each semester and participating in one semester-long practicum is the requirement, you will have the opportunity and support to engage in 5 professional work experiences with 1,500+ hours of training including: 2 year-long graduate assistantship placements, two practica experience, and a summer internship. These opportunities enable you to fully engage in the learning process. You will apply theories and concepts gained in the classroom to real-life student affairs work on a daily basis. By participating in graduate assistantships and practica experiences, you gain professional skills, concepts, and knowledge to become outstanding student affairs practitioners who possess the knowledge and skills to facilitate the learning and development of students.

Look below for a full listing of graduate assistantships with position descriptions and a listing of practicum experiences typically completed by CSP students.

Graduate Assistantships

The CSP program offers assistantship opportunities in a wide range of student affairs and academic affairs offices throughout campus. During the second year of the program, you enroll in CSP 597 Theory to Practice I and CSP 598 Theory to Practice II. These academic courses support you through the assistantship experience and provide an academic curriculum to enhance the learning and professional work experience tackling subjects such as program/event development and program assessment.  (See Course Descriptions)

As a full-time assistant, you work 20 hours per week and receive a monthly stipend and waiver of tuition. The current graduate assistant stipend amount is $943 per month or $7,544 per academic year. Graduate assistantships in University Housing and Dining Services additionally offer room and board benefits.

Examples of graduate assistantship opportunities:

  • Academic Advisor in University Advising and Academic Services Center
  • Centennial Honors College Graduate Assistant
  • Assistant Complex Director in University Housing and Dining Services
  • Greek Life Advisor in Office of Student Activities
  • LGBTQA Resource Center Graduate Assistant
  • Office of Admissions Graduate Assistant
  • Office of Study Abroad Graduate Assistant
  • Women's Center Graduate Assistant

Click here to see all graduate assistantship opportunities typically held by CSP students and the related position descriptions.

Click here to see the School of Graduate Studies graduate assistantship policies and information.

Practica Experiences

Practica experiences are an opportunity for you to gain additional experience in a new area of student affairs or academic affairs, and take place in the Spring semester of the first year and the Fall semester of the second year. During the first practicum experience, you work an average of 10 hours per week in an area of student affairs unrelated to your assistantship either on-campus or at a nearby institution (Spoon River Community College, Knox College, Monmouth College, Carl Sandburg College) while enrolled in CSP 561 Practicum in Student Affairs. During the optional second practicum experience, you design your own experience to reflect your personal goals and interests.   (See Course Descriptions)

Examples of practicum experiences:

  • Open House Coordinator with Undergraduate Admissions
  • Advisor for University Union Advisory Board
  • Advisor for Alternative Spring Break
  • Teaching Assistant for CSP or Undergraduate Courses
  • Coordinator of testing services in Disability Resource Center
  • Hearing officer with Judicial Programs
  • TRIO Advisor

Summer Internship Experience

Many students in the CSP program participate in a summer internship that builds and expands their skills for student affairs work. Some students use structured internship search resources like those provided by NODA: Association for Orientation, Transition, and Retention in Higher Education and ACUHO-I: Association of College and University Housing Officers International while others explore and secure internships using personal, alumni, and faculty resources.

Summer Internship Experiences

  • Housing and Dining Services, Wayne State University (MI)
  • Summer Camps and Conferences, Colorado Mesa University (CO)
  • Upward Bound Program, Western Kentucky University (KY)
  • Office of Student Leadership and Involvement, Suffolk University (MA)
  • Pre-College Programs, Rhode Island School of Design (RI)
  • Residential Life, Joffrey Academy of Dance (IL)
  • Residence Life, California State- Saint Marcos (CA)
  • Orientation, East Carolina University (SC)
  • Residential Life - Marketing,Texas Tech University (TX)
  • Office of Fraternity & Sorority Life, Miami University (OH)
  • Residential Life, Oregon State University (OR)
  • Orientation, John Jay College of Criminal Justice (NY)
  • Summer Bridge Program, University of Maryland Baltimore County (MD)
  • Orientation, Rutgers University-New Brunswick (NJ)

Being a First Time Supervisor

This past summer I had the opportunity to be a student affairs intern at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (Go Vols!) working as an Assistant Conference Manager (a.k.a. Summer Hall Director). As a first-time supervisor, I worked with 16 undergraduate students that were a mix of first-time summer staff workers and folks who served in the same role last year. I started the summer co-supervising the staff with a Hall Director. About three weeks into the summer, there was a slight change in positions and I was given additional responsibilities including solely supervising the 16 staff members and four buildings. With these added responsibilities as a new member on the team, it was challenging to navigate. I was excited for the professional development I was about to embark on as well as nervous at the thought of doing it by myself. After talking with my supervisor about my additional responsibilities, the fear began to disappear as I was reminded of the support system I had in place.

As the summer went on, I began to develop my own supervisory style. I began learning what it meant to have boundaries with my staff. For example, my staff and I would often enjoy a round of milkshakes at a local restaurant but when conversations shifted from appropriate to inappropriate, I had to change the subjects and remind them that I was their supervisor. I also learned about handling personnel conflict. When it came to my staff members having conflict with each other, I spoke with each individual about the issue and then mediated a conversation between them. I was able to remain a neutral party and take on a mediator role – I felt like a true professional!

During my long ten hour drive back to Macomb, I reflected on my summer experience and what I had learned. I learned that I am competent; I want to find a professional balance of having boundaries with my students. Most importantly I was reminded that I love working in Student Affairs. Watching my students grow in a short three months and seeing the passion they had along with my co-interns and supervisors reminded me that I love this field.

Written by: Hayley Remmel

Regardless of the geographic location, type of institution, or office that hosts their internship, the CSP students grow in their understanding of the field, their career path, and their skills through practical experiences like a summer internship that augments their assistantship and practicum during the academic year.

The Cohort Experience

Student Affairs Track (Macomb)

The cohort model is a central component of the CSP experience. Your cohort of approximately 15-21 peers will engage with you in class discussions, study with you at local coffee shops, attend campus events that you plan, and support you to graduation and beyond! Our students come from a variety of backgrounds bringing diverse mindsets and professional experiences. Cohort members come to Western from all over the United States and world. Here at Western, you will be surrounded by new ideas and perspectives.

“My favorite thing about the CSP program here at Western Illinois University is the cohort dynamic. One of my favorite things about this program is to see the growth within the cohort and how much we have come together and how much we've grown together. I love that we challenge each other every day, I love that we ask questions and we come up with new ways of how to better support our students.”

~ Jacob Livingston, CSP: Student Affairs Track Student, Class of 2020




Higher Education Leadership Track (Quad Cities)

CSP: Higher Education Leadership wouldn’t be the same without our cohort experience. The cohort is comprised of 15-22 student affairs professionals who have a variety of experiences and perspectives within the field of higher education. As current professionals, each member brings their knowledge to the class discussions and projects. This real-life application of the classroom concepts is a unique aspect of the program that adds richness, depth, and complexity to student learning. An additional benefit of the cohort model is the opportunity to build professional connections with each other – a built-in network for advancement to mid-level positions upon degree completion. Getting to build connections with these rising professionals from different institutions across the tri-state area is a huge benefit to the program and cohort experience.