I'm interested in developing research skills in a formal academic environment, but I'm not ready to re-enroll in a PhD yet. I thought an MRes might be a good compromise. Unfortunately it doesn't seem like there are a lot out there. Capitol Technology University offers several: Master's Degrees | Capitol Technology University | Washington D.C. & Maryland Area But as the MRes is more of a British degree I suspect that the institutions offering it are generally not choosing to deliver it online. Anyone know of any?
I thought there were plenty of MRes degrees via distance learning from the UK. The program is more for the UK-based school than the US. University of Leicester's Research Master in Business and Management. URL: https://le.ac.uk/courses/business-and-management-mres-dl/2025 University College London (UCL)'s Research Master h in Social URL: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-students/graduate/taught-degrees/social-research-mres University of Stirling's Research Master in Health URL: https://www.stir.ac.uk/courses/pg-taught/health-research-online/ Queen Margaret University's Master of Research in ? URL: https://www.qmu.ac.uk/study-here/postgraduate-research-study/2025/master-of-research University of Winchester's Master of Research in Health Science URL: https://www.winchester.ac.uk/study/Postgraduate/Courses/MRes-Health-Science/ The University of Manchester's Master of Research in Public health URL: https://www.manchester.ac.uk/study/masters/courses/list/05995/mres-public-health-web-based-learning/all-content/
Random, found some MLitt programs recently https://on.abdn.ac.uk/degrees/christianity-and-the-visual-arts/ https://on.abdn.ac.uk/degrees/philosophy-and-society/ https://on.abdn.ac.uk/degrees/scottish-heritage/ not that expensive, about 15k USD++
Would any of these work? Research Methods, Measurement, and Evaluation - UConn https://researchmethodsmasters.online.uconn.edu/ Social Research and Data Analysis - Montclair State https://www.montclair.edu/online/graduate-degrees/ma-in-social-research-and-analysis/ Educational Research - Georgia State https://www.gsu.edu/program/ms-educational-research-online/ Operations Research - Georgia Tech https://www.gatech.edu/academics/degrees/masters/operations-research-online-degree-ms Educational Research, Evaluation and Assessment - Northern Illinois https://www.niu.edu/online/graduate-programs/ms-educational-research-evaluation.shtml
Don't sleep on the Educational Research program from Liberty. You could exit at an EdS with the option to top up to a PhD. And note their tuition discounts (first responder including some part-time and volunteer roles, small-business worker, etc.)
Raises a question I've had over the years. UK Masters degrees aren't all alike. The M.Litt. is a higher degree than the earned M.A. and the M.Phil. is a higher degree yet. (Trust the Brits to make things complicated.) So if a U.S. student earns an M.Litt. or M. Phil, how do you note that in your CV so as to show that it's more than the usual Masters?
Clearly my Google-fu failed me on this - thanks everyone for all these replies! I think my mistake was search for "online program" when the better term would have been "distance learning", and looking specifically for an MRes when the skills I want could be found in a variety of programs. I'm going to take some time to evaluate these.
Also, the University of Bradford has research degrees for the following subjects: Accounting, Finance, and Economics Business and Management Computer Science Development Studies Film Studies Health Studies Law Peace Studies Psychology Social Work and Social Care Sociology and Criminology URL: https://www.bradford.ac.uk/postgraduate/research-degrees/distance-learning-research-degrees/ And the University of York URL: https://www.york.ac.uk/study/online-distance-learning/courses/
Generally I'd say you don't. Most employers really don't care, if I'm being completely honest. Employers, for the most part, ensure that a degree requirement is met. Outside of maybe your first 1-3 jobs, your degree matters less and less and your experience, now that you have some, matters more along with what skills you possess that will allow you to step into a role. I didn't become more marketable with my MBA than I was with my MSM. Both check the same box. My years of experience (some of which was in specialized areas) is what makes me marketable. The distinction between these graduate degrees matters very little outside of academia that to try and use it as a flex in the private sector is writing a recipe for making your resume look weird. It's the same thing I tell people who panic unnecessarily over Cornell's very commons Master of Professional Studies (MPS) degrees. Employees worry that their MPS isn't as prestigious as an MA or an MS. Fortunately for them, nobody cares. And the type of (non-academic) employer who DOES care is probably not one you want to work for.
