Nipissing University has identified the development of graduate programmes as a strategic direction. Nipissing has over ten years of delivering a part-time master's program in Education, and this has provided a considerable amount of experience in administering graduate programming. The expansion of graduate degrees to Arts and Science, as well as the expansion within Education into a full-time program, is part of the natural evolution of Nipissing University. In order to ensure that Nipissing will expand and develop graduate programmes that meet the high standards of quality expected of Canadian graduate studies, the School of Graduate Studies has established the appropriate administrative structure to manage all graduate programmes. The School of Graduate Studies, in conjunction with the Senate, is providing the institutional due diligence to ensure that Nipissing graduate degrees have national and international credibility.