UMass Global is launching a new online Master of Arts in Bilingual Education. The program is for educators, emerging leaders, and career-minded professionals who want to better understand what bilingual education is, why it's important, and how schools can better serve multilingual learners and their families.
We spoke with Dr. Weina Chen, an associate professor of bilingual education at UMass Global and the program lead. In her role, she helps shape the overall vision of the school's bilingual education programs, supports course development, and works closely with both faculty and students.
She shared with us the importance of this new program, how students can succeed in it, and more.
Q1: What inspired you or the university to launch this program at this time?
Dr. Weina Chen: We are launching the MA in Bilingual Education at a moment when multilingualism is rapidly reshaping schools and communities, both nationally and internationally. Across the world, schools with bilingual education programs are expanding dual language and bilingual models, yet many still face persistent shortages of well-prepared bilingual teachers and leaders.
At the same time, there is renewed attention to equity, biliteracy, and home-language maintenance, from state seals of biliteracy to broader global calls for mother-tongue-based education. Our master’s degree in bilingual education was designed to respond to these needs by preparing educators who can design strong programs, advocate for multilingual learners, and translate research into classroom-ready practices.
Q2: What kind of students will excel in this program? Are there particular backgrounds, interests, or goals that are a great fit?
Dr. Weina Chen: This program can benefit a broad range of students interested in bilingual and multilingual education, whether they are preparing for a new career, advancing in their current profession, or pursuing future academic study. Our students may be classroom teachers, international educators, instructional coaches, curriculum designers, or program leaders working with bilingual and multilingual learners in schools, community programs, and global education settings.
Students do not need to be bilingual themselves to excel here. English is the primary language of instruction in this master’s in bilingual education online program, and we welcome candidates from across the United States and around the world. Because each cohort brings experience from different countries, school systems, and cultures, students learn not only from faculty, but also from one another’s perspectives, policies, and classroom practices.
Q3: How is this program structured to support adult learners, working professionals, or career changers?
Dr. Weina Chen: The MA in Bilingual Education is intentionally designed for busy adult learners. Courses are fully online, asynchronous, and modular, with clear structures, scaffolded assignments, and flexible pathways through either a cohort model or a self-paced model (coming soon!). That makes this a strong fit for students looking for a master’s degree in bilingual education that can work alongside an already busy schedule.
The program is built so you can connect coursework directly to your own classrooms, communities, and professional context. Signature assessments are designed to help you integrate real work responsibilities into your graduate learning instead of adding unrelated tasks on top of what you already do. Throughout the program, you build artifacts that can immediately inform your practice and serve as evidence for promotion, leadership roles, or new career directions.
Q4: What support services are available to students through this program?
Dr. Weina Chen: Students in this program have access to academic advising, library research support, and faculty mentorship tailored to the needs of multilingual and working professionals.
Within courses, we also embed multiple layers of scaffolding, including staged projects and frequent opportunities for feedback and reflection. The goal is to help candidates build confidence as scholar-practitioners while feeling supported throughout the process.
Q5: What do you hope students take away both professionally and personally?
Dr. Weina Chen: Professionally, I hope graduates leave with strong, practical, research-based knowledge and the confidence to lead change in their own bilingual education contexts. I want them to feel ready to design programs, lead initiatives, and advocate for policies that truly serve multilingual learners and their families.
Personally, I hope the program affirms students’ own linguistic and cultural identities and strengthens their sense of purpose as educators. Many assignments invite candidates to reflect on their language stories, family histories, and community experiences so they can transform those narratives into sources of resilience, empathy, and leadership. To me, that is part of why bilingual education is important: it is not only about instruction, but also about identity, equity, and human connection.
Q6: What excites you most about teaching in this program — or mentoring students through it?
Dr. Weina Chen: I am most excited about watching educators connect complex ideas to the very concrete decisions they make every day in classrooms, schools, and communities. I also love that this program invites students to be creators, not just consumers, of knowledge.
Through meaningful, workforce-related projects, candidates leave with artifacts and materials they created themselves and that can have real impact in their communities. Mentoring students through that process is one of the most rewarding parts of my work. That applied focus is part of what makes bilingual education degree programs especially powerful for educators who want graduate study to translate into real-world change.
If you are ready to deepen your practice, support multilingual learners, and grow as a leader in bilingual education, UMass Global is ready to support your next step. Explore our Master of Arts in Bilingual Education to review courses, admission requirements, and flexible online options — then connect with an enrollment coach at 800-746-0082 to get your questions answered and start your application.
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