Degree Requirements: 39-69 Graduate Credit Hours

39-69 Graduate Credit Hours beyond Master’s including Dissertation (30-60 Graduate Credit Hours of coursework, including a minimum of 9 Dissertation Credit Hours).

Admission Requirements

1. Select a concentration: Higher Education Leadership or P-12 Educational Leadership
2. Complete requirements for a master’s degree or higher from a college or university accredited by an appropriate institutional accreditor.
   • Higher Education Leadership candidates:
     1. For admission to Stage I, candidates must possess a master’s degree. For admission to Stage II, candidates must possess a terminal degree in a related field.
   • P-12 Educational Leadership candidates:
     1. There is no admission into Stage I. For admission to Stage II, candidates must possess an Ed.S. degree in Educational Leadership or another related field and certification in Educational Leadership - Tier II.
3. Present a minimum grade point average of 3.25 (4.0 scale) in previous graduate work.
4. Submit a current resume or CV that highlights the personal and professional achievements of the applicant.
5. Submit a personal statement of purpose, not to exceed 1000 words, that identifies the applicant’s reasons for pursuing graduate study and how admission into the program relates to the applicant’s professional aspirations.
6. Submit a completed “Disclosure and Affirmation Form” that addresses misconduct disclosure, the Code of Ethics for Educators, and tort liability insurance.
7. Complete a writing sample, if requested. 
8. Complete an interview, if requested.

Enrollment

Continuous enrollment is required throughout Stage III coursework. A minimum of 9 credits of Dissertation (EDLD 9999 ) is required beyond other coursework.  EDLD Ed.D. students must maintain 3 credit hours of continuous enrollment each semester (Fall, Spring, and Summer). In Stage III of the Program (Dissertation), students will need to be continuously enrolled in 3 credit hours of EDLD 9999, with the exception of their final semester in which they are graduating. In that final semester, if a student has previously enrolled in at least 9 credit hours of EDLD 9999 (which are the minimum hours required for the degree), they will be permitted to register for 1 credit hour in that semester. Should a student for any reason need to register for another semester beyond that, they will be required to register for 3 credit hours of EDLD 9999 every semester until they graduate.

Time Limit

Doctoral students admitted to Stage I must pass the Candidacy Exam within six years from the first Ed.D. admission registration term and no later than the last semester of Ed.D. coursework. Doctoral students admitted to Stage II must pass the Candidacy Exam within three years from the first Ed.D. admission registration term and no later than the last semester of Ed.D. coursework. Dissertation must be completed within five years of passing the Candidacy Exam. When extenuating circumstances exist, students may apply for an extension of the time requirement. If an extension is granted, degree requirements must be completed that are consistent with the conditions and terms specified in the time extension notification.

Guidelines for Granting an Extension:

The Ed.D. Program will consider student appeals for a ‘time extension to complete degree requirements’ ONLY for dissertation students who have successfully defended their ‘Prospectus Defense’ within the five-years after passing their Candidacy Exam.  When considering appeals, the Ed.D. Program will review each student’s case individually and give consideration to the following when making the determination if a ‘time extension’ shall be granted and/or what additional requirements the student must meet to remain in the program:

• The dissertation progression made up to the point of being excluded from the program for ‘exceeding the time limit’
• The rationale for why the student has not progressed up to this point with defending their Final Dissertation Defense within the five-year limit
• The length of time that has lapsed since a student has taken research methodology and/or content courses
• The support of the Dissertation Chair and their agreement that the student can realistically defend their Final Dissertation Defense within the timeline should an extension be granted

In order for an appeal to be considered by the Ed.D. Program, a student must discuss their progression with their Dissertation Chair to determine if they will be able to successfully defend/complete their Final Dissertation within the timeframe of an extension of up to two-years.  Assuming they can, in their appeal document, the student must provide a thorough explanation of their dissertation progression up to this point and a detailed breakdown for the proposed timeline of dissertation milestones that is agreed upon by both the student and the Dissertation Chair.  The following information must be submitted for all ‘time extension to complete degree requirements’ appeals and will be verified/discussed with the respective Dissertation Chair:

• Dissertation Committee Members (specifically identifying Chair and other members)
• Succinct description of dissertation progression up to this point (i.e. Defense(s) completed, data collected, data analyzed, writing done, drafts of chapter(s) completed, etc.)
• Explanation of why the student has not completed their Dissertation within the established five-year timeline or subsequent extensions granted, and why they are requesting an extension
• The proposed timeline for completing the following dissertation milestones (if not already completed):

• IRB submission (month/year)
• Data collection (month/year)
• Data analysis (month/year)
• Dissertation Final Defense (month/year)

If granted the one-year extension, the student should successfully defend their Final Defense within that time frame.  Should a student not successfully defend their Final Defense within that year, they will only be considered for an additional/final one year extension if they can demonstrate they have made progress which must include data collection for their study. 

Grade Average

To be eligible for graduation, a student must maintain a cumulative 3.25 grade point average. A student will be excluded from the program upon earning grades of “C” or below in two or more courses.

Candidacy Examinations

A student must pass formal, comprehensive written and/or oral examinations before being admitted to candidacy for the degree. These examinations will be administered in accordance with policies in effect in the College of Graduate Studies and the candidate’s department. The results of the examination(s) will be reported to the College of Graduate Studies. If a student fails the candidacy examination for a second time, they will be removed from the program.

Doctoral Dissertation Paperwork

Upon successful completion of the Candidacy Exam, the student will confirm their committee with their committee chair. In conjunction with their Dissertation Chair, the student is responsible for submitting doctoral paperwork at each stage of the dissertation process.

Program Policies for Dissertation

Dissertation Chairs. Graduate faculty who are on tenured or tenure-track appointments (i.e. Assistant Professors, Associate Professors, and Professors) may serve on Dissertation Committees in the roles of Chair, Content Specialist, and/or Methodologist. Graduate faculty who hold a terminal degree and not on a tenure track (i.e. Instructors, Lecturers, Clinical Specialists, etc.) may serve on Dissertation Committees in the roles of Content Specialist and/or Methodologist.

Dissertation Committee Composition. At least 50% of the members of the dissertation committee must be current faculty members within the College of Education. Additionally, there must be at least one EDLD graduate faculty member on the committee.

Required length of time to submit document/manuscript prior to Defenses. For Pre-Prospectus and Prospectus Defenses, the student must email the document/manuscript for that respective defense to their committee at least two weeks prior to their scheduled defense date. For the Final Defense, the student must email the finalized dissertation manuscript to their committee at least three weeks prior to their scheduled defense date.

Program of Study