Educational Administration
Doctor of Philosophy
Description
The PhD in Educational Administration is designed for education professionals who wish to enhance their skills in order to stay relevant and become more valuable to their organizations. It can be completed in 3-4 years online or on campus. The program is highly flexible and is designed to accommodate working professionals.
It starts with a thorough grounding in theory and disciplinary insights from several areas that are relevant to the advanced understanding of educational administration, including education, industrial and organizational psychology, leadership, environmental sciences, sociology, law, management, and economics. Students will be required to take coursework in these areas during their initial years of study. Students will gain mastery over areas including curriculum design, assessments, online teaching, student success, educational technology, and data analysis. The program also develops advanced academic writing skills via a dedicated course and other resources. Students also gain a strong core of knowledge in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods of research.
The program equips students to work with their faculty advisors to write a dissertation in educational administration and contribute original scholarship to the discipline. Each student is assigned to a dissertation committee composed of faculty who will work closely with the student to develop a research proposal, gain IRB approval, and then author original work.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to critically assess theories, principles, and practices applicable to educational administration.
- Synthesize existing knowledge in the discipline of education and its management with a goal to create improvements for theory and practice.
- Gain mastery of the techniques of research and their application in the fields of education and its administration.
- Design and conduct scholarly research in the field of educational administration.
- Demonstrate the ability to conduct original research and communicate it to relevant stakeholders in multiple formats.
Admissions Requirements
- Completed application
- Master's degree in education or a related discipline
- Current resume
- Writing sample or purpose statement
- Official transcripts from previously attended institutions
Degree Requirements
- The maximum time limit to complete the program is seven years or 150% of the credits, whichever the student reaches first.
- A minimum of 37 credit hours must be completed at CU.
- Up to 50% of the required credit hours can be transferred into the program.
- Graduation is contingent upon the completion of 73 hours of prescribed courses with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 and no more than one C. Students must complete all coursework, pass the written comprehensive examination, and successfully write, present, and defend their dissertation.
- Continuous enrollment (a minimum of one course per semester) is required Fall, Spring, and Summer semesters.
- In the event of extenuating circumstances, a PhD student may request in writing one Leave of Absence of up to two semesters. A PhD student who remains inactive for longer than two semesters must reapply to the program. Special accommodations will be extended for military deployments. The LOA does not “stop the clock” on the 7-year time limit for degree completion.