The program of studies, i.e., the courses and curriculum for the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership, is a minimum of 54 credit hours, made up of 4 parts:
- 12 hours of core and foundational courses;
- 21 hours of leadership, skills and dispositions courses;
- 18 hours of research and methods courses, including the dissertation course;
- at least 3 hours of elective courses.
Courses are offered in the evenings during the fall and spring terms. Most students are part-time and typically take two courses per term. Classes are scheduled so that many students take two classes in one evening (e.g., on Thursday night, a class from 4 to 6:50 p.m. and another class from 7 to 9:50 p.m.).
If you do not have a master’s degree in educational leadership or school administration, you are required to take a minimum of 9 additional M.S.A. credits.
A list of required courses is below. See your advisor for the class sequencing for your cohort.
Core and Foundational Courses
- EDUC 831: School Law, 3 hrs
- EDUC 832: Educational Politics and Policy, 3 hrs
- EDUC 834: Organizational Behavior and Theory in Education, 3 hrs
- EDUC 866: Policy to Practice, 3 hrs
Leadership, Skills and Dispositions Courses
- EDUC 833: Development and Systems Leadership, 3 hrs
- EDUC 840: Advanced Leadership Theories, 3 hrs
- EDUC 844: Advanced Seminar and Supervised Internship in Educational Administration, 6 hrs
- EDUC 835: Instructional Leadership for Supervision, Curriculum and Technology, 3 hrs
- EDUC 836: School Finance and Economic Equity, 3 hrs
- EDUC 837: Cultural Aspects of Leadership and Instruction in School Reform, 3 hrs
Research and Methods Courses
- EDUC 710: Statistical Analysis of Educational Data I, 3 hrs
- EDUC 841: Development of a Research Proposal, 3 hrs
- EDUC 830: Field Techniques in Educational Research, 3 hrs
- EDUC 994: Doctoral Dissertation, 6 hrs
- Advanced Research Elective
Suggested Research Electives
Choose one
- EDUC 713: Tests and Measurements, 3 hrs
- EDUC 829: Applied Measurement Theory for Education, 3 hrs
- EDUC 784: Statistical Analysis of Educational Data II, 3 hrs
- EDUC 785: Program Evaluation in Education, 3 hrs
- EDUC 871: Seminar in Education, 3 hrs
- EDUC 868: Advanced Qualitative Analysis and Interpretation, 3 hrs
Optional M.S.A. Courses
If you do not hold a master’s degree in educational leadership or school administration, you are required to take a minimum of 9 additional M.S.A. credits (for a total of 63 credit hours).
You may choose courses from those listed below or (with approval) transfer up to 9 M.S.A or Educational Leadership credits from another accredited institution.
- EDUC 724: Parental/Community Engagement for the School Executive, 3 hrs
- EDUC 725: Supervisory Practice for the School Executive, 3 hrs
- EDUC 730: Curriculum Leadership, 3 hrs
- EDUC 759: Problems in Educational Leadership I, 3 hrs
- EDUC 741: School-Based Inquiry and Reform, 3 hrs
- EDUC 750: Managing Schools within a District Context, 3 hrs
- EDUC 731: Problems in Educational Leadership II, 3 hrs