Summary
The Ph.D. in Instructional Leadership for Changing Populations prepares graduates to provide instructional leadership for linguistically and culturally non-mainstream learners and conduct research that will contribute to knowledge and practice in the field. This Program of Study applies the most current, relevant, contemporary scholarship to bear on creating learning environments that improve the academic performance of all students and meets the particular needs of these learners. The Program requires a knowledge core, a research core, comprehensive examinations, and a formal dissertation. The course content includes study of language, learning, and instruction; historical, global, and philosophical perspectives; change theory; and educational policy and legal issues.
Curriculum
Depending on prior graduate work of the student, 45 to 60 credits will be required to complete the degree. Students receiving a grade less than a B in the Ph.D. Program of Study must repeat the class. If they do not earn a grade of B or better in the repeated class, the student will be withdrawn from the program. Students are required to be enrolled in fall, spring, and summer or request a leave of absence.
Introductory Course (must be taken in the first or second semester of the program)
Language and Learning
Philosophical Perspectives
Leadership for Changing Populations
Research Core
Special Interest Area
Students select any two graduate level courses related to an area of special interest.
Dissertation Continuation
*Students requiring EDU 800 enrollment beyond four semesters must request extension through their advisor.
Comprehensive Examinations
Comprehensive exams will be administered after all coursework is completed and candidates are registered for EDU 800. Three written examinations will be administered generally covering some or all of the topics below:
- Philosophy
- Higher Education
- Research/Methodology
- The candidates’ selected dissertation topic
- Any combination of the above
Candidates will be given two weeks to complete the exams. While completing the exams candidates may use outside resources such as textbooks, notes, and other publications. Plagiarized work, including the use of AI technology, will not be accepted and will result in dismissal from the program.
All exams are read and evaluated by the candidate’s dissertation committee consisting of three members. Candidates may receive a high pass, pass, or failure for each exam, and may retake a failed exam once. A follow up oral clarification may be offered to a student retaking an exam when the readers request additional clarification of the response before finalizing the score. Decisions made by faculty on exams are final. There are no appeals of scores on comprehensive exams.
Students who do not pass all three exams by the second attempt may choose to graduate with the Certificate in Advanced Studies in Education (CASE) Education Specialist (Ed.S.) credential. The Ed.S. is a professional credential in the U.S. that is designed to demonstrate knowledge and theory in the field of education beyond the master's degree level.
Following the successful completion of the comprehensive exams, doctoral students move on to complete their dissertation.
Dissertation
The dissertation is the culmination of the student’s doctoral studies. In this scholarly work of original and independent research, the student addresses a problem or issue relevant to education, conducts research that is quantitative, qualitative, or historical/philosophical (depending on the chosen subject), and develops a dissertation that adds knowledge to the field.
Advancement to Candidacy
Once the School of Education Ph.D. Committee approves the dissertation proposal, the student is considered a Ph.D. Candidate. The student then applies to the University IRB for approval of the research. This approval must be granted before the candidate can conduct the research.
Submission of the Dissertation
The candidate submits drafts of the dissertation to the dissertation Chair and readers for suggestions and review throughout the process of reading and writing. When the candidate, advisors, and readers agree that the dissertation is ready for final review by the School of Education Ph.D. Committee, the candidate submits required copies to the PhD Advisor. The committee chair schedule the defense. Manuscripts must follow the format expectations set forth in the Dissertation Handbook and be professionally edited or will not be accepted by the Committee.
Dissertation Defense
The candidate defends the dissertation before the committee. The defense must be successfully completed by May 1 for May graduation or by December1 for December graduation. These are firm deadlines.
Candidates are expected to defend their dissertation within two years of being admitted to candidacy. If a candidate fails to defend a dissertation within this timeline, the candidate must appeal to the Dean, School of Education, for an extension of time.
The chair of committee schedules a date for the final defense. The candidate works with the chair to prepare a 60-minute presentation, 40 minutes for the presentation and 20 minutes for questions and answers. The defense audience includes members of the candidate’s dissertation committee, the University Ph.D. Committee, faculty, and other doctoral students. The candidate may also invite a small group of family, friends, and/or colleagues to attend. The candidate responds to questions about the purpose, methods of research, key findings, and the significance of the dissertation study. Following this defense the dissertation committee decides to approve the dissertation or to recommend changes.