Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (EdD)

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Graduate Study at USI >> Pott College of Science, Engineering, and Education

60 Credit hours

The Ed.D. in Educational Leadership at the University of Southern Indiana is a cohort program based on a practitioner-scholar, community-based model. The purpose of the program is to transform leaders, organizations, and communities through focused, flexible study addressing real-world problems and issues. A unique characteristic of the program is a curriculum in which each course is community-based, i.e. course content is connected to the graduate student’s community. Academic study is connected to concepts, issues, and content that are familiar, understandable, accessible, and personally relevant to each student. In each course, students will apply learning in practical real-life settings.

The program includes a 6-hour leadership core, a 12-hour research sequence, the choice of a 27-hour concentration in school district administrative leadership, higher education administrative leadership, or pedagogical leadership, and a 15-hour dissertation sequence. The school district administrative leadership and pedagogical leadership specializations include an internship. All students must successfully complete a comprehensive portfolio and dissertation in practice. The program is cohort based, with fall-only admission.

Graduate Studies Admission Criteria and Application Process

Refer to the Admission section of the bulletin for information about Graduate Studies admission criteria and the online application process.

EdD Program Admission Requirements

To be considered for admission to the Ed.D. program, the following are required:

A list of 3 references (names, relation to you and email address). One must be an employment supervisor and the other two must be professional references.
A current resume/curriculum vitae. The file should be a PDF and use the following naming convention: First Name Last Name EdD resume.pdf (example: Joe Smith EdD resume.pdf).
A second PDF answering the following questions:

How do you foresee this program positively impacting your community?
What do you perceive as a major social justice issue in your field? How do you hope to address it?
How will your work contribute to equitable outcomes in education?
Imagine yourself in 5 years from now/after you graduate, what do you see yourself doing professionally and with whom will you be working with?

Curriculum (60 Credits)

Educational Leadership Core (6 credits)

EDLE 725 - Becoming a Community-Based Educational Leader Credits: 3
EDLE 731 - Analyzing Race, Class, and Gender Dynamics in American Education Credits: 3

Research Methods (12 credits)

EDLE 705 - Introduction to Educational Research Credits: 3
EDLE 706 - Survey of Quantitative Research Methods Credits: 3
EDLE 707 - Survey of Qualitative Research Methods Credits: 3
EDLE 708 - Advanced Research Design and Methods Credits: 3

Specialization (27 credits)

Choose one specialization:

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (EdD)

Graduate Studies Admission Criteria and Application Process

EdD Program Admission Requirements

Curriculum (60 Credits)

Educational Leadership Core (6 credits)

Research Methods (12 credits)

Specialization (27 credits)

School District Administrative Leadership

Higher Education Administrative Leadership

Pedagogical Leadership

Dissertation (15 Credits)