Program Requirements
The Doctor of Philosophy degree in Curriculum and Instruction is a research degree that prepares students to become scholars who can discover, integrate and apply knowledge, as well as communicate and disseminate it. The intent of the program is to prepare students to make significant original contributions to knowledge in specialized fields. The program prepares students in one of the following specialty concentrations: Early Childhood Education; Mathematics Education; Science Education; and Social Studies and Educational Foundations. These areas provide a general structure of coursework selections and research emphases; however, students are encouraged to work with faculty to design programs uniquely fitted to their areas of interest. The program of study for the degree is determined by the student’s advisory committee.
Every doctoral student must satisfy all requirements of the Graduate School, as well as requirements in coursework, internships, the comprehensive exam, the dissertation proposal and oral defense of the dissertation as directed by the student’s advisory committee. Students must maintain a B average in all graduate work. The degree usually requires a minimum of 65 credit hours beyond the master’s degree, selected from the areas prescribed by the requirements of the PhD in Curriculum and Instruction. Listed below are the guidelines or normal expectations for a student receiving the PhD degree; however, the final determination of the course of study is made by the advisory committee.
Graduate courses designated for professional development are not eligible to be used toward a graduate degree.
A minimum of three to six hours of internship is required as part of each specialty area. An internship of sufficient time and quality of experiences to warrant three to six semester hours of graduate credit must be planned and executed to the satisfaction of the student’s advisory committee. Specialty areas require 6-18 credits in courses outside the College of Education. This approved coursework is intended to provide a concentration within the specialty area and/or exposure to disciplines outside the College of Education.
Admission Requirements
A complete application package should include proof of a master’s degree, undergraduate and graduate transcripts, GRE scores, a résumé showing relevant professional experiences and a personal statement of professional history, goals and aspirations. Candidates passing initial committee review are invited for an interview. Students whose native language is not English must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL, IELTS or PTE). Applications will be reviewed beginning January 15 for fall admission and August 15 for spring admission; and will be accepted for consideration until April 15 for fall admission and October 1 for spring admission.
Core Requirement Goals
The student will be able to critically analyze social, historical, psychological, personal and policy factors in the development and current practices of curriculum and instruction; acquire an understanding of the research processes including practical design, analysis and reporting; understand how to use historical, correlational, descriptive and experimental methods within research; be able to analyze critically and evaluate research reports; and be able to prepare scholarly, research-based reports and presentations.
Course Requirements
The Curriculum and Instruction Program requirements are as follows:
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