DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

The Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) degree is designed to prepare the interested student for advanced professional proficiency in a selected field of education and, in addition, to develop the ability for scholarly study of professional problems. The degree is awarded to those persons who, through their planned program, show professional growth and competence.

The Doctor of Education degree (Ed.D.) is undifferentiated but has five areas of specialization--adult education, educational administration, higher education, recreation, and vocational education.

Admission to the Program

Admission to the Doctor of Education program is based on the total profile of the applicants' educational attributes. In evaluating an application for doctoral study leading to the Ed.D. degree, particular attention is given (1) to the apparent congruence between the stated career objective and the proposed field of specialized study, and (2) to the estimated prospects of the success of the applicant both in completing the degree requirements and in fulfilling the professional expectations of the education position to which the applicant aspires if a doctoral degree is earned. Applicants must meet the following admission profile requirements for the Ed.D.:

1) All students seeking admission must have completed a master's degree or its equivalent in a related field.

2) All students must present a Graduate Record Examinations general score on three parts (verbal, quantitative and analytical) or a Miller Analogies Test score. These scores are considered part of the applicant's profile. Required scores may vary within given programs.

3) Students must have attained a 3.50 cumulative grade-point average on all graduate courses previous to being admitted into the Ed.D. program.

4) Students with a 3.00 to 3.50 cumulative grade-point average in all graduate courses must present a combined minimum Graduate Record Examinations general score of 1500 on three parts (verbal, quantitative and analytical) or 55 on the Miller Analogies Test.

5) All students must have three years of successful professional experience, or equivalent, in an area related to the degree program prior to the completion of the degree.

6) All students must have a minimum of three letters of recommendation (form ORGS-33) from individuals capable of commenting on qualification for graduate study.

Interested applicants must first gain admission to the Graduate School, then be accepted by a program area in education by gaining approval of a majority of the graduate faculty teaching regularly in that program area. This decision is made after the applicant has been interviewed by the program faculty. After program area approval, an applicant's admission form and profile is reviewed by the Committee on Graduate Study in Education. Formal acceptance is based on the recommendation of the Committee on Graduate Study in Education to the Dean of the Graduate School.

Declaration of Intent

Immediately after formal acceptance into the Ed.D. program, students must file with the Dean of the Graduate School a statement of their intention to become a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Education. Courses taken prior to filing the Declaration of Intent cannot be used to satisfy the residence requirement for the Ed.D. degree.

The appointment and responsibility of the Doctoral Advisory Committee for the Doctor of Education degree is the same as that for the Doctor of Philosophy degree (see below).

The degree must be completed within seven consecutive calendar years from the date of the Declaration of Intent.

Residence Requirement

The residence requirement for the Doctor of Education degree may be fulfilled by selecting any one of four plans. This selection must be made in consultation with the adviser, soon after the Declaration of Intent is filed. The plan will specify a number of hours of enrollment and a number of consecutive semesters or terms in which the enrollment must be completed.

In meeting the doctoral residence requirement, candidates who hold a master's degree from the University of Arkansas must earn a minimum of 30 semester hours on the Fayetteville campus; candidates who hold a master's degree from another institution must earn a minimum of 36 semester hours on this campus. The above is exclusive of credit earned in Independent Study; however, three hours of Doctoral Dissertation may be applied toward this requirement. Doctoral students with regular outside employment responsibilities may not enroll for more than nine semester hours in each semester. Graduate work in an off-campus location, beyond that allowed on the master's degree and the Educational Specialist degree, will not count on the minimum of 96 graduate hours required of all Ed.D. candidates.

Program of Study

A minimum of 96 semester hours of graduate study is required for the Ed.D. degree. The program of study shall consist of the major field in education and one or two additional fields of study. The dissertation and program emphasis may be in one of the following areas: adult education; counselor education; educational administration; elementary education; health, physical education, and recreation; higher education; secondary education; special education; and vocational education. The nature of the program of study will vary, depending upon the field selected and the candidate's objective. Candidates for the doctoral degree in every field of education will be required to complete EDFD 6623, Techniques of Research, and EDFD 6413, Experimental Design in Education. Each student is required to elect nine to 12 hours of work in a field other than education.

Other Requirements

The examination for candidacy, dissertation, and final examination requirements for the Doctor of Education degree are the same as those for the Doctor of Philosophy degree (see below).