Ed.D. in Curriculum & Instruction

• Doctor of Education (Ed. D.) Information

Applications for full-time, on-Grounds study are due on the following date.  Departmental funding is available on a competitive basis.

Fall Start: December 1

Applications for part-time study, on-Grounds or online, are due on the following dates:

Fall Start: April 15

January Start: November 1

June Start: March 15

Decisions will be available 6 weeks after the deadline.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all required materials are submitted by the deadline. Incomplete applications will not be read and may be cancelled if left incomplete. Materials should be tracked using the checklist in the application.

Prerequisites

1. Master’s degree from an accredited institution. 
2. Minimum of three years full-time teaching experience (or equivalent professional experience).

Admissions Requirements

1. At least one recommendation from a current supervisor.
2. GRE scores no more than 5 years old that meet the Curry School’s minimum entrance requirements for doctoral study (153 verbal, 148 quantitative, and a 4.5 analytic writing. Unofficial scores are accepted when applying; however, once admitted official scores will be required. 
3. Goal statement (typically 2-3 pages).
4. Writing sample from the applicant’s masters program.

Get to Know Faculty
Identification of a core faculty member with interests similar to yours is strongly recommended. It is highly encouraged that you directly contact one or more faculty members to discuss your research interests. Please contact faculty via email to set up a time to talk either over the phone or in person.

The Ed.D. can be earned on a full time or part time basis either online or on-grounds.

• Full time students will ordinarily complete the program in 3 years, although some full time students may take longer to complete requirements, depending upon internships and other responsibilities.
• Part time students experience a variety in how long the program lasts, however, individual students will not exceed the 7-year time to degree limit.

Students must be enrolled continuously at the University during the fall and spring semesters while working toward the Ed.D. degree. If circumstances require a pause in forward progress, students must petition to take a formal leave of absence from the program. Except in limited circumstances, taking the leave of absence does not extend the time limits for completing the degree.

Departmental Funding

Departmental funding is available on a competitive basis to full-time on-grounds students. Funding for Ed.D. students is limited to three years. 

Federal Financial Aid

Students may apply for federal financial aid, including work study.  Information can be found at Student Financial Services.

Doctoral candidates will work with their assigned advisor to select 12 credit hours in an "area of emphasis" that best suits their individual needs and professional goals.

Curriculum & Instruction

Science Education

Instructional Technology

English Language Learner Education

Reading Education

Gifted Education

Social Foundations of Education

Special Education

The Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction requires a minimum of 72 hours, consisting of:

• Eighteen (18) semester hour core requirement
• Minimum of eighteen (18) semester hours in research
• Twelve (12) semester hours of courses in a supporting area (area of emphasis)
• Six (6) semester hours of electives
• Six (6) semester hours internship requirement, typically beginning in the student’s second year of full-time study
• Twelve (12) additional credits related to the final capstone project.

Of the Curry required classes, 36 hours must be completed after admission to the Curriculum & Instruction Ed.D. program. There are no residency requirements.

EDIS 5422: Education Across Cultures

EDIS 7025: Teachers as Leaders

EDIS 7035: Professional Knowledge

EDIS XXXX: Instruction: Advanced Seminar (TBA)

EDIS 8082: Curriculum: Advanced Seminar

EDIS 7810: K12 Assessment

EDLF 8382: Educational Inquiry for Practitioners

EDLF 5301: Academic Writing Lab (register for this first)

EDLF 8383: Qualitative Inquiry with Data Management & Analysis

EDLF 8384: Qualitative Lab of Practice

EDLF 8385: Survey Inquiry for Practitioners with Data Management & Analysis

EDLF 8386: Survey Lab of Practice

EDLF 8387: Practical Evaluation for Practitioners

EDIS XXXX: Reading Research and Policy

The required research courses must be completed prior to the preliminary examination.

Student should work with the assigned advisor to determine which courses are most appropriate to achieve program goals. The areas of emphasis and the associated courses are listed below:

Curriculum and Instruction (Choose four classes)

• EDIS 5025: Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
• EDIS 8800: Principles of Curriculum Design
• EDIS 7230: Curriculum for the Gifted and Talented
• EDIS 5470: ESL Assessment and Curriculum Design
• EDIS 7000: Introduction to Instructional Design
• EDIS 7930: Differentiated Instruction
• EDIS 7820: Creativity and Problem Solving

Instructional Technology Area of Emphasis (Choose four classes)

• EDIS 7000: Introduction to Instructional Design
• EDIS 5075: Online Instructional Procedures
• EDIS 7010: Courseware Tools
• EDIS 7072: Performance Improvement
• EDIS 7076: Technology Learning Systems and Culture
• EDIS 7070: Instructional Materials Design

Gifted Area of Emphasis (Choose four classes)

• EDIS 7220: Introduction to the Gifted
• EDIS 7250: Models and Strategies for Teaching the Gifted
• EDIS 7270: Differentiation of Instruction for Gifted Learners
• EDIS 7230: Curriculum for the Gifted and Talented
• EDIS 5000: Exceptional Learner
• EDIS 7280: Creativity and Problem Solving

Reading Area of Emphasis (Choose four classes)

• EDIS 7700: Introduction to Instructional Design
• EDIS 7720: Word Study
• EDIS 7710: Content Area Reading
• EDIS 7751: Literacy Leadership and Coaching
• EDIS 5760: Adolescent Literacy

English Language Learners (Choose four classes)

• EDIS 5423: English Linguistics
• EDIS 5424: K-12 ESL Methods & Second Language Acquisition
• EDIS 5470: ESL Assessment & Curriculum Design
• EDIS 5270: Reading & Writing Instruction for ELLs
• EDIS 7700: Foundations of Reading Instruction

Applied Behavior Analysis Area of Emphasis (Choose four classes)

Students complete 6 credit hours of internship (EDIS 9995 - Internship) after the completion of 24 hours of course credits. The internship requires 200 clock hours of applied work in a professional setting related to the area of their developing expertise. Students can complete the internship in 3 credit increments (100 clock hours) over two semesters or during one intensive semester of 6 credits (200 clock hours). Students create an internship portfolio which is juried by faculty as the assessment for this program requirement.

Students complete a minimum of 12 credit hours of supervised capstone research (EDIS 9991 – Capstone Research) that is completed in conjunction with the advisor and the student’s capstone committee. Program completion requires successful passage of the written capstone and oral defense.

Students enroll in 12 capstone hours total. The distribution of these credits are:

• EDIS 9991-Comprehensive Examination (1 credit)
• EDIS 9991-Capstone Proposal & Defense (1 credit)
• EDIS 9991-Capstone Project & Defense (1 credit)
• EDIS 9991-Capstone Research (9 credit)

Up to 24 credits from a current master’s degree may be applied toward the Ed.D. (if earned within five (5) years of application to the program, and provided the program area determines that the courses are relevant to the doctoral program.) Initial decisions about transferring credits are made in conjunction with the student’s advisor upon entering the program. Final decisions are made in concert with the program committee.

University of Melbourne students who have completed the Clinical Teaching Master's Degree are also eligible to transfer 24 credits (100 credit points) into the Ed.D. program and can discuss details with their admissions coach and/or advisor. 

Doctoral students in good standing will take a preliminary examination after a minimum of 12 semester hours (in the middle of the second semester of full time study or after four courses for part-time study). 

The purpose of the examination is to ensure student proficiency in key skills of synthesizing research literature, effective writing, and oral presentation necessary for advanced-level doctoral studies. After the examination, the committee recommends one of the following:

• The student continues in the program without contingencies;
• The student continues in the program with contingencies;
• The student is advised to apply for transfer to another program; or
• The student is advised to discontinue her/his doctoral study.

All Ed.D. students are required to complete 12 semester hours of unpaid service focused on solving a persistent problem of practice in the field of Curriculum & Instruction. The internship is typically completed in the second year of full time study and after 24 semester hours for part-time students. The internship requires:

• An application;
• Internship portfolio;
• Presentation to faculty and students; and
• Evaluation of the internship’s goals from both the student and the internship supervisor in the field. 

Students complete a comprehensive examination during or immediately following the final semester of their doctoral coursework. Students must pass the comprehensive examination before proposing their capstone research. 

The comprehensive examination is designed to assess students’ ability to apply their accumulated knowledge to a real-world practical and scholarly task, such as developing a set of core courses for a teacher education program, submitting a single authored manuscript for publication, or conducting a pilot program evaluation. Projects are designed with input from the advisor and approval by the student’s doctoral program committee. The work on the comprehensive examination should contribute to a student's growing professional agenda; it can build on previous work, but it is not duplicative of previous scholarly efforts or course activities. Students who are not successful with the comprehensive examination are given one opportunity to rewrite the exam for reconsideration.

All Ed.D. students will complete a capstone proposal and project.

The purpose of the capstone project is to provide prospective practitioner-scholars with a supervised opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and understandings that they have acquired in their course of study. Ed.D. students are expected to identify a problem of importance to practitioners and apply what they have learned (i.e., use-inspired disciplined inquiry) in order to address the problem. The capstone will build on this inquiry to develop and make recommendations regarding practices, programs, and/or policies and will communicate the results of this inquiry and development to appropriate audiences.

Guidelines and the rubric for the preliminary examination, as well as additional information on doctoral assessments, can be found in the Curriculum and Instruction Ed.D. Student Handbook.