The purpose of the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree programs is to prepare students for a career in the professoriate as well as for work as a policy analyst, researcher, consultant, or school practitioner. The Ph.D. degree in Educational Leadership requires extensive contact with and immersion in the university research and teaching culture.
The Ph.D. program emphasizes the development of theoretical thinking and knowledge applications in the field of educational leadership.
Admissions
Doctoral students are admitted annually. Each applicant should submit a complete application for admission before the deadline of March 1 for fall admission. (Applications past the deadline will be considered if space allows or due to exceptional circumstances).
Potential applicants should be aware that admission to the UA doctoral programs is a competitive process and that submitting an application does not guarantee admission. In addition to the minimum Graduate School admission requirements, to be considered for regular admission an application must include:
- A Master’s Degree – An earned master’s degree from an accredited institution
- Reference Letters – The application must include three letters of professional and academic reference, including one from a current supervisor.
- Purpose, Rationale, and Career Statement – Students who apply to the Ph.D. degree must provide a convincing written rationale as to why they wish to pursue this degree, and how its focus/purposes are consistent with their career goals. The online option of our Ph.D. program will start in January 2025. Applicants whose interests are deemed inconsistent with this focus/purposes of Ph.D. degree—yet who are otherwise qualified for doctoral study—will be encouraged to apply to the Department’s Ed.D. program. This purpose statement must address the following: (1) the student’s rationale for applying for the Ph.D.; (2) a statement regarding career and professional goals; and (3) a statement of how the student’s rationale and career goals are consistent with the purpose of the Ph.D. degree as articulated by the Department and Program.
- Professional Experience – While for the Ed.D. degree, experience in teaching and or leadership are key factors considered in the admission process, these factors are desirable yet less important for the Ph.D. degree.
- Writing Sample – Applicants are required to include a recent sample (within the last year) of their academic or professional writing.
- An updated resume.
See the Admission Criteria section of this catalog for more information.
Curricular Requirements
A minimum of 66 semester credit hours beyond the master’s degree is required for completion of the Ph.D. program. These hours are distributed as follows:
- Students must successfully complete the 15-hour AEL Core plus 9 additional hours of AEL electives or the advisor-approved equivalent of AEL leadership electives.
- A 9-hour set of Education Foundation courses is also required. Students may take any graduate-level BEF or BEP course and/or any non-research methods courses outside of the AEL Program to fulfill this requirement.
- Students must also complete 15 semester hours of Educational Research (BER) and enroll in a minimum of 18 hours of dissertation AEL 699 Dissertation Research.
Prerequisites
Prior to admission, applicants must provide evidence that they have completed a course in the following areas with the following parameters:
- Special Education Course – Applicants must have taken a special education with a grade of ‘B’ or better.
- Graduate Level Statistics Research Course – In addition, if applicants have not taken BER 540 – Quantitative Methods I (Intro to Statistical Methods) or an acceptable pre-approved masters-level equivalent within the last four years with a grade of ‘B’ or better, then if accepted into the doctoral program, students are required to complete this course before beginning the 12-hour research requirement.
| Educational Leadership, Ph.D. | Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| Educational Leadership Core Courses | ||
| AEL 619 | Politics Of Education | 3 |
| AEL 650 | Organizational Theory | 3 |
| AEL 671 | Survey Instructnl Superv | 3 |
| AEL 675 | Leadership/Organization Improv | 3 |
| AEL 682 | Lead & Org/Theory & Appl | 3 |
| Educational Leadership Electives (Select 3 from the following courses.) | 9 | |
| Educ Fin Theory/Pract | ||
| Superintendency | ||
| Adv Educational Law | ||
| School Partnerships | ||
| Major Issues and Trends | ||
| Ed Policy/Dynamics of Change | ||
| Seminar in Ed Leadership | ||
| or select other courses with advisor approval | ||
| Foundations Courses | 9 | |
| Select 3 from the following courses: | ||
| Educ Theory And Policy | ||
| Studies History Of Education | ||
| Studies Philosophy Education | ||
| Ethics And Education | ||
| Div,Inclu,Equ, Access Inst Tec | ||
| Administrative Technology | ||
| Sem Instructional Technology | ||
| Sem Curriculum Leadership | ||
or select other courses with advisor approval | ||
| Research Courses | 15 | |
| Select 5 courses from the following: | ||
| Survey of Educational Research | ||
| Survey Research In Educ | ||
| Qual Case Study Research | ||
| Inqry As Interp: Qual I | ||
| Adv Statistical Methods in Ed | ||
| Advanced Regression Methods | ||
| Multivariate Statistics | ||
| Structural Equation Modl * | ||
| Exp Res Design: Single Case | ||
BER 657 or | Psychometric Theory | |
| Exp Res Design: Single Case | ||
| Eval I:Theory & Practice | ||
| Evaluation 2 | ||
| Casual Inference ** | ||
| Multilevel & Longitudinal Mod *** | ||
| Dissertation | 18 | |
| Dissertation Research | ||
| Total Hours | 66 | |
| Footnotes | |
|---|---|
| * | Students who want to take BER 646 Structural Equation Modl need to take the following progression: BER 540 Statistical Methods In Educ, BER 640 Adv Statistical Methods in Ed, and BER 643 Multivariate Statistics prior to enrolling in BER 646. |
| ** | Designed for policy and impact evaluation methods. (Course progression/prerequisites: BER 540 Statistical Methods In Educ) |
| *** | Designed to help students conduct dissertations using large secondary data sets. (Course progression/prerequisites: BER 540 Statistical Methods In Educ) |
Transfer Credit
Transfer Parameters on AEL courses – Please note that as of Fall 2019, the following policies guide the transference of courses into the Ph.D. program:
- Applicants with an Ed.S. Degree from The University of Alabama – For students with an Ed.S. from the University of Alabama and at the discretion of a student’s advisor and program of study committee, up to 21 hours (including Foundation and Research courses) of the AEL Ed.S. may be counted toward the Ph.D. degree upon advisor approval if the following parameters are met: (1) the course was completed no more than 5 years from the date of the student’s admittance, (2) a grade ‘B’ or better (note, not a ‘B-‘) was earned in the course, and (3) the course is not a "practicum" type course.1
- Applicants with an Ed.S. Degree not from University of Alabama – (Effective April 1, 2017) For students who have completed an Ed.S. at institutions other than the University of Alabama and at the discretion of a student’s Advisor and Program of Study committee, up to 21 hours (including Foundation and Research courses) of their Ed.S. program may be counted toward the Ph.D. degree upon advisor approval if the following parameters are met: (1) the institution from which the student took these courses is accredited; (2) the course(s) addresses a major curricular component of the Ph.D. program at the University of Alabama as captured in the Program’s current array of doctoral AEL courses; (3) the course(s) was completed no more than 5 years from the date of the student’s admittance, (4) a grade ‘B’ or better (note, not a ‘B-‘) was earned in the course(s), and (5) the course is not a practicum course.
- Applicants with an Ed.S. in a specific curricular area of education, or in Teacher Leadership rather than in educational leadership, can also transfer up to 21 Ed.S. credit hours upon advisor approval if the above-mentioned requirements are met.
- All students must take the five core courses regardless of whether or the number of Ed.S. courses tranferred into the Ph.D. program.
- Course transfer must be approved and signed by the student's advisor and submitted prior to or no later than the student's Program of Study is approved.
| Footnotes | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Nine hours of AEL coursework may be applied to the PhD AEL electives requirement; 3 hours of Foundations coursework may be applied to the PhD Foundations requirement; 3 hours of Research coursework may be applied to the PhD Research requirement; and an additional 6 hours of AEL or other coursework may be applied to the PhD Foundations requirement. |
Graduate School information on Transfer Credit.
Doctoral Plan of Study Requirement
During their second fall semester of study and no later than the second year of study, doctoral students are required to submit an approved Program of Study (POS). Completed under the guidance of the student’s assigned advisor, the Program of Study must be officially approved by his/her/their advisor and the student’s program POS committee. The Program of Study functions to: (1) specify in advance program course requirements; (2) plan, chart and monitor a student’s progress in the program; and (3) define the parameters regarding the counting of course credits taken at other colleges or universities to meet doctoral program requirements at the University of Alabama. Students are advised against making premature judgments about courses to be transferred in from other institutions and programs. In addition to the guidelines specified by the Program of Study, such decisions are based on the professional judgments of tenure-track faculty in the Educational Leadership Program at The University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa campus.
Graduate School information on the Doctoral Plan of Study.
Comprehensive Exams
A comprehensive exam designed to assess the breadth and depth of a student’s knowledge and skills is administered twice each academic year. The Doctoral Comprehensive Qualifying Exam is not offered in the summer.
Purpose of Comp Exam: The comprehensive exam is designed to assess the breadth and depth of a student’s knowledge and skills based on his/her doctoral course work and consistent with the purpose of the Ph.D. degree, as well as the ability to apply what they have learned from their coursework to investigate and solve problems, and inform leadership.
Logistics of Exam: The exam committee chair selects questions and prepares the exam instruction based on the suggestions from the committee. The chair disseminates the exam instruction to the examination proctor, who coordinates the evaluation and reports the results. Students may choose either to type or handwrite their examination. While it is appropriate for students to seek information from professors on the general domains to be examined, students should not solicit nor be given specific information regarding about the exam. Unless specified otherwise, the exam often takes place in October and March each year. Students are required to take and successfully pass this exam before they can formally begin the dissertation process and register for dissertation research hours (AEL 699 Dissertation Research).
Requirements for Taking Exam: Before sitting for the Comprehensive Exam, the following parameters must be met by the student:
- Approved Program of Study – Students cannot sit for the Comprehensive exam unless a Program of Study has been both completed and officially approved.
- Completed all AEL course requirements – Students cannot sit for the Comprehensive Exam unless they have completed all AEL course requirements (AEL core + electives) or are in the last semester of doing so.
- Removal of all Incompletes from Academic Record – Students cannot sit for the Comprehensive Exam unless they have removed all Incompletes (‘I’) from their academic record.
- Completion of Comprehensive Exam Application Form – Students cannot sit for the Comprehensive Exam unless they have completed and submitted the Request to Take Comprehensive Exam Form.
Graduate School information on the Comprehensive Exam.
Admission to Candidacy Requirements
Students are admitted to candidacy after they pass the comprehensive exam.
Graduate School information on Admission to Candidacy.
Continuous Doctoral Research Hours Registration
Graduate School information on Continuous Doctoral Research Hours Registration.
Dissertation Requirements
Graduate School information on the Dissertation Requirement.
Time Limit for Degree Completion
Graduate School information on Time Limits.
Academic Misconduct Information
Graduate School information on Academic Misconduct.
Academic Grievances Information
Graduate School information on Academic Grievances.
Grades and Academic Standing
Graduate School information on Grades and Academic Standing.
Graduate School Deadlines
Information on Graduate School Deadlines.
Application for Graduation
Information on the Application for Graduation.
The doctoral program faculty will consider, select, and nominate students for the program's Graduate Research Assistantships and for the fellowships offered by the Graduate School. Students do not need to apply for this funding. Performance expectations for students who receive these assistantships and scholarships are consistent with those specified in the Graduate Catalog.
Students who are interested in or need other assistantships or funding are encouraged to apply for College of Education scholarships and explore opportunities available through the student employment websites (Careers at University of Alabama (ua.edu); Job Search (ua.edu).
Graduate School information on Financial Assistance.