The Ed.D. Program
The design of the Southeastern University Doctor of Education degree program provides advanced development of essential skills necessary for critical leadership roles in educational and business careers. Specialized courses develop the skills needed for students to assume key facilitating roles in one of two concentration areas: (a) Curriculum and Instruction, or (b) Organization Leadership.
The following five foundational fluencies, which are core principles of the program, are taught and assessed throughout the program:
- analytic inquiry
- quantitative and qualitative research
- communication
- evaluation
- servant leadership
The Doctor of Education program is a non-licensure program. If students wish to obtain any state certification, they will need to contact their state department of education for specific requirements and applications.
Program Summary
Total Credits - 54 Credit hours with four components:
Doctoral Core (15 hours)
Research Core (12 hours)
Concentration (15 hours)
Dissertation (a minimum of 12 hours)
Program Length - 3-4 years
- Coursework – Six credit hours per 16-week semester – one eight-week course at a time
- Dissertation – two credit hours minimum per 16-week semester. Students may take a maximum of 18 dissertation credits.
Program Delivery
- Three 16-week semesters (Fall, Spring, and Summer)
- Hybrid model with online and face-to-face coursework
- Two: 3-day intensives courses are required and will be completed on campus (Lakeland, FL) either in March or June corresponding to students’ cohort start date
- Comprehensive exam during the last semester of course work (Students may not advance to doctoral candidacy until they have passed the comprehensive exam and successfully completed all doctoral-level courses)
- Dissertation proposal defense (on-campus or from a remote location)
- Dissertation defense (on-campus or from a remote location)
Entrance Requirements
All the components listed below are required and will be utilized by the College of Education Ed.D. Committee to make an admittance decision. Other requirements are detailed on the application. Applicants are considered on a case-by-case basis, and the decision of the committee is final.
- Regionally accredited graduate degree with at least a 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale
- Current professional vita
- Christian faith statement (two- to three-page essay)
- Minimum of three full-time years of successful experience in a related field
- Professional writing sample: minimum of five pages (Examples: articles, graduate research papers/assignments, published work, etc.)
- Two letters of recommendation
- One professional recommendation
- One personal recommendation
- Background check consent form
- For non-native English speakers a current TOEFL score at the mean level or higher
Failure to meet one of the standards may not immediately disqualify a candidate depending upon the strength of the other components. For example, an applicant with a 3.5 GPA but only two years of experience may still be considered by the Ed.D. admissions committee.
Other Policies
Non-Degree Seeking Students
Students may take up to 9 hours as a non-degree seeking student. A student accepted with a non-degree classification must comply with pre-requisite requirements.
This classification may appeal to students who already hold a graduate degree and need further graduate hours to qualify for teaching a specific discipline at the university level. Specific concentration courses may be especially helpful for this goal.
Taking courses as a non-degree seeking student may also appeal to individuals who are not yet sure if a doctoral degree is their goal but desire to explore the possibility. Contact the graduate admissions office for details on admissions criteria and pre-requisite requirements for the courses desired.
Transfer Credits
For complete information regarding transfer credits, see “General Conditions for All Credit Transfer” in the Academic Chapter of the Graduate Catalog. In the Ed.D. program, a maximum of 14 credits (or 25% of the total credits) of graduate coursework from accredited universities may be transferrable to a student’s doctoral program according to the following requirements:
- The courses are doctoral-level courses at 7000 level or above;
- The courses are earned at an accredited university;
- The courses are less than seven years old;
- The courses are relevant to the coursework at SEU; and
- The advisor approves the transfer based on information provided by the student in the course substitution form.
The College of Education Ed.D. Committee will evaluate the transcript and award transfer credit based on a case-by-case basis. The College of Education Ed.D. Committee has determined that once a student begins Ed.D. coursework at SEU, no transient credit (future courses taken at another university) will be allowed. The student must request an evaluation of transfer credit as soon as possible so the determination of transfer credit can be completed before the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment in the program.
Advanced Standing
Upon evaluation of special circumstances, a student who has been accepted without provisional status and who has an earned Ed.S. or higher degree from a regionally accredited institution may be accepted into the Ed.D. program with an advanced standing (AS) classification. AS students may be eligible for exemption for up to 30 credits. AS students must complete a minimum of 30 hours at SEU (including dissertation) in order to earn the Ed.D. The transfer credits must comply with the requirements for transfer credits (See Transfer Credit section in the Graduate Catalog)
Continuous Enrollment
Once a student enters the dissertation phase (marked by the first enrollment in EDUC 9012), the student must stay continuously enrolled each semester (Spring, Summer, and Fall) until the dissertation has been successfully defended.
The minimum GPA requirement is 3.0. Grades of less than C- will not be counted toward degree completion.
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