Doctor of Philosophy in Education Sciences (Ph.D.)

Student Learning Outcomes

• Students develop critical thinking skills that allow them to see the integrative connections between disciplinary fields in their area of specialization.
• Students develop a regional perspective of a need for improvement and become a change-agent within the region by analyzing and providing a resolution or awareness of the concern.
• Students develop an understanding and skills to perform mixed method research that provides data-driven analysis and results to make substantive changes within the regional community.
• Students develop an awareness of diversity (i.e., people, cultures, ideas, and etc,) which may have an impact on P-20, and appreciate the importance of engaging in lifelong interdisciplinary learning to become informed and responsible change agents within their community.
• Students learn to develop linkages between their interdisciplinary intellectual inquiries and their own ethical positions in terms of contemporary challenges facing students, schools, communities, and societies.

Admission Requirements

All applicants to the Ph.D. in Education Sciences must meet the Coastal Carolina University Office of Graduate Studies admission requirements. In addition specialization areas will have an admissions committee who will review applications and make recommendations based on the following criteria:

1. . Completion of a Coastal Carolina University application form.
2. . An earned Master’s Degree in education or related field.
3. A minimum overall cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) documented by official transcripts for all collegiate coursework.
4. Copies of official scores on Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) if applicable. A score of 300 with no less than 160 on the verbal and 140 on the quantitative Graduate Record Examination. Scores must be no more than five years old. If an applicant’s Master’s Degree with overall GPA is 3.5 or higher, request of copies of official scores on the Graduate Record Examination  is waived.
5. Applicants who are non-native speakers of English speakers must demonstrate proficiency in English and provide official results from tests taken within the last three years or one of the following acceptable means of documenting English language proficiency consistent with success in graduate programs. Note that higher scores may be required of some graduate programs so applicants are urged to consult their desired program to identify whether a higher score is required:
   1. A minimum score of 550 on the paper-based (PBT) or 79 on the internet (iBT) Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
   2. A minimum score of 6.5 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam
   3. Certificate of Completion of level 112 of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) from an ELS Language Center
   4. Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic with a score of 59
   5. Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE) with a minimum level of C1;
   6. Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) with a minimum level of C1;
   7. Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB) with a score of 77
   8. Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) with a score of 745
   9. Bachelor’s degree earned from a regionally accredited U.S. institution of higher education within the last three years
6. Applicants will submit a written statement explaining how the Ph.D. in Education Sciences will be instrumental in achieving specific career and research goals.
7. Submit three professional reference letters that specifically address the candidate’s ability to successfully meet the demands of high level graduate coursework. One letter must be from their current immediate supervisor.
8. Applicants may be asked to submit an additional writing sample.
9. An updated resume is required.
10. Applicants entering the program with graduate credits beyond the master’s degree level may submit a request to their assigned adviser within their first semester of the program for their post-master’s degree coursework to be reviewed for possible applicability toward the program’s coursework requirements. Coursework that is approved for program coursework requirements must have been completed within 7 years of the applicant’s request.

Degree Requirements

The Ph.D. in Education Sciences requires the successful completion of an approved program of study with a minimum of 63 graduate credit hours. The approved program includes coursework from one of the three specialization areas (Educational Leadership, Higher Education Administration, or Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment), as well as coursework in a core area, research foundations, a selected cognate, and dissertation hours. The degree requires students to successfully pass a comprehensive examination to become doctoral candidates. Candidates must form a doctoral committee and develop a dissertation where they demonstrate and apply the knowledge and skills they have learned in the program. A candidate must successfully defend their dissertation to their doctoral committee to graduate from the program. Candidates must complete all requirements, including the dissertation, within 7 years of their first semester of coursework.

Required Credit Hours (63 Graduate Credit Hours)

Department Core (15 credit hours)

• PHDE 780 - Politics and Policy of Education - 3 credits OR
• PHDE 791 - Contemporary Issues in Higher Education - 3 credits
• PHDE 700 - Introduction to Evaluation of Education, Community, and Social Programs - 3 credits
• PHDE 728 - Data-Driven Decision-Making to Inform Instruction - 3 credits
• PHDE 785 - Critical Studies in Diversity and Education - 3 credits
• PHDE 801 - Community Education Engagement - 3 credits

Specialization Areas (12 credit hours)

Research Foundations (15 credit hours)

• PHDE 800 - Ways of Knowing: Introduction to Educational Research - 3 credits
• PHDE 810 - Qualitative Research Methods - 3 credits
• PHDE 815 - Quantitative Research Methods - 3 credits
• PHDE 825 - Mixed Methods Research - 3 credits

Cognates (9 credit hours)

Dissertation (12 credit hours)

• PHDE 899 - Dissertation - 6 credits

Total Graduate Credits Required: 63