edd dissertation defense

Guide to the Doctor of Education (EdD) Dissertation

The Doctor of Education (EdD) dissertation is considered a central component of EdD programs. The EdD dissertation is a five-chapter document that investigates an issue in education, reviews the existing literature on this issue, adds additional insight through a qualitative and/or quantitative research study, and proposes one or more solutions. It is considered the culmination of a student’s knowledge of education systems and his or her training in the academic research process. Most EdD programs require students to formally publish their dissertation and/or present their findings to a group of faculty and peers.

The dissertation and dissertation defense are two of the most challenging experiences students will have during their program, but are also two of the most engaging and rewarding from an intellectual perspective. The dissertation allows students to truly apply all the skills and knowledge they have gained during their graduate work to an education issue in which they are invested. Below is a more detailed description of EdD dissertations and the important steps students should take to successfully prepare for, complete, and defend their dissertation.

Doctorate of Education Dissertations

EdD dissertations are students’ opportunity to contribute original research on and insight into an issue in education, such as educational disparities, curriculum development or instruction challenges, school funding problems, college counseling and guidance, job skills development, or standardized testing. For their dissertation, students complete research under the guidance of a research mentor, and receive academic credit for this work. Students typically attend seminars and/or other classes that provide structure around the processes of developing a research question, formulating a research plan, reviewing existing academic literature, and writing about their findings. Many programs require students to present their findings to a committee and/or publish their dissertation in an academic journal.

The Structure of EdD Dissertations

As mentioned previously, dissertations are traditionally divided into five chapters: Introduction, Literature Review, Research Methodology, Results and Analysis, and Discussion and Conclusions. A brief description of each chapter section is below:

• Introduction : The introduction includes background information about the topic of study and its purpose, the significance of the student’s research, and existing literature on the subject. It also provides a summary of the results of one’s study, and their implications.
• Literature Review : This section explains the existing literature on the student’s topic of study, and places the student’s work in the context of existing theoretical frameworks that are relevant to one’s research.
• Research Methodology : This chapter focuses on how the student gathers qualitative and/or quantitative data regarding his or her research query.
• Results and Analysis : This section explains in detail the results of the student’s study, and analyzes it to arrive at actionable conclusions.
• Discussion and Conclusions : This chapter places the student’s findings in the context of the educational system(s) of focus (e.g. private or public education, secondary or post-secondary) to illustrate how the student’s research contributes to the larger understanding of the educational issue at hand. This section also makes recommendations for the application of the student’s findings to real-world education practice as well as further research on the subject.

Dissertations are typically very long, in-depth works. Many dissertations are between 100 and 200 pages in length or longer, and seek to comprehensively investigate a specific issue or problem in education. Due to the intensive nature of dissertation research and writing, students must plan their research query and methodology well in advance, and seek the support of research mentors and other faculty throughout the process.

Overview of the EdD Dissertation Completion Process

In general, students begin thinking about their dissertation topic during the second year of their program. The second year is also when students begin taking courses in research and data analysis. The term prior to the beginning of their independent research, students typically take a dissertation seminar, during which they discuss potential research topics to explore and learn more about the academic research process. During their third year, students delve into independent research, while still receiving guidance from their selected faculty research mentor. Students generally submit several drafts to a dissertation committee for review and revision suggestions before they finalize their paper. Upon the completion of their dissertation, students may be required to publish their writing and/or present on their research.

Below is a general timeline of the dissertation completion process, followed by a description of the eight steps to successfully completing an EdD dissertation. The timeline below should be used for example purposes only, as programs vary in terms of when they have students complete their requisite research courses.

The Steps to Completing an EdD Dissertation

Choose a research topic and review the existing literature.

During their classes, students should take note of the topics within education that interest them and the issues that they have encountered during their work in education that they would like to see resolved. These areas are often rich with potential research questions. Conducting research within these areas of interest by reading academic articles is an important step in finding a potential question or issue in education that merits further investigation. It is important that students select a research question that is specific enough to allow for in-depth research, is not overwhelming, and is engaging enough to students to carry them through over a year of independent research.

After identifying their field of focus and preliminary research query, students must gain a thorough understanding of the existing literature concerning their field, as well as the theoretical frameworks and conceptual models that have shaped current research methodologies. In general, students should start with articles that have been published within the last 3-5 years, and then review less recent studies that are considered flagship works that have shaped the field in important ways. While reading through this research, students should stay organized with their notes, the conclusions they draw from their literature review, and how these conclusions impact their research study, as they will have to write about these topics in their dissertation.

Select a Research Advisor and Committee

One of the most important parts of students’ research process is selecting a dissertation advisor and committee. Students’ dissertation advisors are faculty members within the school’s EdD program who work closely with students to ensure that they select a research question and project that are manageable in scope, meet certain research and writing deadlines, and have the support and mentorship they need to succeed.

The dissertation committee is comprised of a group of faculty members and instructors who are qualified to read through and provide feedback on a student’s dissertation. The chair of the committee is a student’s dissertation advisor, and the student selects other members based off of their work and expertise in their area of research. Many schools have guidelines around the individuals students can select to be a part of their committee. For example, an EdD program may require students to select one more faculty member from within the EdD program (in addition to their faculty advisor), one individual outside of the department who works in a related field, and one subject matter expert from inside or outside the department who can give in-depth advice regarding the student’s research project. Students must obtain approval from their program for their committee member selections.

A student’s dissertation committee not only provides feedback and support on a student’s research, but also serves as a collective evaluator of a student’s research progress and final product. For example, the committee generally sets dissertation chapter completion and submission deadlines to keep students on track, and also listens to and evaluates students’ dissertation defense, which is a requirement for graduation.

Create and Defend Research Proposal

After students receive approval of their dissertation committee, they work individually and with their dissertation chair/advisor to develop a formal research proposal. The proposal typically includes the first three chapters of a student’s dissertation: the Introduction, the Literature Review chapter, and the Research Methodology chapter. In this proposal, students must outline their specific research query and its relevance to and impact on different spheres of education. They must also explain the work that has already been done in their area of research, their methodologies for the study they will conduct, and their tools and plans for analysis.

Once students have written these three chapters and formalized their research proposal, they must meet with their committee to present and defend their research proposal. This defense is meant to identify any issues with a student’s research objective, review of the literature, or study methodology, so that the student can address these issues prior to conducting their research.

Develop a Timeline for Research and Writing

Students work with their dissertation committee to establish timelines for the completion of certain chapters and milestones in their study (e.g. the conducting of surveys or the compilation and analysis of data or records). A reasonable timeline may have students writing the first three chapters during the fall term of their third year, and the fourth and fifth chapters during the spring term of the same year. However, dissertation timelines will vary depending on whether students are pursuing their degree full-time or part-time, how early in their program they are able to take the requisite research courses prior to starting their independent work, how soon they are able to identify a research question, and other factors.

Apply for Institutional Review Board (IRB) Approval

The Institutional Review Board protects the rights and well-being of human subjects of research studies by working to ensure their consent to certain research procedures, and assuring their ethical treatment during the research process. All EdD research projects must receive IRB approval before proceeding. The IRB approval application is generally comprised of any study subject consent forms; copies of any surveys, questionnaires, or other data collection methods and tools to be used; a completed application form; and proof of IRB Training completion. IRB Training is typically completed through an online course module that is delivered through the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) program.

Conduct Study and Analyze Results

Once students have received IRB approval, they are ready to proceed with their planned study. Data collection methods vary depending on the nature and scope of one’s research project, but may include sending out surveys, conducting interviews, conducting student or teacher assessments, compiling student performance metrics from public records, and other methods of collecting relevant data to try and answer their research query. Once students have gathered sufficient data, they move to the analysis of this data to try and find trends or patterns that help answer their research question. Throughout this process, students consult with their advisor and with members of their dissertation committee as necessary.

Complete Dissertation and Submit for Review and Revision

Once students have completed their analysis, they must write the Results and Analysis and Discussion and Conclusions sections of their dissertation. The Results and Analysis chapter is a straightforward explanation of one’s study results and the conclusions that can be drawn from them. The Discussion and Conclusions section places the study results in the context of the larger educational issue(s) affected by one’s research, makes recommendations for the application of one’s findings, and also provides suggestions for further research in the area of study. Upon the completion of a full dissertation manuscript, students submit their work to their committee for review and commentary. Students may go through several revisions and then final edits of their dissertation prior to their final defense and formal manuscript submission.

Conduct Dissertation Final Defense

A milestone in the EdD student’s graduate school career is the dissertation final defense, which is a formal presentation that students make to their dissertation committee, in which they explain their research objectives, methodology, and findings. During and after their presentation, committee members ask questions in an effort to identify any weaknesses, inconsistencies, or other issues in the student’s research. When faced with these questions, students must answer clearly and defend the validity of their research methods, results, and conclusions. After the presentation and questions are over, the committee confers to decide whether the student has passed his or her final defense and will receive the doctoral degree.

Before completing their dissertation defense, it is recommended that students prepare well in advance by attending the defenses of other students within the same program and discussing their dissertation manuscript with their advisor and asking any questions regarding what to expect during the defense. Students should craft a strong and well-organized presentation, and also anticipate questions that their committee members may ask them.

Submit Dissertation for Formal Review

The final step students need to take to complete their dissertation is to submit their fully edited manuscript for formal review by their dissertation committee, after making any necessary modifications in response to recommendations given during their dissertation defense. Some programs require students to publish their dissertation in an academic journal, which requires students to format their manuscript according to journal guidelines.

EdDPrograms.org

What is an Ed.D. Dissertation? Complete Guide & Support Resources

Wondering how to tackle the biggest doctoral challenge of all? Use our guide to the Ed.D. dissertation to get started! Learn about the purpose of a Doctor of Education dissertation and typical topics for education students. Read through step-by-step descriptions of the dissertation process and the 5-chapter format. Get answers to Ed.D. dissertation FAQs . Or skip to the chase and find real-world examples of Doctor of Education dissertations and websites & resources for Ed.D. dissertation research.

What is an Ed.D. Dissertation?

Definition of an ed.d. dissertation.

An Ed.D. dissertation is a 5-chapter scholarly document that brings together years of original research to address a problem of practice in education. To complete a dissertation, you will need to go through a number of scholarly steps , including a final defense to justify your findings.

Purpose of an Ed.D. Dissertation

In a Doctor of Education dissertation, you will be challenged to apply high-level research & creative problem-solving to real-world educational challenges. You may be asked to:

• Take a critical look at current educational & administrative practices
• Address urgent issues in the modern education system
• Propose original & practical solutions for improvements
• Expand the knowledge base for educational practitioners

Topics of Ed.D. Dissertations

An Ed.D. dissertation is “customizable.” You’re allowed to chose a topic that relates to your choice of specialty (e.g. elementary education), field of interest (e.g. curriculum development), and environment (e.g. urban schools).

Think about current problems of practice that need to be addressed in your field. You’ll notice that Ed.D. dissertation topics often address one of the following:

• Academic performance
• Teaching methods
• Access to resources
• Social challenges
• Legislative impacts
• System effectiveness

Wondering how others have done it? Browse through Examples of Ed.D. Dissertations and read the titles & abstracts. You’ll see how current educators are addressing their own problems of practice.

Ed.D. Dissertation Process

1. propose a dissertation topic.

Near the beginning of a Doctor of Education program, you’ll be expected to identify a dissertation topic that will require substantial research. This topic should revolve around a unique issue in education.

Universities will often ask you to provide an idea for your topic when you’re applying to the doctoral program. You don’t necessarily need to stick to this idea, but you should be prepared to explain why it interests you. If you need inspiration, see our section on Examples of Ed.D. Dissertations .

You’ll be expected to solidify your dissertation topic in the first few semesters. Talking to faculty and fellow Ed.D. students can help in this process. Better yet, your educational peers will often be able to provide unique perspectives on the topic (e.g. cultural differences in teaching methods).

2. Meet Your Dissertation Chair & Committee

You won’t be going through the Ed.D. dissertation process alone! Universities will help you to select a number of experienced mentors. These include:

• Dissertation Chair/Faculty Advisor: The Chair of the Dissertation Committee acts as your primary advisor. You’ll often see them referred to as the Supervising Professor, Faculty Advisor, or the like. You’ll rely on this “Obi Wan” for their knowledge of the field, research advice & guidance, editorial input on drafts, and more. They can also assist with shaping & refining your dissertation topic.
• Dissertation Committee:  The Dissertation Committee is made up of ~3 faculty members, instructors and/or adjuncts with advanced expertise in your field of study. The Committee will offer advice, provide feedback on your research progress, and review your work & progress reports. When you defend your proposal and give your final defense , you’ll be addressing the Dissertation Committee.

3. Study for Ed.D. Courses

Doctor of Education coursework is designed to help you: a) learn how to conduct original research; and b) give you a broader perspective on your field of interest. If you take a look at the curriculum in any Ed.D. program, you’ll see that students have to complete credits in:

• Practical Research Methods (e.g. Quantitative Design & Analysis for Educational Leaders)
• Real-World Educational Issues (e.g. Educational Policy, Law & Practice)

When you’re evaluating possible Ed.D. programs, pay attention to the coursework in real-world educational issues. You’ll want to pick an education doctorate with courses that complement your dissertation topic.

4. Complete a Literature Review

A literature review is an evaluation of existing materials & research work that relate to your dissertation topic. It’s a written synthesis that:

• Grounds your project within the field
• Explains how your work relates to previous research & theoretical frameworks
• Helps to identify gaps in the existing research

Have a look at Literature Review Guides if you’d like to know more about the process. Our section on Resources for Ed.D. Dissertation Research also has useful links to journals & databases.

5. Craft a Dissertation Proposal

During the first two years of your Doctor of Education, you’ll use the knowledge you’ve learned from your coursework & discussions to write the opening chapters of your dissertation, including an:

• Introduction  that defines your chosen topic
• Literature Review of existing research in the field
• Proposed Research Methodology for finding the answer to your problem

When you’re putting together these elements, think about the practicals. Is the topic too big to address in one dissertation? How much time will your research take and how will you conduct it? Will your dissertation be relevant to your current job? If in doubt, ask your faculty advisor.

6. Defend Your Dissertation Proposal

About midway through the Ed.D. program, you will need to present your proposal to your Dissertation Committee. They will review your work and offer feedback. For example, the Committee will want to see that:

• Your research topic is significant.
• Your research methodology & timeline make sense.
• Relevant works are included in the literature review.

After the Committee approves your proposal, you can get stuck into conducting original research and writing up your findings. These two important tasks will take up the final years of your doctorate.

7. Conduct Original Research into Your Topic

As a Doctor of Education student, you will be expected to conduct your own research. Ed.D. students often use a qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods (quantitative/qualitative) approach in this process.

• Quantitative Research: Collection & analysis of numerical data to identify characteristics, discover correlations, and/or test hypotheses.
• Qualitative Research: Collection & analysis of non-numerical data to understand & explain phenomena (e.g. questionnaires, in-depth interviews, focus groups, video artifacts, etc.).

Your Ed.D. coursework will ground you in research methods & tools, so you’ll be prepared to design your own project and seek IRB approval for any work involving human subjects.

Note: Occasionally, universities can get creative. For example, the Ed.D. program at San Jose State University asks students to produce a documentary film instead of conducting traditional research.

8. Write the Rest of Your Dissertation

Once you have written up the first few chapters of your dissertation (Intro, Literature Review & Proposed Methodology) and completed your research work, you’ll be able to complete the final chapters of your dissertation.

• Chapter 4 will detail your research findings.
• Chapter 5 is a conclusion that summarizes solutions to your problem of practice/topic.

This is where you and your faculty advisor will often have a lot of interaction! For example, you may need to rework the first few chapters of your dissertation after you’ve drafted the final chapters. Faculty advisors are extremely busy people, so be sure to budget in ample time for revisions and final edits.

9. Defend Your Dissertation

The final defense/candidacy exam is a formal presentation of your work to the Dissertation Committee. In many cases, the defense is an oral presentation with visual aides. You’ll be able to explain your research findings, go through your conclusions, and highlight new ideas & solutions.

At any time, the Committee can challenge you with questions, so you should be prepared to defend your conclusions. But this process is not as frightening as it sounds!

• If you’ve been in close contact with the Committee throughout the dissertation, they will be aware of your work.
• Your faculty advisor will help you decide when you’re ready for the final defense.
• You can also attend the defenses of other Ed.D. students to learn what questions may be asked.

Be aware that the Committee has the option to ask for changes before they approve your dissertation. After you have incorporated any notes from the Committee and addressed their concerns, you will finalize the draft, submit your dissertation for a formal review, and graduate.

Ed.D. Dissertation Format: 5 Chapters

Chapter 1: introduction.

Your Doctor of Education dissertation will begin with an introduction. In it, you’ll be expected to:

• Provide an overview of your educational landscape
• Explain important definitions & key concepts
• Define a real-world topic/problem of practice
• Outline the need for new studies on this topic

Chapter 2: Literature Review

The literature review is a summary of existing research in the field. However, it is not an annotated bibliography. Instead, it’s a critical analysis of current research (e.g. trends, themes, debates & current practices). While you’re evaluating the literature, you’re also looking for the gaps where you can conduct original research.

Sources for a literature review can include books, articles, reports, websites, dissertations, and more. Our section on Resources for Ed.D. Dissertation Research has plenty of places to start.

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

In the research methodology, you’ll be expected to explain:

• The purpose of your research
• What tools & methods you plan to use to research your topic/problem of practice
• The design of the study
• Your timeline for gathering quantitative & qualitative data
• How you plan to analyze that data
• Any limitations you foresee

Chapter 4: Results & Analysis

Chapter 4 is the place where you can share the results of your original research and present key findings from the data. In your analysis, you may also be highlighting new patterns, relationships, and themes that other scholars have failed to discover. Have a look at real-life Examples of Ed.D. Dissertations to see how this section is structured.

Chapter 5: Discussions & Conclusions

The final chapter of your Ed.D. dissertation brings all of your work together in a detailed summary. You’ll be expected to:

• Reiterate the objectives of your dissertation
• Explain the significance of your research findings
• Outline the implications of your ideas on existing practices
• Propose solutions for a problem of practice
• Make suggestions & recommendations for future improvements

Ed.D. Dissertation FAQs

What’s the difference between a dissertation and a thesis.

• Dissertation: A dissertation is a 5-chapter written work that must be completed in order to earn a doctoral degree (e.g. Ph.D., Ed.D., etc.). It’s often focused on original research.
• Thesis: A thesis is a written work that must be completed in order to earn a master’s degree. It’s typically shorter than a dissertation and based on existing research.

How Long is a Ed.D. Dissertation?

It depends. Most Ed.D. dissertations end up being between 80-200 pages. The length will depend on a number of factors, including the depth of your literature review, the way you collect & present your research data, and any appendices you might need to include.

How Long Does it Take to Finish an Ed.D. Dissertation?

It depends. If you’re in an accelerated program , you may be able to finish your dissertation in 2-3 years. If you’re in a part-time program and need to conduct a lot of complex research work, your timeline will be much longer.

What’s a Strong Ed.D. Dissertation Topic?

Experts always say that Doctor of Education students should be passionate about their dissertation topic and eager to explore uncharted territory. When you’re crafting your Ed.D. dissertation topic , find one that will be:

• Significant

See the section on Examples of Ed.D. Dissertations for inspiration.

Do I Have to Complete a Traditional Dissertation for an Ed.D.?

No. If you’re struggling with the idea of a traditional dissertation, check out this guide to Online Ed.D. Programs with No Dissertation . Some Schools of Education give Ed.D. students the opportunity to complete a Capstone Project or Dissertation in Practice (DiP) instead of a 5-chapter written work.

These alternatives aren’t easy! You’ll still be challenged at the same level as you would be for a dissertation. However, Capstone Projects & DiPs often involve more group work and an emphasis on applied theory & research.

What’s the Difference Between a Ph.D. Dissertation and Ed.D. Dissertation?

Have a look at our Ed.D. vs. Ph.D. Guide to get a sense of the differences between the two degrees. In a nutshell:

• Ed.D. dissertations tend to focus on addressing current & real-world topics/problems of practice in the workplace.
• Ph.D. dissertations usually put more emphasis on creating new theories & concepts and even completely rethinking educational practices.

How Can I Learn More About Ed.D. Dissertations?

Start with the section on Examples of Ed.D. Dissertations . You can browse through titles, abstracts, and even complete dissertations from a large number of universities.

If you have a few Doctor of Education programs on your shortlist, we also recommend that you skim through the program’s Dissertation Handbook . It can usually be found on the School of Education’s website. You’ll be able to see how the School likes to structure the dissertation process from start to finish.

Ed.D. Dissertation Support

University & campus resources, dissertation chair & committee.

The first port of call for any questions about the Ed.D. dissertation is your Dissertation Chair. If you get stuck with a terrible faculty advisor, talk to members of the Dissertation Committee. They are there to support your journey.

University Library

An Ed.D. dissertation is a massive research project. So before you choose a Doctor of Education program, ask the School of Education about its libraries & library resources (e.g. free online access to subscription-based journals).

Writing Center

Many universities have a Writing Center. If you’re struggling with any elements of your dissertation (e.g. editing), you can ask the staff about:

• Individual tutoring
• Editorial assistance
• Outside resources

Mental Health Support

It’s well-known that doctoral students often face a lot of stress & isolation during their studies. Ask your faculty advisor about mental health services at the university. Staff in the School of Education and the Graduate School will also have information about on-campus counselors, free or discounted therapy sessions, and more.

Independent Dissertation Services

Dissertation editing services: potentially helpful.

There are scores of independent providers who offer dissertation editing services. But they can be expensive. And many of these editors have zero expertise in educational fields.

If you need help with editing & proofreading, proceed with caution:

• Start by asking your Dissertation Chair about what’s permitted for third party involvement (e.g. you may need to note any editor’s contribution in your dissertation acknowledgments) and whether they have any suggestions.
• The Graduate School is another useful resource. For example, Cornell’s Graduate School maintains a list of Editing, Typing, and Proofreading Services for graduate students.

Dissertation Coaches: Not Worth It

Dissertation coaches are defined as people who offer academic & mental support, guidance, and editorial input.

• That means the person who should be your coach is your Dissertation Chair/Faculty Advisor. Remember that faculty members on the Dissertation Committee can also provide assistance.
• If you’re looking for extra support, you might consider consulting a mentor in your line of work and collaborating with fellow Ed.D. students.

But hiring an independent Ed.D. dissertation coach is going to be an absolute waste of money.

Dissertation Writing Services: Just Don’t!

Universities take the dissertation process  very seriously . An Ed.D. dissertation is supposed to be the culmination of years of original thought and research. You’re going to be responsible for the final product. You’re going to be defending your written work in front of a phalanx of experienced faculty members. You’re going to be putting this credential on your résumé for everyone to see.

If you cheat the process by having someone else write up your work, you will get caught.

Ed.D. Dissertation Resources

Examples of ed.d. dissertations, dissertation databases.

• Open Access Theses and Dissertations
• ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
• EBSCO Open Dissertations

Ed.D. Dissertations

• USF Scholarship Repository: Ed.D. Dissertations
• George Fox University: Doctor of Education
• UW Tacoma: Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice
• Liberty University: School of Education Doctoral Dissertations
• University of Mary Hardin-Baylor: Dissertation Collection

Ed.D. Dissertation Abstracts

• Michigan State University: Ed.D. Dissertation Abstracts

Ed.D. Dissertation Guides & Tools

General ed.d. guides.

• SNHU: Educational Leadership Ed.D./Ph.D. Guide

Dissertation Style Manuals

• Chicago Manual of Style

Style manuals are designed to ensure that every Ed.D. student follows the same set of writing guidelines for their dissertation (e.g. grammatical rules, footnote & quotation formats, abbreviation conventions, etc.). Check with the School of Education to learn which style manual they use.

Examples of Ed.D. Dissertation Templates

• Purdue University: Dissertation Template
• Walden University: Ed.D. Dissertation Template

Each School of Education has a standard dissertation template. We’ve highlighted a couple of examples so you can see how they’re formatted, but you will need to acquire the template from your own university.

Literature Review Guides

• UNC Chapel Hill: Writing Guide for Literature Reviews
• University of Alabama: How to Conduct a Literature Review

Resources for Ed.D. Dissertation Research

Journal articles.

• EBSCO Education Research Databases
• Education Resources Information Center (ERIC)
• Emerald Education eJournal Collection
• Gale OneFile: Educator’s Reference Complete
• Google Scholar
• NCES Bibliography Search Tool
• ProQuest Education Database
• SAGE Journals: Education

Useful Websites

• Harvard Gutman Library: Websites for Educators
• EduRef: Lesson Plans

Educational Data & Statistics

• Digest of Education Statistics
• Education Policy Data Center (EPDC)
• ICPSR Data Archive
• National Assessment of Educational Progress
• National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
• UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Ed.D. Dissertation Proposal Defense Guide

The dissertation proposal.

The oral defense of the dissertation proposal and the comprehensive examination occur simultaneously during your sixth or seventh semester. The defense/exam includes an assessment of your knowledge and skills related to the development of your dissertation.  It has both written and oral components. You are examined on:

your written dissertation proposal (including its content, rationale, review of supporting scholarship, implementation plan, and research plan), and

your knowledge and understanding of the Professional Core, Research Core, and Advanced Professional Studies, especially as this knowledge applies to your proposed dissertation study.

Successfully presenting and defending your dissertation proposal and passing the comprehensive examination demonstrates readiness to proceed to candidacy, the final, dissertation phase of your program as a doctoral candidate.

All proposals defenses should be run through Adobe Sign . Your Chair should receive a copy of the results.

The Dissertation Proposal Defense Guide

Proposal defense guidelines:.

Dissertation proposal defense should be scheduled while classes are in session; events scheduled during a break in the academic calendar or during the summer may not be approved. Contact your academic advisor if you have questions about the academic calendar and scheduling your event.

As stated in the EdD Handbook , “A student may not sign up for dissertation credits (TEL 799) until they pass their proposal defense. If the student passes the proposal defense within the first 30 calendar days of the semester, he/she will be allowed to take dissertation credits (TEL 799) that semester. If the student does not pass the proposal defense within the first 30 days of the semester, he/she will need to wait until the following semester to take dissertation credits. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this policy.” 

Students can still defend their dissertation proposal, just not take TEL 799 credits until the following semester. 

If you and your LSC Chair determine that you will not meet the requirement, please email the EdD Advisor to request an administrative schedule change to be removed from TEL 799. 

Defenses typically take about two hours. 

Before Scheduling Proposal Defense:

Student's iPOS must be approved and committee must be finalized.

Scheduling Proposal Defense Process

Once the student, LSC Chair, and committee have come to an agreeance on the scheduled date and time for the proposal defense, n otify your academic advisor when a date and time has been finalized for the event and CC your LSC Chair. You should include the second and third committee members current email addresses in their email message. Your advisor will confirm your committee paperwork is complete and provide the committee a form to record the outcome of the event electronically via Adobe Sign the day prior to the event.

Once the proposal defense Adobe Sign form has been signed and all members have indicated pass, the EdD advisor will submit the exam results in the student's iPOS. Students will receive a final copy of the Adobe Sign via their ASU email. 

Once the exam results are approved by the Graduate College then the student will be advanced to candidacy and are eligible for TEL 799 (LSC 3) Dissertation. The candidacy letter will be available on the student's “My ASU” within five business days.

What To Do Before Your Defense

Verify that you have an approved iPOS with all three committee members listed

Go over the Permissions to Conduct Research prior to your defense

Contact your Chair to schedule the date, time, building and room for your proposal defense (if needed)

Distribute copies of your dissertation proposal to your committee members at least two weeks before the defense/exam, as directed by your Chair

Oral Comprehensive Exams

Students must choose one of two options for their oral comprehensive exam. Students should communicate with their Chair about their chosen option, at least two weeks ahead of their proposal defense date.

The two options are: 

Option A: The student will answer six questions during the last 30 minutes of the proposal defense without seeing the questions beforehand. Students must answer each question spontaneously. The questions will come from the following areas: LEADERSHIP (TEL 704, 705, 709); PROFESSIONAL CORE (TEL 702, 703, 706, 707, 708);  and RESEARCH CORE (TEL 701, 711, 712, 713). To prepare for this option, students should review and reflect on their coursework. 

Option B: The student is provided a set of three questions one week before their defense. Then, they will orally respond to the three questions during the last 30 minutes of their proposal defense. Students should review their coursework to prepare their responses. While students may take notes as they prepare for the exam, they may not read their responses directly from any notes or prepared materials. 

In both options, students are encouraged not to share the questions with other students in the program.

The Defense

Your Dissertation Committee Chair will open the meeting with an informal call to order, extend a welcome, and introduce you and the members of the committee to each other. Your Chair will notify everyone that this is an official ASU Graduate Education event that combines two examinations into one:

An Oral Defense of the Dissertation Proposal

A Doctoral Comprehensive Examination

Your Chair will invite you to present a 30-minute overview of your professional background and your dissertation study

A handout limited to one or two pages is appropriate

A handout is useful for contextualizing your study and highlighting your method

PowerPoint presentations may be used if they were previously approved

Following your presentation, your Chair will invite each committee member to direct questions and comments to you for your response. Committee members (including your Chair) will ask questions and raise issues until they agree that the important matters have been addressed.  This may take 60 minutes.

Following the defense of the proposal, relevant, appropriate comprehensive examination questions are posed by the committee.

When your Chair and other committee members are satisfied that the relevant questions have been asked and answered, the Chair will ask you to leave the room (either physical or virtual) but remain in the immediate area.

The committee will deliberate in closed session, deciding

Your Chair will invite you back into the room for congratulations and a brief discussion of next steps.

Following the successful completion of your defense/exam, your committee will submit the completed EdD Proposal Defense-Comp Exam Form electronically via Adobe Sign 

You will then need to gain formal Institutional Review Board approval of your dissertation research.

Permissions to Conduct Research

As you develop your dissertation proposal and before you obtain IRB approval, obtain consent to conduct your research. To insure clarity and avoid misunderstandings, obtain the formal permission of your supervisor and others holding the keys to your success.  Although the following checklist will not apply to every situation, be sure to obtain written consent in situations that do apply.

Implementing a change in a PreK-12 school will require obtaining the written consent of the principal;

Implementing PreK-12 professional development in more than one school will require written consent from the appropriate school district official;

Technology-rich projects will require the permission of the IT director and school principal;

Use of school district test data will require the written consent of the director of assessment and/or institutional IRB approval.

What does your permission letter need to include? A written consent letter serves to make concrete the important aspects of your innovation and gain the support needed to make the implementation successful.  Permission letters need to clearly identify:

your purpose,

expected outcomes,

who (the participants),

frequency of meetings with the participants,

assessment instruments,

meeting room,

dates of the intervention,

resources you need, and

the audience(s) for your findings.

Why are the permissions so important?  Every year, a few doctoral students find they can not implement their projects as planned due to planning oversights.  Examples follow. Samantha’s hoped that her sixth grade team (community of practice) could meet over a common lunch period, but she failed to ask the principal or the scheduler to schedule lunch periods so all sixth grade teachers involved can meet at this time. It was too late to change the schedule when Samantha discovered this. Martha hoped to offer cognitive coaching lessons to induction year teachers, but the coordinator of the induction year training was not informed of her plan and was following a mentoring model. She was informed that the agenda was too full. Jim had ordered iPads through a teaching improvement inservice grant, but the IT director would not connect them to the school network because they were a single platform Windows school district. Jim’s project was significantly delayed until the wrangling with the IT folks could be resolved.

Think ahead.  Inform the key leaders with the critical points and obtain their written consent.

**Also remember to secure permissions for instruments you may use.

Human subjects. As a general rule doctoral students working in schools or community colleges are expected to receive approval from their employing institution’s IRB as well as ASU’s IRB.   In our program this occurs after the proposal defense. The IRB will expect to see permission letters. The signed consent forms should be attached to your IRB proposals and will also be included in an appendix of your dissertation proposals.

Formatting Your Dissertation

Formal papers submitted throughout the program and for the dissertation are to follow the style guide presented in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (latest edition). It is the candidates responsibility to prepare the dissertation manuscript in accordance to the guidelines set by Graduate Education.

Format Manual guidelines and updates: https://graduate.asu.edu/current-students/completing-your-degree/formatting-your-thesis-or-dissertation/asu-graduate-college

ASU dissertation format tool instructions: https://graduate.asu.edu/sites/default/files/asu-graduate-college-format-manual.pdf

ASU dissertation format advising tool: https://graduateapps.asu.edu/formatadvising

Educational Leadership

College of Education

• Defense Guidelines

Guidelines for the Conduct of a Dissertation Defense:

Preprospectus, Prospectus, and Final

These guidelines are descriptive, not prescriptive.   They describe the general conduct of a dissertation defense in the Educational Leadership Program in the Leadership, Technology, and Human Development Department in the College of Education at Georgia Southern University.  The responsibility for the defense belongs to the dissertation committee chair and departures from these typical guidelines can occur based on the context, the student, and their topic of study.  In an effort to bring more continuity to the defense process for both doctoral students and committee members, it is recommended that the committee chair follow these protocols in directing the defense.

What is a defense? 

A dissertation defense is an oral presentation and discussion of a dissertation study.  The purpose is to share the results of the study and to demonstrate to the committee and the academic community that the author has done work of sufficient quality to receive the doctoral degree and is able to speak to it in an open forum.

Dissertation chairs in the College of Education do not allow candidates to schedule defenses until the quality of the dissertation document – whether preprospectus, prospectus, or final – is good.  It is expected that the candidate will also be appropriately prepared to be able to speak to his or her study as it relates to the oral defense.  The end goal is that the student is sufficiently prepared to be successful in the defense.

What are the historical origins of the modern dissertation? 

The history of theses and dissertations in western higher education revolves around two very different conceptions of what advanced students should know and demonstrate.  For approximately 650 years (1200-1850), advanced students defended a thesis by demonstrating mastery of the classic authors.  This demonstration occurred through using the method of syllogistic argument.

As the industrial revolution advanced through Europe and the accompanying scientific advances were disseminated through practical applications, German universities started to include scientific, technical, and business curricula.  This academic philosophical shift also altered the role of faculty and advanced students where mastery of a topic occurred through independent research tested by publication, peer challenge, statistical and other changes in the construction of new thought and theory.  The role of faculty and students evolved to one where they had a responsibility to generate new knowledge, skills, and beliefs that could improve the arts and science of western life.

The University of Berlin led this revolution.  When academics and students studying abroad returned home, they brought the new perspectives with them.  This change helped create the Johns Hopkins University (1876) in Baltimore, the first modern American research university.  Cornell, Michigan, and Harvard quickly adapted with new curricula.  From this emphasis on pure and applied research, came the modern American dissertation:  a written discourse that demonstrates mastery of previous work and that advances the status of a field or discipline by the discovery or application to the art and craft of that discipline through the creation of new knowledge, skills, or applications.

Who attends?

The doctoral candidate, committee chair, and their committee members attend the dissertation defense.  It is best if all committee members attend in person.  If not, options such as Zoom or other online video conferencing can be arranged.

Final dissertation defenses are open to any interested member of the academic or professional community, such as other program or non-program faculty members, other program students or graduates, academic and professional guests.  Personal guests sometimes also attend the final dissertation defense. Only the presentation and questioning portions of the defense are open.  Individuals who are not members of the official committee will be excluded from the pre-discussion and voting deliberation portions of the defense.

What is the order of events?

This varies and will depend in large part on discussions between the committee chair and the doctoral candidate.

1.  The candidate works with their committee chair to get the document ready for defense.

2.  Upon approval of the committee chair, the doctoral candidate schedules a defense date and time with the committee and arranges a location.  NOTE: For preprospectus and prospectus defenses, the committee must have the document two weeks prior to the defense.  For final dissertation defenses, the committee must have the document three weeks prior to the defense date.  Electronic versions should be sent to all committee members.

3.  Once the defense is scheduled, and the committee members have the preprospectus, prospectus, or final dissertation document, there can be no more updates to the document until the defense. If any major concerns about the dissertation document arise the dissertation chair should be contacted immediately.

4.  On the date of the defense, the most common practice is to begin with the chair welcoming the attendees.  The chair also briefly goes through the procedures for the defense as described here and confirms that both the committee members and the student understands the process.

5.  Next is the presentation component of the defense.  The purpose of the presentation is not to substitute for the committee’s reading – typically they have not only read the document but also written feedback on it, which they often give to the candidate to inform revisions after the defense – but rather to demonstrate that the candidate can speak to his or her topic and research design.  In this sense, the presentation should be no longer than 20 minutes.

Speaking about one’s research is in itself an academic skill that is different from writing the study.  Presentations can be done in many formats: seated at the table with the committee, standing with PowerPoint, handouts, or posters.  The format itself is not as important as the substance of the presentation and should reflect the most effective way to communicate to the audience an overview of the student’s research.  Some chairs, in consultation with candidates, allow questions during the flow of the presentation, others prefer to hold questions to the end.  The chair should inform the committee of the student’s preference prior to beginning the presentation.

• allow the candidate to demonstrate what they know about the general topic;
• allow the student to address any holes or weak components in the research design noticed by the committee members and to defend their choices;
• allow the student to articulate their understanding of the research methodology and its consistency with the purpose of the study;
• allow the student to clarify minor questions the committee has related to organization, specific literature included, and components of the research process;
• allow the student to explore, explain, or justify their choice of conceptual or theoretical framework selected for the study;
• allow the student to explore further their methods, findings, or theoretical interpretations, and practical applications of results;
• allow the student to speak clearly to their data analysis or report included in Chapter 4;
• allow the student to explore what they learned and could contribute in general about educational professional practice from conducting the study.

Questioning Process/Protocol

The questions may range quite broadly from very specific to very general.  They may be retrospective, intended to ask about something that was already done in the study, or prospective, intended to get the candidate thinking about future possibilities or alterations to the overall study design.  They may include open-ended questions to which there is no known or “right” answer as well as closed questions about particular literature, theory, methods, or findings.  It is not “mean” to ask “hard” questions.  The content of the questions will also need to be adjusted accordingly depending on the dissertation defense level.  The intent is for the candidate and all the attendees to learn as much as possible about the study, the research design, the candidates fitness to conduct the proposed research, and/or the candidate’s fitness for the degree.

Note:   Although the Educational Leadership Doctoral committees typically include the committee chair, a content specialist, and a research methodologist, it is essential that all members contribute to the questioning on all matters pertaining to the candidate’s dissertation document.  As appropriate, this means that all committee members should be prepared to come to the defense with questions pertaining to the topic, content, research methodology, or data analysis, findings, and conclusions as appropriate.

During the questioning component of the defense, it is recommended that committee members not get into a long presentation about their understanding of the topic, but allow the candidate time to share and explore their knowledge of the study and its design.  Committee members should also avoid telling the student what to do as it relates to the theoretical lens, the literature review, or the research methodology and its analysis.  Instead, the committee members can assist the student to be aware of what could be or needs to be done through appropriate questioning.  If the student cannot reach this level of understanding through appropriate and relevant questioning, then the committee member can offer suggestions to the student of where the research design can be changed or improved.

Committee members should also be considerate of one another, and this is where the committee chair should moderate to make sure that all committee members have appropriate time to ask the candidate their questions to determine the fitness of the candidate to proceed or to pass or fail the defense.

Suggested Process (as appropriate to the level of the defense):

Round 1 – Questions pertaining to the topic, theoretical lens, literature/research

Round 2 – Questions pertaining to the research design, feasibility of the research, methodology, data analysis

Round 3 – Questions pertaining to linking candidate’s research to educational practice

Round 4 – Additional questions not answered through Rounds 1-3

6.  When the questioning is complete, the candidate is excused from the room.

7.  The committee members now deliberate and cast their decision on whether to pass or fail the candidate.  In committees of 3 members, a unanimous vote should be achieved.  In committees of 4 members, there can be one dissenting vote.  In instances of a passing vote, the committee chair should recap what the committee members expressed as necessary changes to the student’s document and give the committee time to reflect on their recommendations for the student and their doctoral dissertation.

In instances where it is difficult to get members to agree on a decision, the chair should make every effort possible to moderate the discussion and help get committee members to a common consensus – whether pass or fail – considering all the facts pertaining the student, their written document, and the oral defense given by the student.  In instances where further support is needed to reach a consensus among the committee members, the Doctoral Program Director or the Associate Dean of Administration and Faculty Affairs can be contacted and brought in to help further moderate the process.  It is best that a unanimous vote be reached.

In instances of a failing vote, the student will have no sooner than 2 months after the first defense and no later than 6 months after the first defense to schedule a second defense.  In matters of a failing vote, the committee chair will be responsible for writing a brief report indicating the reasons for the decision and include this with the appropriate form.  This is necessary so that we have appropriate documents in case a student appeal is submitted.  The report should express that all procedures were followed to ensure the integrity of the defense for both committee members and the student.

8.  At this point, the candidate is brought into the room and informed of the committee’s decision.

9.  The meeting is then adjourned.

10.  It is further suggested that the committee chair then take some time to debrief with the student and discuss the next steps, including recommendations made by the committee.

11.  The committee chair submits the appropriate paperwork to the Graduate Academic Services Center (GASC) or to the Doctoral Program Director.

_____________________________________________________________

In summary, the following basic script is a recommended process.  Time spent on each segment varies.

The order, format, flow, and timing of the defense will be finalized and formally approved by the chair before the defense to ensure a complete, clear presentation of the study and examination of the candidate.

• Welcome by the chair and overview of the defense process is given
• Presentation by candidate
• Committee members ask questions and discuss study
• Candidate is asked to leave the room and the committee members deliberate on the decision to pass or fail the student
• Post-meeting announcement of outcome of committee deliberations, often including a conference between the candidate and committee chair (sometimes the whole committee) to review required changes in the dissertation document.
• Student prepares a short document listing the recommendations suggested by the committee members as a result of the defense.  This shows that the student clearly understands their next steps toward improving the final document.  This document is then forwarded to all committee members for approval or further clarification if necessary.

Last updated: 7/20/2023

• Ed. Leadership Ed.D.
• Ed. Leadership M.Ed. with Tier 1 Cert. (P-12)
• Higher Education Administration M. Ed.
• Ed. Leadership Tier I Certificate (Online)
• P-12 Teacher Leadership Endorsement
• College of Graduate Studies
• Financial Aid
• Georgia Professional Standards Commission
• Graduate Assistantship Opportunities
• Graduate Assistant Placement Program
• Graduate Student Organization
• Higher Education Student Resources
• EDLD-Dissertation Program Policies
• EDLD Scholarships
• EDLD Faculty

Graduate Application Tips

For questions regarding Educational Leadership programs, please contact:

Graduate Academic Services Center 3166 College of Education Building Georgia Southern University Phone: 912-478-1447 Fax: 912-478-5093 [email protected]

EDLD Academic Advisor- Tier I Certificate Teacher Leadership Endorsement M.Ed. Educational Leadership Stacy Davis [email protected]

EDLD Program Director- M.Ed. Higher Education Administration Dan Calhoun [email protected]

EDLD Program Director- Ed.D. in Educational Leadership  Elise Cain [email protected]

Dissertation defenses and qualifying exams

For those of you planning to schedule a qualifying exam (proposal defense) or final dissertation defense, please work with your dissertation chair to do so. You may find that some committees opt for virtual sessions rather than in-person sessions as accommodations during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Students who started the EdD program in 2017 or later will receive information about the new uploading platform once it’s available later in March.

Students who started the EdD program in 2016 or earlier will upload to the Graduate School’s Thesis Center. They provided the information below.

How can I defend my dissertation if COVID-19 affects my ability to meet with my dissertation committee in person?

Remote participation in a dissertation or thesis defense is always an option for a limited number of committee members.  With the approval of the student, committee chair, and the dean of the school, the defense can be conducted entirely through Zoom or other videoconferencing tool.  The standard rules apply to the defense.  This means that all committee members must be part of the same defense “meeting,” whether they are on campus or remote.

How can I submit my dissertation if COVID-19 affects my ability to function on campus?

Dissertation checklists and manuscripts are submitted electronically via Thesis Center ( http://graduateschool.usc.edu/current-students/thesis-dissertation-submission/ ) and are not affected by the location of the student.

How can I take the oral portion of my qualifying exam if COVID-19 affects my ability to meet with my exam committee?

Remote participation in the oral portion of a qualifying exam is always an option for a limited number of committee members.  With the approval of the student, committee chair, and the dean of the school, the defense can be conducted entirely through Zoom or other videoconferencing tool.  The standard rules apply to the exam.  This means that all committee members must be part of the same exam “meeting,” whether they are on campus or remote.

How can my advisor submit an academic petition on my behalf to the Graduate School if COVID-19 affects the university’s functions on campus?

Petitions are submitted by advisors online and are not affected by the location of the student or the advisor.

• Counseling and Higher Education
• Higher Education

Ed.D. Dissertations of Practice

As our program is tailored to the needs of working professionals, the culminating research project of the doctoral studies is the dissertation of practice. The dissertation of practice demonstrates the scholarly practitioner's ability to examine problems found within the practice through scholarly inquiry (i.e., a quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods research project or a program evaluation project).

The topic for the dissertation of practice originates from a real-world issue or problem that is then explored, researched and analyzed. The document is designed to include the development of a publishable paper which can be utilized to further the scholarly knowledge of the field.

Successful defense of the dissertation of practice proposal serves as a candidacy examination. The defense must be completed within two semesters of completion of coursework.

Dissertation requirements can be found in the Graduate Catalog .

Dissertation Committees and Support

A faculty member, in alignment with their research expertise and interest, is designated as your dissertation chair. Two additional committee members of your choosing will guide and support you through the dissertation process.

Faculty are committed to supporting you in making significant progress toward the dissertation each term. You will submit reports of progress at least twice a semester to their dissertation chair to ensure they are making progress toward degree completion. Dissertation chairs provide feedback and individual support throughout the semester.

Commitment and Timeline

Our students complete the dissertation within 2-5 semester terms. Students’ progress depends on their topic, research design, and ability to dedicate time toward their dissertation research.

Required Hours

Minimally, twelve credits of dissertation hours (HESA 799) need to be taken. Once you complete your coursework and start dissertation hours, you will remain continuously enrolled and take a minimum of 3 credit hours of dissertation hours per semester.

Example Timeline

Dissertation Proposal

On average is 25-30 pages in length, excluding cover page, references and appendix. The proposal contains the following sections:

• Introduction
• Background of the topic
• Literature review (approximately 10 pages)
• Methodology and methods to be used in the study (approximately 10 pages)
• Significance of the research

Once the proposal is written, you will provide an oral presentation to the committee which serves as the dissertation defense. Successful defense of the proposal serves as a candidacy examination.

Dissertations of Practice Publications

Andrews, M., and Hu, X. (2021). A descriptive profile of online faculty training practices in the Illinois community college system. The Journal of Educators Online , 18 (3), 1-12.

Berek, J., and Kortegast, C. A. (2022). Widening the Pathway to a Degree: Community College Students Experiences With Credit for Prior Learning. Journal of The First-Year Experience & Students in Transition , 34 (2), 111-127.

Clark, P., and Hu, X. (2022). What’s after a D/F/W grade? Community college students’ online course-taking and reenrollment outcomes . Community College Journal of Research and Practice , advance online publication.

Lango, M., and Kortegast, C. (2023). “We’re in This Together”: Small Private College SSAOs Crisis Leadership During COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice , 60 (1), 95-107.

Latiolais, S. J., and Hu, X. (2022). Pathways Toward (unequal) Earnings: Students' Choice of Career Training Programs in Washington State. Journal of Applied Research in the Community College , 29 (1), 83-106.

Pridgen, R., and Nyunt, G. (2023). How College Culture Shapes the Experiences of Students with Food Insecurity . Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice . Advanced online publication.

Testimonials

"I knew that I would need structured support in the dissertation writing stage of the program. My dissertation chair provided a structure where I felt confident in completing milestones to progress in writing and completing my research." Cynthia Padilla-Gaytan, Ed.D. Higher Education, 2022, Director Student Success Strategy, College of Lake County

"One of the highlights of my journey was the opportunity to undertake an ambitious dissertation, designed with my position as a Director of International Education in mind. The work done in my dissertation not only expanded my expertise in international education but also allowed me to make a tangible impact on my campus community." Jacob Cushing, Ed.D., Higher Education, 2020, Director of Student Recruitment and Onboarding, College of Lake County

• Licensure and Certification
• Practicum and Internship
• Internships
• Ed.D. Dissertation Exam

Facebook page LinkedIn page Instagram page YouTube page

• Doctoral Program Administration
• Scholarly Writing Guidelines
• Advisory Dissertation Committee
• Institutional Review Board

Oral Dissertation and Defense

• Publishing Research
• IRB Policies Regulations and Rules
• Additional Forms
• Program Requirements
• Catalog Home
• All Catalogs

EdD Handbook

Oral Dissertation Proposal Defense

Final Oral Dissertation Defense

• Accepted with no changes
• Accepted with changes
• Acceptance denied

Where changes are required, the student must make any iteration in a timely manner and submit the final copy to the Faculty Mentor. Where acceptance is denied or the student has not met the allotted timeframe, the student must retake dissertation courses. This option may only be exercised once. Following the oral defense, the Faculty Mentor submits the findings together with the evaluation forms and a copy of the final dissertation manuscript to the Dean with a recommendation for final approval. The Faculty Mentor issues written approval to the student using the approval form provided in Appendix B: Approval of the Dissertation. If the decision of the committee is not unanimous, the case is referred to the Dean for resolution. If the decision of the committee is a failure recommendation, the Faculty Mentor and Dean formulate a course of action that may include re-registration in dissertation courses. The Advisory Dissertation Committee must evaluate the dissertation and recommend the awarding of the doctoral degree only if the dissertation is judged to demonstrate the following qualities. The dissertation should demonstrate a host of characteristics, including:

• Establish a historical context for the presentation of an innovative and creative approach to the problem.
• Demonstrate understanding of the problem as revealed by analysis and synthesis of a broad literature base.
• Articulate clarity in composition and careful documentation.
• Merit publication in refereed journals or form the basis of a book or monograph.
• Detail the design of the study so that other scholars can build on it in subsequent work.
• Prepare the author to assume a position within the profession.

Quick Links

Catalog home.

• Areas of Study A-Z
• Courses A-Z
• Catalog Archive
• College Policies
• Majors and Programs
• Internships
• Research Center for Women and Girls
• A Hispanic-Serving Institution

Apply & Afford

• Undergraduate Students
• Graduate Students
• Transfer Students
• Adult Learning & Degree Completion Students
• Financial Aid
• Scholarships
• Residence Life
• Campus Events
• Campus Ministry
• Student Activities
• Campus Safety

Current Students

• Office of the Registrar
• Student Accounts
• Academic Advising
• Tech Services 
• Student Development and Success
• Bulletins & Handbooks
• Career Studio
• Assessment & Outreach Center
• International & Intercultural Center
• Instructional Services
• Parents & Family
• Faculty & Staff

Doctor of Education

Introduction & program description.

Alverno College has a strong reputation in education both nationally and internationally . The education division has been recognized by the George Lucas Educational Foundation as one of 10 best US education programs; Dr. Arthur Levine recognized the education division as one of four exemplars in “Educating School Teachers” (2006). In 2019, the Learning Policy Institute, led by Linda Darling-Hammond, recognized Alverno’s education division as a site of “deeper learning” in the preparation of educators. Internationally, the Catholic University of Argentina has adopted the framework of the education division in its innovative programs for preparing teachers, which have been recognized for their strength across South America. Until 2020, however, all of this had been directed at the preparation of undergraduate and graduate initially licensed teachers, graduate-level advanced licensure candidates for school leadership, and master's degrees. The Alverno College Ed.D. programs in transformational educational leadership and higher education teaching extend this tradition of excellence into the doctoral level. 

The program launched in Spring 2020 with two initial specializations: K-12 School leadership and superintendency, and higher education leadership and administration. In Fall 2020 two additional pathways were added, one in higher education teaching, and one designed particularly for the needs of students who had advanced to doctoral candidacy elsewhere but not completed their doctorates, considered “all but dissertation” or ABD. 

The Ed.D. programs are open to students who have completed a Masters-level degree. The program is offered entirely online and largely asynchronous. The program requires two residencies, one in the first semester of the program and one in the last semester of the program.  

This handbook sets forth the context, requirements, structure, coursework, dissertation, assessment expectations, and other key elements of the program. For further reading, please consult the Resources at the end of the handbook, many of which are the sources for some of the Handbook contents. 

Unless stated explicitly in this handbook, the Ed.D. program follows Alverno College college-wide policies and procedures: see https://catalog.alverno.edu/collegepolicies/ for more.

Program Description

Admissions requirements.

Students applying to the EdD programs must have completed a Masters degree previously. People seeking Superintendency licensure must already hold a principal’s license in the state of Wisconsin and be eligible to pursue the Superintendent license under current state requirements.

Program Timing

The EdD program requires students to enroll in nine credits in each of three semesters (Fall, Spring, Summer). The program is six semesters long. 

Residencies

The residencies are intended to provide students with experiences that online modalities do not: sense of community, physical proximity, connection to the campus, and extension to the larger Milwaukee community assets. One residency is held in the first semester of the doctoral program and is virtual; one is held at the end of the program adjacent to the commencement ceremony, and is designed to be in-person but may be attended virtually.

Alverno’s Culture of Assessment, Self Assessment, and Feedback

Alverno College has a global reputation as a pioneer in the innovative ability-based model first implemented in the 1970s and continually refined and developed ever since. 

as • sess (http://depts.alverno.edu/saal/images/e.gifses') v.t. [late ME < ML L assess (us) ptp. of assidere (ad + sedere)] to sit down beside

Assessment is a key component to the success of the Alverno Ability-Based Curriculum.  Parameters of Alverno’s assessment model include: individual performance, group interaction, self-assessment, assessor review, assessor consensus, and specific feedback for the student.  

The assessment model that Alverno College developed in the early to mid 1970's was a result of intensive research on testing methods for academic and corporate institutions and an exploration into the nature of learning. It was realized that students should not just know things, but be able to do what they know.   

AT&T, the telephone monopoly of the 1970’s, was one corporation that Alverno collaborated with in researching assessment, assessment centers, and assessment instruments.  Alverno found that AT&T was beginning to use situational simulations to evaluate prospective managerial candidates.  Alverno realized that simulations or “academic performances” could be the basis for ongoing student learning when combined with self-assessment and faculty feedback. The groundwork was laid for Alverno assessment. Since 1976, people have traveled from all over the world to learn about Alverno's experiences with assessment-as-learning during summer workshops. 

Alverno’s method of evaluating student learning, called assessment, is integral to learning in the Alverno graduate programs. Unlike many forms of testing, assessment evaluates not just what students know, but how well they can apply what they know.

The system of student assessment at Alverno College does not include reference to letter grades. In fact, one tenet of the College’s educational philosophy is that the faculty do not evaluate students comparatively using letter grades. Instead, we establish criteria for effective performance in each course. In the graduate programs, these criteria reflect standards for achievement within the discipline and professional areas, which guide all courses in the specific program. As part of professional programs, graduate course assessments are designed to engage students within their disciplinary and professional contexts. Examples include writing business reports that address strategic and operating issues, preparing proposals for inquiry-based nursing projects, and developing mentoring handbooks for school districts. We then provide students with significant narrative feedback describing the quality of their performances relative to those standards. A student who does not meet these standards at the level defined in each course does not pass the course. As a continuous process in which the students themselves play an active role, assessment helps both the student and the faculty member judge the student’s progress toward meeting the criteria for a given course.

Due to the rigor of our curriculum, we are able to confirm that a student who has successfully completed a course is held in “good standing.” This means that any student in good standing at the College has demonstrated the requisite understanding and practice of the disciplines/profession for the courses s/he has completed. Faculty distinguish quality of performance by providing a written evaluation of the student’s work that documents the specific way the student met or exceeded those standards. At the time of graduation, those evaluations are synthesized into a narrative statement that describes the quality of the student’s graduate work. This narrative statement is an objective evaluation of the quality of the graduate’s performance in her/his program of study and is an integral part of each student’s official final transcript.

The record of courses taken and a detailed profile of the student’s strengths and accomplishments become part of each student’s permanent records. Because this method provides much more information than a grade and fosters continuous learning, it is approved by accrediting bodies and accepted by graduate schools and employers. In fact, educators from across the country and around the world regularly visit Alverno to learn about this innovative and effective approach to helping students learn.

Self Assessment

Since 1973, Alverno faculty have been refining our understanding of self assessment from data in your research studies and thorough reflection on our practice.

One result of our study is a developmental framework that we have articulated to guide our students and ourselves in recognizing and seeking to develop increasingly refined self assessment. We have identified four components of skills inherent in self assessment:

• interpreting/analyzing

Within our framework, we have also distinguished beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels of self assessment ability. We have learned that a student might show proficiency in some components at a beginning level, some at an intermediate, and some at an advanced one.

There are many ways of approaching self assessment, and each way has its own strengths and limitations. For that reason and because of the varied nature of students' learning styles, students should experience multiple approaches. Types of self assessment include those that focus on a

• single performance
• single ability
• single outcome
• specific disciplinary framework or theory
• component of the self assessment framework (observation, interpretation/analysis, judgment, and planning)
• integrate several performances, abilities, outcomes, or content/ability
• focus on the student's development over several semesters

Feedback is a process that supports learning—the learning of students and the learning of faculty. Feedback functions in three ways to support the improvement of outcomes. First, feedback improves student learning within a course because it not only provides students with clear expectations and information on how well their performance measures up to those expectations, but it also suggests strategies to address areas that need further development. Second, feedback improves teaching because the careful attention to performance required to give good feedback also deepens faculty members’ awareness of student understanding or misconception, thinking and application, and expression of thinking in writing or speaking. Third, patterns of performance captured in feedback can assist a department or program to look across courses to uncover issues or problems and determine appropriate changes to improve programs.

Student Perspectives

A case study conducted by the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (Allen 2016) identified benefits of this model as experienced by students.

“Alverno students identified four components of Alverno’s assessment model as having the most positive impact on their learning: explicitly stated learning outcomes; meaningful, useful feedback tied to these outcomes; self assessments; and faculty who see the value and purpose of assessment as integral to student learning. These components, combined with ample campus resources to improve learning, hands-on experience in the major, and a student- and learning-centered campus culture, provide a meaningful and positive… experience for Alverno students (3)”

Program Outcomes and Conceptual Framework

There are five advanced program outcomes that are infused into every course outcome and each module objective. Together, they connote an educational practitioner able to perform at the highest and most scholarly levels. Alverno College uses an “ability-based” model of teaching, learning, assessing, and self assessing. The doctoral program in education is founded on the strengths of this model. The advanced outcomes in education framework identifies five key “abilities” that educators should demonstrate: Conceptualization, Diagnosis, Communication, Coordination, and Inclusive Interaction. This framework sets forth a developmental continuum of abilities, beginning with initially licensed teachers at the start of their teaching careers. By the doctoral level, we expect students to demonstrate the highest level of these abilities. These abilities will be holistically assessed throughout the EdD coursework. Each set of course outcomes is designed to generate evidence of program outcomes.

Conceptualization: integrating disciplinary knowledge with educational frameworks and a broad understanding of human development in order to plan and implement learning processes

• Showing a commitment to teaching within one’s discipline
• Showing high ability to pick the right strategy for the right situation
• Modeling an adult learning process for others
• Acting as a professional, using leadership roles to impact others

Diagnosis : interpreting observations of behavior and situations using frameworks in order to foster learning

• Demonstrating flexibility and actively seeking information or frameworks with which to probe information
• Showing commitment to diagnosis as an ongoing process
• Using effective interpersonal skills that have been honed to gather information

Coordination : managing resources effectively to support learning goals

• Practicing as an educator within an institutional framework
• Demonstrating highly-skilled adaptation to changing situations
• Emerging elements of a Tonna me and collaboration in working in an effective, productive style
• Actively continuing one’s own ongoing experiential learning
• Acting with developed professional values
• Articulating a philosophy of teaching, learning, and assessment

Communication : Using oral, written, and media modes of communication to structure and reinforce learning processes

• Structuring the physical/interpersonal environment as a means of communicating content
• Demonstrating versatility in the creative preparation and use of varied media
• Demonstrating understanding of content area/discipline in both theoretical and experiential ways
• Modeling effective communication and diverse environments

Inclusive Interaction: demonstrating professional responsibility in diverse learning environments

• Believing as an advocate of learning in motivating, in relating to learners, in sharing judgment
• Demonstrating sophisticated awareness of the complex of variables present in interaction, their mutual impact, and their ongoing negotiation by the interactants
• Assisting learners and colleagues in the habit of taking multiple perspectives
• Taking responsibility for and to the state of education
• Integrating the other abilities

Program Characteristics

The doctoral degree pathway requires 54 credits at the post-masters level. For candidates pursuing a Wisconsin Superintendent license, an additional three credit practicum will be required. 

Normative time

The EdD is designed to be completed in 24 to 27 months. Students may begin the program in fall and spring semesters. If a student needs to shift to an alternate timeline for whatever reason, they should work with the EdD director to identify what implications their change may have for program completion.

Low residency blended design

The program will include regular, brief residencies on the Alverno campus in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The majority of coursework and dissertation development will be completed in online seminars and courses.

Continual development of dissertation 

Students in this program will begin the development of their dissertation the very first semester. Each fall and spring semester will include extensive development, revision, and defense of the student dissertation. 

Admissions requirements

Candidates seeking admission will be required to submit evidence of the following:

• A master’s degree in a field related to the student’s preferred area of concentration from a regionally accredited institution with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above.
• Official graduate and undergraduate transcripts.
• A resume showing professional experience. A minimum of three years’ relevant experience is recommended.
• Three letters of reference from persons in leadership roles in the applicant’s chosen area of concentration attesting that the applicant has the ability to engage in studies at the doctoral level and to conduct research.
• A personal interview with a member of the graduate faculty representing the applicant’s preferred area of concentration. For applicants where distance is a factor, an electronic medium may be utilized for the interview.
• A written statement of professional goals and topic of research interest.
• A 750-1500-word sample of the applicant’s writing abilities.
• Evidence that non-U.S. applicants have received a minimum score of 550 (written), 213 (computer), or 79 (internet) on the TOEFL examination.

Structure and timing of coursework 

Each content course is offered in eight-week modules during the fall and spring semesters. During the summer semester, three eight-week courses run in parallel over 10 weeks. Dissertation courses, that run only in fall and spring semesters, are highly personalized to each student’s dissertation interests. Those courses meet biweekly over a 16-week time frame. Each 16 week semester, students will be enrolled in nine credits: two 3-credit content courses, one offered in the first eight weeks and one offered in the second eight weeks, and one 16-week dissertation seminar. Students entering on the All But Dissertation Pathway who have established prior to admission that they advanced to doctoral candidacy in their previous program are not required to take EDD 804, EDD 811, EDD 813, and EDD 850. Generally, ABD students take six credits most semesters. Students entering on the Ed.S. to Ed.D. pathway are not required to take specialization courses. Consult your academic evaluation for your program requirements.

Program Pathway for Fall Start Students

SEMESTER 1 (Fall):

• EDD 800: Dissertation Advisory I (16 weeks)
• EDD 801: Principles of Responsive & Transformational Leadership (8 weeks)
• EDD 802: Research in Educational Contexts (8 weeks)

SEMESTER 2 (Spring):

• EDD 810: Dissertation Advisory II (16 weeks)
• EDD 811: Statistics & Data Analysis (8 weeks)
• EDD 804: Research Methods (8 weeks)

SEMESTER 3 (Summer):

• EDD 812: Equity in Diverse Educational Settings (8 weeks)
• EDD 803: Ethical Organizational Leadership (8 weeks)
• EDD 813: Advanced Research Methods & Data Analysis (8 weeks)
• EDD 815: Dissertation Proposal Defense

SEMESTER 4 (Fall):

• EDD 820: Dissertation Advisory III (16 weeks)
• EDD 8xx: Specialization Course

SEMESTER 5 (Spring):

• EDD 830: Dissertation Advisory IV (16 weeks)

SEMESTER 6 (Summer):

• EDD 814: Scholarly Communication (8 weeks)
• ED 850: Transformational Leadership: Practice & Impact (8 weeks)
• ED 840: Dissertation Defense & Dissemination (8 weeks)
• EDD 837: Dissertation Defense

SEMESTER 7 (Fall): Superintendency track students only

• EDD 826: Superintendency Practicum (16 weeks)
• ED 827: Superintendency Portfolio

Program Pathway for Spring Start Students

SEMESTER 1 (Spring):

SEMESTER 2 (Summer):

SEMESTER 3 (Fall):

SEMESTER 4 (Spring):

SEMESTER 5 (Summer):

SEMESTER 6 (Fall):

SEMESTER 7 (Spring): K-12 Leadership track Superintendency only

Dispositions and Professionalism Expectations for Doctoral Students

Because the program is highly interdependent and relational, Alverno College expects that all participants (students, faculty, and advisors) adhere to basic professionalism expectations as well as continuously striving toward lifelong goals for professional growth.

Basic Expectations for Doctoral Students

These expectations are based on the key dispositions of respect, responsibility, communication, and collaboration. If consistently practiced, they provide a base for growth toward the deeper dispositions necessary to be effective with all learners and colleagues. If violated, they are  cause for concern and appropriate intervention. Students may be asked to reflect on their demonstration of these basic expectations in classes or advisories and they may be used to document any issues with student performance and subsequent interventions.

• The doctoral student effectively demonstrates discipline and responsibility for attending all advising meetings and classes on time
• The doctoral student comes prepared with writing, data, articles, or other relevant meeting materials 
• In submitting work, s/he finishes and turns in on the dates requested dissertation assignments that are complete and have been proofread
• The doctoral student takes the initiative to communicate with faculty and dissertation advisors if there are concerns
• The doctoral student consistently uses appropriate language, interacts in a professional manner and shows respect for others 
• The doctoral student accepts equal responsibility for group tasks or assignments and supports others in doing so
• The doctoral student honors professional ethics, including appropriate use of quotations, recognition/citation of sources, respect for confidentiality and privacy, etc.
• The doctoral student is non-defensive about feedback from faculty, advisor, and peers and uses feedback to support her/his own growth
• The doctoral student maintains openness and a positive outlook, interpreting challenges as opportunities and seeking assistance when needed
• The doctoral student provides consistent support for learners and colleagues in nonverbal and verbal interaction

The Doctoral Student as Professional

Alverno Education students and graduates work to build professional dispositions across their coursework, through self assessment and reflection, collaboration, and systematic inquiry. Course content engages them in the study of education as a moral practice, along with a strong focus on supporting learners and colleagues in continuous development and growth. Doctoral students are asked periodically to reflect on and give examples of evidence of their growth in these beliefs and commitments, especially in their work to build cultures of learning that reflect them.

• The educator believes that all students can learn, holds high expectations for all students, and persists in helping all students achieve success through effective design of learning experiences, thoughtful assessment, and meaningful feedback.
• The educator believes in the inherent dignity of all people, respects the customs and beliefs of diverse groups, and provides equitable opportunities for all people to learn. 
• The educator establishes environments of respect and collaborates in building a culture for learning. 
• The educator is a flexible and responsive advocate for learners, seeking out and using a variety of strategies and resources to meet their cognitive, social, emotional, physical and character development needs. 
• The educator shares his/her learning, seeking to keep abreast of professional discourse and resources and to conduct research to systematically improve practice. 
• The educator collaborates with stakeholders, students, families, communities, and other professionals to support learning, contributing to efforts that improve environments of learning.
• The educator maintains her/his philosophy of education as a living document, using it to guide ethical practice.

Communication Expectations

Alverno College uses criteria developed by the Communication Ability Department to guide our evaluation of written and oral communication. Consult the Appendices of this document for the writing criteria and speaking criteria. 

Core Courses and Methods Courses

Edd 801 principles of responsive & transformational leadership.

In this course, students will show relationships between his/her professional practice and context to appropriate conceptual frameworks, demonstrate deep understandings of one’s current practice within the context of responsive and transformational leadership,analyze principles of responsive and transformational leadership as they relate to K-12 and higher education and use principles of responsive and transformational leadership to begin to define themselves as leaders.

EDD 802 Research in Educational & Organizational Contexts 

In this course, students will read broadly and deeply from a variety of scholarly research.  They will create an annotated bibliography structure to which they will add on throughout the program. They will engage in discussion about research and situate their interests and contexts in relationship to existing and needed research, identifying potential sources of scholarly contribution. They will develop comfort and fluency with APA style and formatting. 

EDD 803 Ethical organizational leadership

In this course, students will analyze educational situations and issues to determine ethically appropriate responses, articulate their professional values and how they inform responses to case studies and current educational events, and appropriately apply frameworks of ethical organizational leadership to K-12 and higher education settings

EDD 804 Research Methods

In this course, students will explore and evaluate diverse research methods and design.  They will consider the benefits and constraints of various research paradigms and methods. They will identify an initial plan for a research method.They will explore the possibility of co-authorship and collaboration in their scholarly projects.

EDD 811 Statistics and Data Analysis

In this course, students will deepen their understanding of statistical and quantitative data, as well as tools to support effective analysis of data. They will critically question how statistics are used to support arguments and claims.They will use and evaluate diverse tools for quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis. They will identify appropriate tools and approaches for their own research design.

EDD 812 Equity in Diverse Educational and Organizational Settings

In this course, students will propose strategies to address issues of disproportionality and inequity in educational settings, analyze patterns of bias within their current setting and design meaningful interventions, and identify diversity/equity issues and their impact in educational settings.

EDD 813 Advanced Research Methods and Data Analysis

In this course, students will explore advanced topics in students’ chosen methodology, including mixed-methodology projects. They will engage in critical research instruments selection (e.g. specific survey, focus group protocol, etc.), and select appropriate research methods, providing a defense and rationale. They will produce a final draft of the methodology section of their proposal.

EDD 814 Scholarly Communication

In this course, students will refine their power as writers and communicators, receiving substantive feedback on their dissertation as it nears completion. They will evaluate possible ways to communicate their research findings in diverse publications: books, articles, podcasts, presentations, roundtables. They will gain experience in writing conference proposals, book prospecti, and peer-reviewed journal articles.

EDD 850 Transformational Leadership: Practice and Impact

In this course, students will assess their current practice within the context of responsive and transformational leadership and describe how they will develop new leaders within their educational setting. They will apply principles of responsive and transformational leadership to define themselves as leaders, and describe how their leadership was informed by their research.

Specializations

The following sets of 3-credit courses will involve each student in deepening their understanding of their area of specialization: K-12 school and district leadership for prospective superintendents; K-12 educator preparation and teacher education; higher education college and university leadership and administration; or higher education teaching and learning. Students pursuing the superintendent license will complete one additional three-credit practicum course. Students who have advanced to candidacy previously in other programs will complete the higher education teaching and learning specialization.

Specializations in Transformational Educational Leadership

Transformational educational leadership in k-12 settings.

EDD 821 Leadership, Educational Law and Policy

In this course, students will understand the authority, liability, and legal responsibility of school personnel in public and private institutions.  The course explores the impact of local, state and national constitutions, statutes, and court decisions on education.  Topics will include but are not limited to employee rights and discipline, curriculum, student rights and discipline, special education, contracts and contemporary education issues.  Students will explore policy development as a political process and develop an understanding of power structure, the role of leadership in impacting policy, dealing with influential groups and lobbies, and the process of policy development at all levels.

EDD 822 LEA Governance, Management and Finance

The course will explore the organizational structure and administrative relationships in school settings through the lens of systems thinking and the study of administrative behavior. Students will explore organizational theory, the collection and distribution of local, state and federal revenue, problems and issues in funding education, and resource allocation.  Managepoliticalpolitical, and social forces affecting schools.

EDD 823 Assessment, Technology and Data for School Improvement

This course explores the use of evaluative information for administrative decision making and the administration and evaluation of educational projects and programs.  Students will develop the ability to assess needs, plan projects and programs, use technology for efficiency and effectiveness, and evaluate the impact of educational programs and decisions. 

EDD 825 The Superintendency: Climate, Personnel, and Supervision

This course explores the personal commitment required in the role of the school superintendent, the study of systematic leadership theory and practice, the development of professional competencies and the ability to create the climate and capacity for learning across the organization.  Research, theory, and best practices of instructional leadership will be explored as a means to build capacity and equity for student learning. The relationship between staff supervision, professional development, and student achievement will be stressed.

EDD 826 Superintendency Practicum (solely required of students qualified to pursue licensure)

The field experience and course support allows the aspiring administrator the opportunity to practice administrative leadership in a setting beyond an individual school site.  A practicum plan will document leadership exposure and practice in the administrative leadership standards for licensure.  Students will examine a range of problems in school administration, develop projects to meet the needs of the field experience, and provide evidence and artifacts of learning through the completion of a final portfolio.  The practicum will be supervised by a site administrator and Alverno faculty collectively. 

EDD-827 Superintendent Licensure Exit Portfolio (0 credits)

This portfolio provides evidence of the candidate's ability to accomplish the responsibilities of a school superintendent and is aligned to the Wisconsin Administrator Standards and the Professional Standards for Educational Leaders.

Prerequisite(s): Full EDD students, concurrent with EDD-826 .

Superintendency Licensure

Once requirements are met, candidates will be endorsed for Superintendent licensure in the state of Wisconsin. 

Transformational Educational Leadership in Higher Education Settings

EDD 831 Higher Education Legal Issues and Accreditation

In this course, students will compare and contrast regional accrediting body expectations, with an emphasis on the one that accredits IHEs in their region. They will apply what they learned about accreditation to write a proposal for a new degree program and prepare for a mock annual review. 

EDD 832 Higher education curriculum and assessment leadership

In this course, students will demonstrate their ability to work effectively and collaboratively with key higher education stakeholders with faculty. They will engage in examination and oversight of curricula, board and trustee engagement, and effective addressing of student and faculty concerns and grievances.

EDD 833 Assessment, Technology and Data in Higher Education Settings

In this course, students will analyze data used in program evaluation, including retention, graduation and attrition data, evaluations of faculty, enrollment trends and patterns and use the analysis to design a program evaluation process for a higher education setting. They will analyze technological tools for mining and examining data from higher education settings and determine what tools are appropriate for what purposes. Applying what they have learned about transformational leadership, students will design a data “retreat” that uses data for program review and goal setting. 

EDD 835 Higher Education Roles, Responsibilities and Leadership

This course explores the personal commitment required in the role of the IHE leader, the study of systematic leadership theory and practice, the development of professional competencies and the ability to create the climate and capacity for learning across the organization. Research, theory, and best practices of system leadership will be explored as a means to build capacity and equity for learning. The relationship between faculty performance and academic innovation, professional development, and student achievement will be stressed.

Specialization in Higher Education Teaching and Learning

EDD 838 Instructional Design Fundamentals

In this course, students will develop deep understandings of theories and practices of instructional design and assessment-as-learning related to their disciplinary/ content contexts in higher education institutions. 

EDD 839 Teaching, Learning, and Assessing in Diverse Educational Contexts

In this course, students will develop deep understandings of the lived experiences, cultural knowledge, and prior learning of the students in their higher education contexts. They will incorporate these understandings into engaging, inspiring, and authentic learning experiences in their content area(s) and related to higher education academic programs.

All But Dissertation (ABD) Pathway

A student who can demonstrate that they have previously been advanced to candidacy in another doctoral program may be admitted to the ABD pathway. In this case, a student’s required courses will be reduced based on their prior coursework. They will complete some core courses, a specialization set of courses, and the dissertation courses.

Ed.S. to Ed.D. Pathway

The Ed.S. degree is for Education Specialists (e.g. School Psychologists, Superintendents) and is often accompanied by a specialized license (for example, from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction). However, someone working as a Superintendent of a school district or in a role as a School Psychologist may desire to attain the terminal degree. This program is similar in structure to the ABD program, which transfers in doctoral credits pre-candidacy and reduces the time to degree completion, but in this case instead of waiving the core and research courses, the transferred courses would be those that can substitute for the Superintendent specialization. This pathway is for any student holding a completed Ed.S. degree, includes all of the core courses and research courses, but replacing the specialization courses with prior coursework at the post-Masters level as electives transferred in from any completed Ed.S. degree.

Dissertation Process

Dissertation advisor.

The Dissertation Advisor is assigned at the beginning of the program and will be the main point of contact for the student as they move through the dissertation advisory courses. Advisors will meet with students, usually biweekly in the fall and spring semesters, and will provide oral and written feedback and guidance to the student. As dissertation advising is a form of teaching, Dissertation Advisors are expected to exemplify Alverno College effective teaching and feedback methods.

Dissertation Advisee

Because the program is “dissertation from day one,” each EdD student must also fully commit to the relationship with the dissertation advisor. Students are responsible to meet expectations for communication, professionalism in meetings, and timely completion of work. As mentioned above, students must provide evidence of their basic and ongoing dispositions for professionalism in all of their work in the program, including work with their advisor. McNeil (2022) has created a helpful list of mentee characteristics that reflect how students can make their commitments evident, which are consistent with Alverno’s expectations for engagement and professionalism: 

• Comes prepared to meetings
• Respects mentors' time
• Follows through and accepts responsibility
• Demonstrates foresight and self knowledge
• Does not expect to be taken care of and does not become too dependent
• Comes with solutions, not just problems
• Gives and requests feedback
• Asks for clarifications and communicates clearly
• Increases the mentor's store of knowledge.

McNeil, M. (2022), “Habits of Highly Effective Mentees.” Personal Communication. 

Advisor Changes

If a student or advisor has concerns about their dynamic, they should contact the EdD program director. Advisor changes are only to be initiated after the student and advisor have first attempted to articulate and address points of tension. Students requesting an advisor change should do so recognizing that their request may imply delays in their program completion. Students may not request an advisor change more than once unless there are significant extenuating circumstances. The program director may initiate an advisor change if there is a program or faculty concern.

If an advisor initiates a change, they will do so in consultation with the EdD program director. If more than one advisor initiates a change with a student as result of a pattern of behavior related to feedback or successful progress toward to the completion of the dissertation, this may be cause for a change in academic status or delay of program completion. Both advisor and advisee are responsible for co-creating a productive and collaborative scholarly dynamic. 

Access to Scholarly Sources and Professional Literature

The Alverno College Library provides access to academic and scholarly resources. Below are several links that are designed to support doctoral students’ work in their courses and on their dissertations. 

• Refining a Research Question ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/01-refining-a-research-question/story.html )
• EBSCO Databases ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/02-ebsco-databases/story.html )
• Creating an EBSCO Account ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/03-creating-an-ebsco-account/story.html )
• Searching EBSCO Databases – Part 1 ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/04-searching-ebsco-databases-pt-1/story.html )
• Searching EBSCO Databases – Part 2 ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/05-searching-ebsco-databases-pt-2/story.html )
• Organizing Your EBSCO Folder ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/06-organizing-your-ebsco-folder/story.html )
• JSTOR ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/07-jstor/story.html )
• Google Scholar ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/08-google-scholar/story.html )
• InterLibrary Loan ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/09-interlibrary-loan/story.html )
• Ebooks ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/10-ebooks/story.html )
• NoodleBib ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/11-noodlebib/story.html )
• Getting Assistance from Librarians ( http://media.alverno.edu/EDD800/library-tutorials/12-getting-assistance-from-librarians/story.html ) 

Dissertation Timing

Students will enroll in a Dissertation Advisory course each Fall or Spring semester that they are in the program. They will be expected to continue developing their dissertations during summer semesters, though there is not a formal Advisory course during the summer semester.

EDD 800 Dissertation Advisory 1

In this course, students will identify a potential area for study, will identify members of the dissertation committee, and will develop the initial research question and complete a draft literature review.

EDD 810 Advisory 2 

In this course, students will complete the introduction and literature review, and (if taken concurrently with Research Methods 1) begin development of the methodology section, or (if taken concurrently with Advanced Research Methods) complete their methodology section.

Each student’s dissertation committee will be comprised of no fewer than three and no more than five members. At least two must be members of the Alverno College faculty. “Outside” committee members must be proposed to the dissertation advisor and approved by program leadership, and their CV is gathered and retained by the program director.

EDD 815 Proposal Defense

Once a student has completed her or his dissertation proposal in Dissertation Advisory 2 and Advanced Research Methods, which are taken concurrently for Spring start students and consecutively for Fall start students, they will participate in a proposal defense with their dissertation committee. In this defense, the student must succinctly and clearly set forth their research question, grounded in the literature, and describe their methodological proposal. They may also elect to describe their planned means of data analysis.

Prior to the defense, the student should have completed chapters 1, 2, and 3 of their dissertations (Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology.) The defense will be scheduled with the Dissertation Advisor and at least two other members of the student’s committee (the program director may stand in for one member of the committee if schedule constraints require).

Elements of the Proposal Defense:

• Short introduction to the context, purpose, and research questions of the dissertation.
• Proposal Defense presentation (following provided template: Appendix A)
• Questions/ clarifications

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Students must submit required forms for exempt or non-exempt research to the Alverno College Institutional Review Board, either to the Education Division representative or the full board. They may also be required to submit IRB or other means of approval and consent to their own institution or school/district. If a student is studying Alverno College, they must also apply to the College for participant consent. The student is responsible for identifying these requirements and fulfilling them before they are permitted to gather data for their research. The Alverno College IRB web page on the College website has more guidance related to these processes and requirements.

EDD 820 Dissertation Advisory 3 

In this course, students will gather and analyze the data for their dissertation, and create the structure for their Findings section.

Communication with Committee Members

As students gather and analyze their data, they must update members of their committee of their progress and process no less frequently than monthly. They must communicate with their Dissertation Advisor at minimum biweekly. 

EDD 830 Dissertation Advisory 4 

In this final dissertation course, students will write up and defend their dissertation, receive feedback, and make any needed revisions.

EDD 837 Dissertation Defense

Purpose of the Dissertation Defense

The Dissertation Defense is a formal presentation of the entire dissertation project. Students must convey their entire finished dissertation to the committee members at least two weeks prior to the defense so that the committee members have the opportunity to raise any significant concerns prior to the defense. If significant concerns are raised, the defense may be rescheduled to provide additional time to address the concerns. If the defense itself yields concerns or required revisions, the student must complete those revisions by at least two weeks before commencement and submit the revised dissertation to their Advisor. If they require more time to address or complete revisions, their program completion may be delayed.

Because this program is an Ed.D., there is an expectation that students’ dissertation project has emerged from and is aligned to their professional practice and context, as opposed to evaluating whether the project represents a significant new contribution to existing scholarly literature, as might be expected in a Ph.D. program. It’s also a program happening at Alverno, which means that, consistent with our abilities-based assessment model, we have explicit program outcomes and assessment criteria to guide us in everything we do. Therefore, we have a rubric developed by the program design faculty and dissertation advisors that we use during the proposal defense (here is a link to the rubric: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gN8HVxF4AK6LraZS4TUBiGHe7YhvkMJI5zfXYRM9qfs/edit ).  

Criteria for the Dissertation Defense

As an outcomes-based program, we elicit evidence of the Alverno Ed.D. advanced program outcomes within those criteria. Those five outcomes, along with ways in which they show up in the dissertation rubric criteria, are:

Conceptualization- knowledge of content and theory, showing breadth and depth of in scholarly context

Communication- clarity of writing, organization, voice

Coordination- marshaling relevant resources, scholarly sources in lit review, methodological justification, participant recruitment, timeline, overall organization of dissertation

Diagnosis- overall framing of the inquiry, intended data gathering resources, feasibility of study, plan for analyzing data, accuracy of findings and implications

Inclusive Interaction- professionalism, ethics, consideration of and protection of human subjects, trustworthiness, urgency of the area of inquiry

Dissertation Defense Components

There are two main components involved in the dissertation defense- 

• Committee members reading/reviewing the dissertation itself (chapters 1-5 for most students), including the Introduction/ Context, the Literature Review, the Methodology, the Findings, and the Discussion/Implications;
• A live dissertation defense meeting with the student, which consists of 
• a presentation in which the doctoral student distills and presents their study findings and implications, grounded in the literature review and linked to the methodology;
• a discussion in which the committee can then ask the doctoral student any clarifying questions or concerns that were raised during their reading of the dissertation and note areas of strength to celebrate and affirm;
• a deliberation in which the committee then asks the doctoral student to step out of the meeting while the committee uses the rubric to evaluate the dissertation, articulating what their recommendation is (i.e. the dissertation is approved without any revisions, is approved with minor revisions, or is not yet approved if there are some significant revisions that must be made before the dissertation is accepted);
• the committee asks the student to return to the meeting and informs the student of the committee’s recommendation.

In considering all those components, the committee explicitly refers to the rubric linked above.

Inviting Family, Friends, or Colleagues to the Dissertation Defense

If a student wishes, they may invite family and friends to attend the defense, but these people do not participate in the defense, and they depart before the committee deliberations. The defense is a final assessment and while it may be celebratory, it must focus on the rigor embedded in the dissertation rubric. Thus, the dissertation defense is different in purpose, content, and evaluation than the final program residency, which is entirely celebratory.

Library Archive of Dissertation

Students must submit a copy of their completed dissertation to the Alverno College library, following the requirements of the Head Librarian.

Student Success

Course engagement and demonstration of outcomes, time commitment.

Each week students will be expected to engage thoughtfully with course readings and resources, complete required assignments and demonstration of outcomes, and to identify growth areas for development. Only the student themself can know how much time that will take. To strategize around ways to organize time successfully, please contact your faculty member. 

Your Alverno email is an official way the college uses to communicate with you. This includes all instructor communication. Students are expected to read Alverno email at least every other day. 

Attendance and Engagement

Timely arrival and attendance at every synchronous class session is required, as well as active engagement in asynchronous collaborative assignments. If a student is absent or otherwise disengaged during more than two course modules, they may be unable to demonstrate outcomes for the course.

Evidence of Outcomes

Each course syllabus lists required outcomes. These outcomes inform the design of course assessments and learning experiences. Faculty may alert students early on in the course if they have concerns about lack of evidence of outcomes. Evidence may be found in assignments, classroom engagement, peer group collaboration, course experiences, summative presentations, or other means designed by the faculty.

Summative Assessments

Many courses incorporate a summative demonstration of outcomes. Guidance for summative assessments may be found in the syllabus, in the course learning management system (e.g. Moodle) or in the portfolio system (e.g. Livetext). Commonly a summative demonstration of course outcomes will be accompanied by a required summative self assessment. 

Progress Codes

Alverno college philosophy of assessment: why we don’t use grades.

The system of student assessment at Alverno College does not include reference to letter grades. In fact, one tenet of the College’s educational philosophy is that the faculty do not evaluate students comparatively using letter grades. Instead, we establish criteria for effective performance in each course. In the graduate programs, these criteria reflect standards for achievement within the discipline and professional areas, which guide all courses in the specific program. As part of professional programs, graduate course assessments are designed to engage students within their disciplinary and professional contexts. Examples include writing business reports that address strategic and operating issues, preparing proposals for inquiry-based nursing projects, and developing mentoring handbooks for school districts. We then provide students with significant narrative feedback describing the quality of their performances relative to those standards. A student who does not meet these standards at the level defined in each course does not pass the course. As a continuous process in which the students themselves play an active role, assessment helps both the student and the faculty member judge the student’s progress toward meeting criteria for a given course.

Progress Report/ Academic Evaluation

A student’s progress report is available on Interactive Online (IOL) approximately one week after the close of the semester. Contact the Registrar’s Office for access information. 

Satisfactory Progress Code

Progress in courses is reported as Satisfactory (S) when all requirements of the course — mastery of subject matter and development of abilities — have been met. 

Unsatisfactory Progress Code

An Unsatisfactory (U) indicates insufficient evidence for meeting the standards of the course.

Incomplete (I) Progress Code

An Incomplete (I) is reported when only a minimal amount of work remains to be completed. An Incomplete must be removed by the date stipulated by faculty. An Incomplete in a prerequisite course must be satisfactorily removed and reported to the Registrar’s Office before the student can begin the subsequent course(s). If the Incomplete is not removed, an Unsatisfactory is awarded.

Grade Equivalencies

When a faculty member enters a progress code, they also enter a “grade equivalent.” For a graduate student who has been successful in a course, that number will be either a 3.0, 3.5, or 4.0. Students may request their grade point equivalent from the Registrar. Faculty advisors do not have access to students’ GPE.

Credit for Prior Learning (CPL)

If a student believes that they have evidence from their professional expertise that aligns to and demonstrates alternative sources of evidence of outcomes for a course, they may contact the EdD Program Director to learn more about Alverno’s processes for evaluating and assessing evidence related to awarding Credit for Prior Learning. If the program director approves the request to demonstrate evidence of prior learning, the student will create an evidence portfolio and a self assessment narrative following Alverno CPL processes. If the review of materials is determined to be sufficient evidence of outcomes, the student will be awarded credit for the course. Students may not receive more than 6 credits (two courses) via CPL. 

Repeating Courses

Students who have not demonstrated outcomes for a course may be required to repeat it or demonstrate equivalent outcomes attained elsewhere. If a student wishes to apply coursework completed elsewhere as evidence, this must be approved by the program director or the student’s advisor.

Academic Status

Students with a concerning pattern of lack of successful attainment of outcomes may be placed on probation, probation with warning, or in extreme circumstances, recommended for dismissal from the College. Students who have been on probation or probation with warning may be returned to academic good standing after remedying the concerns and meeting outcomes. The Graduate Council of Alverno College coordinates the Academic Status meetings and decisions. 

Academic Misconduct and Appropriate Writing Supports

Alverno’s college-wide Academic Misconduct Policy states that students’ work must be entirely their own intellectual work. Work generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, or other similar tools without appropriate disclosure or citation is not considered students’ own intellectual work.  

Appropriate Writing Supports

Alverno College provides support for students’ development as writers, including no-cost writing-focused courses that can be taken by any enrolled student. EdD students and dissertation advisors should be cautious of outside, for-profit services purporting to provide dissertation “coaching” or “mentoring” with the goal of completing the dissertation more speedily. While some students may seek outside editing support when finishing their dissertations, this support must be limited to APA formatting, citation congruence between the text and resources, and review for spelling and grammar. Outside writing support may not provide substantive feedback, content suggestions, or direct editing of the work. The dissertation advisor and dissertation committee are the only people who should be providing substantive feedback and guidance for a student’s dissertation, which must be written entirely by the student. If an advisor or program leadership become aware that a student’s work is not entirely their own, they may be the subject of an investigation into potential academic misconduct, which could result in recommendations for or considerations of sanctions, changes in academic status/ probation with warning, or program dismissal. Any outside committee members must have their CV on file with the doctoral program so that Alverno can ensure that we are maintaining high standards for academic work and engage in supporting all advisors and students in meeting those standards.

Alverno College Academic Misconduct Definition and Process

Academic misconduct refers to any act(s) in which: a) a student seeks to claim credit for work conducted or authored by another individual as their own without approval or appropriate citation; b) a student fabricates or falsifies data or information or academic records of any kind; c) a student falsely represents her performance on academic work; and/or d) assists other students with any of these acts. Alverno College, through its courses and policies, will work to help students understand academic misconduct and the potential implications for engaging in any such acts. However, it is the responsibility of the student to know and understand these definitions and potential consequences as it pertains to academic misconduct in all of their courses. 

The Academic Misconduct process at Alverno is structured as an educational process, building in wherever possible elements of restorative justice (focusing on a repair of harm) so as to align the disciplinary process with the Mission and Values of the institution. A faculty member who believes a student has committed academic misconduct should consider ways in which a student can be educated and informed about the harm committed, and ought to consider ways wherever appropriate in which the student can be involved in creating a restorative approach to harm done through the misconduct. This restorative, educational approach may also carry additional sanctions as determined appropriate. These sanctions may include: a) verbal and/or written reprimand; b) failure of an assignment; and/or c) failure of a course. In extreme or repeated cases, sanction may result in a student being removed from a program of study and/or dismissed from the College. If a faculty member believes a student may have engaged in academic misconduct, the faculty member must first discuss the matter with the student. The faculty member should provide the student with a copy of the academic misconduct and appeals process as part of this discussion. After the alleged misconduct has been discussed with the student, if the instructor concludes that misconduct occurred, the instructor may impose an appropriate sanction that might include: a letter of reprimand that will be copied to the student’s academic file; a repeat or replacement assignment; and/or an unsatisfactory designation for, and removal from, the course. The faculty member must inform the student in writing of the decision and sanction, reminding the student of their rights and the appeal process. Any or all sanctions applied can be appealed by the student. Students can initiate the appeal process by contacting the Office of Academic Affairs. 

Appeals Process

Students wishing to appeal a progress code or academic status decision must complete the official College appeals process, available on the Alverno College website.

Commencement

In the final semester of the program, students will receive guidance from the Alverno College Registrar and Dean of Students Office related to the Commencement celebration, doctoral regalia, final residency, process, requirements, and travel arrangements.

The dissertation proposal presentation should include the following elements.

• Welcome and Introduction
• Acknowledgement of Committee
• Problem Statement
• Background of Problem
• Significance
• Research Question(s)
• (Optional) Key Terms
• Limitations of the Study
• Methodology
• Ethics and Participant Consent

A replicable presentation deck that may be used for students’ dissertation defense presentations is available online .

CRITERIA FOR EFFECTIVE WRITING (Adapted for Entering Graduate Students) 

(Note: Each level incorporates the previous one(s).) 

In a given piece of writing, the student should show the following abilities to the level indicated: 

Connects with audience through ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING CONTEXT  (clarifying, in a manner appropriate to a specified audience, limits of the situation and sources of thinking) 

L1  Gives audience some sense of focus and purpose (What I am telling whom and why?) 

L2  Throughout the writing, provides and maintains a sense of focus and purpose 

L3  Takes responsibility for own ideas and distinguishes them from those of others 

L4  Clearly articulates relationships between ideas/concepts out of an academic framework/theory and those out of her own thinking 

Graduate Level : As a professional, Shows explicit awareness of one’s own ideas as claims rather than truths in the context of disciplinary/professional discourse / Where appropriate: Shows awareness of historical precedent 

L1 Uses language that shows some awareness of appropriate style/tone and varied word choice

L2  Uses language that shows general awareness of appropriate style/tone and varied word choice — avoiding vague, empty, and condescending expression 

L3  Uses language that shows consistent awareness of appropriate style/tone and varied word choice 

L4  Uses language that reflects a refined awareness of the audience 

Graduate Level : As a professional, Effectively incorporates word choice/style/tone unique to a particular discipline or profession / Shows explicit awareness of ambiguity, e.g., that words/concepts may have different meanings for different audiences / Maintains the individuality of the writer / Communicates a sense of ongoing dialogue, common ground, and openness to other perspectives 

L1  Generally follows appropriate conventions 

L2  Consistently follows appropriate conventions 

L3  Applies appropriate conventions to the expression of complex relationships 

L4  Shows a refined sense of appropriate conventions

Graduate Level : As a professional, meets the stylistic requirements of a given discipline or profession 

L1  Presents a message with recognizable introduction, development, and conclusion 

L2  Establishes and maintains focus on a clear purpose, providing transitions to clarify relationships between most points of development

L3  Without digression from the focus of the work, consistently articulates relationships between points of development

L4  Maintains a refined sense of structure appropriate to disciplinary and/or professional contexts 

Graduate Level : As a professional, maintains a refined sense of structure in relation to an academic framework integrated into that of a profession 

L1  Shows ability to use examples and/or evidence meaningful to audience

L2  Supports most generalizations with examples and/or evidence meaningful to audience 

L3 Consistently develops ideas through appropriate use of generalizations, examples, and/or evidence

L4 Develops ideas with appropriate depth, variety, and sufficient interest to engage audience

Graduate Level : As a professional,Explicitly acknowledges contradictory or conflicting evidence when relevant / Relates any of own relevant work that she/he has done

L1 Articulates ideas accurately

L2  Demonstrates appropriate application of designated or selected ideas 

L3  Identifies key elements that indicate understanding of frameworks/theories 

L4  Articulates original applications, syntheses, and/or evaluations of academic frameworks/ theories, validating them with substantiated thinking and appropriately using valid sources

Graduate Level : As a professional, Effectively integrates academic frameworks/theories into the context of the profession / Thoughtfully challenges existing frameworks and/or approaches

• L1  Shows awareness of a few strengths and weaknesses in a written work, based on College criteria 
• L2  Shows some understanding of development in writing ability, based on College criteria
• L3  Articulates, providing evidence, a realistic sense of writing performance in all criteria areas
• L4 Shows a refined sense of strengths and weaknesses in all criteria areas 
• Graduate Level : As a professional, Shows a refined sense of one’s own strengths and weaknesses in all criteria areas, particularly in professional contexts/ Identifies reasonable plans for improvement related to one’s own areas of weakness / Shows explicit awareness of the development of one’s own understanding of one’s own mental models

CRITERIA FOR EFFECTIVE SPEAKING/MEDIA (Adapted for Entering Graduate Students) 

In a given speech, the student should show the following abilities to the level indicated: Preliminary: Follows directions: yes ___ no ___ 

Connects with audience through SPEAKING ON ONE’S FEET

L1    Speaks to an audience for at least a minute with little reliance on scripted or memorized input

L2 Communicates to an audience, long enough to suggest the speaker has internalized his/her message, with little reliance on scripted or memorized input 

L3 Communicates with the audience, giving the impression of both thinking and speaking spontaneously without reliance on scripted or memorized input 

L4 Gives a consistent impression of communicating with the audience without reliance on scripted or memorized input

Graduate Level: As a professional, gives a consistent impression of communicating with the audience without reliance on scripted or memorized input in a variety of job related contexts. 

• L1 Gives audience some sense of focus and purpose (What am I telling whom and why?) 
• L2 Gives audience full sense of purpose and focus, distinguishing his/her own thoughts from those of othersL3 Takes responsibility for own ideas and distinguishes them from those of others. 

L4 Clearly articulates relationships between ideas/concepts out of an academic Framework/theory and those out of his/her own thinking 

Graduate Leve l: As a professional,

Shows explicit awareness of one’s own ideas as claims rather than truths in the context of disciplinary/professional discourse. 

Where appropriate, shows awareness of historical precedent 

L1 Uses language that shows some awareness of appropriate word choice/style/tone

L2 Uses language that shows general awareness of appropriate word choice/style/tone— avoiding vague, empty, and condescending expression 

L3 Uses language that consistently shows awareness of appropriate word choice/style/tone 

L4 Uses language that reflects a refined awareness of the audience

Graduate Level : As a professional,

Effectively incorporates word choice/style/tone unique to a particular discipline or profession

Shows explicit awareness of ambiguity, e.g., that words/concepts may have different meanings for different audiences 

Maintains the individuality of the speaker

Communicates a sense of ongoing dialogue, common ground, and openness to other perspectives

L1 Speaks with some elements of effective delivery

L2 Speaks with most elements of effective delivery

L3 Speaks consistently with elements of effective delivery

L4 Speaks with a refined repertory of effective delivery techniques

Graduate Level : As a professional, meets the delivery requirements of a given discipline or profession 

L1 Generally follows appropriate conventions

L2 Consistently follows appropriate conventions

L3 Adapts appropriate conventions to the expression of complex relationships

L4 Shows a refined sense of appropriate conventions

Graduate Level : As a professional, meets the stylistic requirements of a given discipline or profession

L1 Presents a message with recognizable introduction, development, and conclusion 

L2 Establishes and maintains focus on a clear purpose, providing transitions to clarify relationships between most points of development 

L3 Without digression from the focus of the speech, consistently articulates relationships between points of development

L4 Maintains a refined sense of structure in relation to an academic framework

Graduate Level : As a professional, maintains a refined sense of structure in relation to an academic framework integrated into that of a profession

L1 Shows ability to use examples and/or evidence meaningful to audience

L2 Supports most generalizations with examples and/or evidence meaningful to audience

L4 Develops ideas with appropriate depth, variety and sufficient interest to engage audience 

Graduate Level : As a professional, explicitly acknowledges contradictory or conflicting evidence

L1 Incorporates a visual that is legible, understandable, and appropriate to topic and audience

L2 Computer-generates eye-appealing visuals, using them purposefully to enhance presentation 

L3 Smoothly incorporates high-quality and diverse media whose messages reflect the core concepts of a presentation

L4 Incorporates professional-quality media within a specific context to aid in clarifying academic frameworks 

Graduate Level : As a professional, meets expectations for media quality for a given profession

L2 Demonstrates appropriate application of designated or selected ideas 

L3 Identifies key elements that indicate understanding of frameworks/theories

L4 Articulates original applications, syntheses, and/or evaluations of academic frameworks/ theories, validating them with substantial thinking and appropriately using valid sources 

Effectively integrates academic frameworks/theories into the context of the profession • Thoughtfully challenges existing frameworks and/or approaches 

• L1 Shows awareness of a few strengths and weaknesses in a presentation, based on specifically designated criteria
• L2 Shows some understanding of development in speaking ability, based on the same criteria 

L3 Articulates, providing evidence, a realistic sense of performance in all criteria areas 

L4 Shows a refined sense of strengths and weaknesses in all criteria areas Graduate Level: As a professional,

Shows a refined sense of one’s own strengths and weaknesses in all criteria areas, particularly in professional contexts

Identifies reasonable plans for improvement related to one’s own areas of weakness

Shows explicit awareness of the development of one’s own understanding of one’s own mental models

Dissertation Defense

• Dissertation Defense: Home
• Preparing for the Defense
• Example Defense Questions
• Attending a Defense

Sample Defenses

• Student Experience Feedback Buttons
• Zoom Resources
• Dissertation Publishing in ProQuest
• School of Education Educator Dispositions

Jump to DSE Guide

Welcome to the sample dissertation library! Doctoral students often wonder what it's like to defend their dissertations and in this guide you will find various samples to give you an idea of what to expect when it's your turn. While not all defenses are recorded, you can use these samples to help you prepare for your own defense.

Was this resource helpful?

• << Previous: Attending a Defense
• Next: Zoom Resources >>
• Last Updated: Sep 12, 2023 2:22 PM
• URL: https://resources.nu.edu/c.php?g=1006027

© Copyright 2024 National University. All Rights Reserved.

Privacy Policy | Consumer Information

Sorry, the site you requested has been disabled