Executive Doctorate
Program Overview:
The Department of Educational Leadership offers an executive doctoral program focused on ensuring that school leaders have the skills, knowledge, and capacity to transform public education. Offered in partnership with the Washoe County Schools, but also available to selected others, this program is intended for individuals currently holding leadership roles in education and uses the following strategies:
- a cohort-based approach in which the 15-20 students take all courses together
- a hybrid delivery model using face-to-face weekend sessions, Web-based instruction, and intensive summer institutes
- a theory-into-practice model in which current research is applied to problems being faced in the field
- a research project demonstrating the ability to gather and analyze complex problems facing practitioners
Completion of the program will result in the awarding of an Ed.D. degree requiring approximately 60 credits beyond the master’s, including a significant focus on research. Because of the extensive experience which students will bring, most coursework is offered in thematic seminars in which emphasis is placed on identifying and developing solutions to real-life problems. Additionally, this program provides for the interactions between students and faculty to determine the precise content and problems of practice that will be pursued under six broadly defined themes.
Application and Admission Requirements:
All students are required to complete the usual steps required of all students. Consult the Department’s entry for further information on this process. Unlike the Department’s other programs, however, the Executive Doctoral program uses a common application deadline of March 1st to enable the formation of the strongest possible cohort.
Program Inquiries:
If you need any further information, please contact the program director, Dr. Bill Thornton.