Best Educational Leadership Doctorate Degree Programs

Students interested in enrolling in an educational leadership doctoral program can expect to fill out an online application with a varying fee and a number of requirements before applying. Certain scores for the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) are a common requirement, and some schools might require scores from the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). You will need to provide transcripts for all previously attended institutions, as well as a resume and a well-considered personal statement explaining both your career goals and your suitability for the Ed.D. program to which you're applying. Most schools require two or more online letters of recommendation from people who can write about your passion for and accomplishments in educational leadership. If English is not your first language, you will typically be required to submit Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores to verify your advanced English language abilities.

While there tends to be no general course prerequisites for Ed.D. programs, many schools require or prefer students to hold a master's degree in education. Others require advanced teaching or administrative experience and appropriate licensing. Expect a requirement of at least three years working in educational leadership as an experienced teacher, principal, or non-profit education position, with documented experience that shows your project and/or staff management history. Departments typically look for a demonstrated track record of advancing educational leadership, standardized test scores, and personal statements.

Accreditation is the way universities and individual departments demonstrate to future institutions and employers how much value a degree will be worth upon graduation. The Department of Education has six regional accreditation agencies around the country (with varying names depending on the region). Accrediting agencies look at the educational and research history of a school's faculty, as well as at courses, student outcomes, and many other factors to ensure that a university meets specific standards set by the Department of Education. Accreditation will also indicate to peers, colleagues, other educational institutions, and future employers that your doctorate is valid.

Ed.D. programs typically take 3 or more years to complete full-time, with some programs allowing more time. The first two years generally involve intensive coursework in common foundational areas and research methods before another year of similar elective classes to pursue your preferred professional and intellectual interests. During this time, you will discuss with an advisor what form of practical experience, internship, or doctoral research you will do in the last year. Depending on the program, you typically will create a summative project to reflect upon that research or experience to conclude the program.

The first year of a doctorate program in educational leadership typically focuses on how strong leadership can bring positive, data-driven change within educational organizations. You will likely study different leadership methods, as well as contemporary issues such as diversity and equity. This may involve the study of the origins of inequality, as well as participation in seminars on how to transform organizations to try to remedy those problems. You will also likely study administration, finance, and personnel issues in educational leadership. Foundational classes in social justice and ethics often complement the organizational focus. Electives typically involve seminars concerning leadership and project proposals.

Research methods play a huge part in all Ed.D. program coursework, which involves studying qualitative and quantitative methods to evaluate data. You will likely take courses covering these topics to prepare you for a dissertation, research practicum, and/or practical internship.

Preparing Your Educational Leadership Dissertation

A dissertation is a lengthy process beginning with consultations with your faculty advisor. An Ed.D. dissertation may be either a practical capstone project or a traditional research study depending on your program. Both typically involve consultations with an advisor and exploration of possible areas of interest. Traditional dissertations might require courses in research design and dissertation writing seminars, moving into comprehensive literature reviews and, once the study has been defined, a defense in front of a faculty committee. Like a dissertation, a capstone project involves extensive research but typically involves more of a focus on leadership and finding a data-driven solution to an organizational problem. Both forms of research compilation typically require several years of research, classes, extensive preparation and a written assessment of the work done.

While some Ed.D. programs do not have formal specializations (proscribed tracks of courses), doctoral students can take electives to craft a professional track of their own. These could relate to possible future professional work contexts such as P-12 education, community college, or other higher education organizations. A custom concentration could focus on leadership roles or understanding and crafting public education policy, or understanding how social justice concerns should shape educational organizations. Some common concentration tracks include curriculum and instruction, school administration, and higher education leadership.

Curriculum and Instruction

Curriculum development and instructional design requires strategy and leadership. This track typically involves considering what innovations practitioners could bring to curriculum planning and how to evaluate new technologies that could benefit learning. You will likely approach learning from multiple research perspectives (social or neurological) to understand how people learn, possibly with a practical internship in curriculum design to learn from experienced professionals. Expect to study different student populations and the differing learning needs of each, as well as how to identify which instructional methods are the most appropriate and how to lead a department using research-driven methods.

School Administration

Probably the most common track within an Ed.D. program, a school administration concentration aims to build data-driven leaders in P-12 education. Doctoral candidates typically study a range of relevant topics such as law, finance, policy and technology, as well as curriculum and leadership development. Most likely you will shape your specialization with electives focusing on topics involving government regulation, resource management, and executive leadership. A relevant internship in public P-12 education will likely follow, and this track may lead to a superintendent certification to allow you to promptly apply to these positions. Course topics in general have a strong focus on necessary contemporary issues such as diversity in education, as well as typical research methodology classes to ensure that any strategies and decisions you make are sound.

Higher Education Leadership

Students pursuing this specialization will focus on all aspects of postsecondary education administration, from student services to admissions to diverse curriculum. Courses typically discuss the finances of large, higher education schools as well as management strategies for their leadership. You will likely consider the ethics of leadership across multiple contexts such as private, public, for-profit, and non-profit organizations. You may consider public policy and the law of higher education, as well as how to integrate remote education into an increasingly competitive education field. Finally, you typically will work toward a research driven practicum or dissertation on how to transform such organizations for the better.

Educational leadership requires a great deal of professional experience as a teacher so that you can more effectively perform in administrative roles, so it's important to follow a relevant degree track starting at the undergraduate level. Many lower degree programs emphasize building leadership characteristics while you earn your teaching license, which is an important prerequisite to applying to a higher degree such as a master's or doctorate. In addition to traditional, on-campus doctorate programs, there are also online doctorate programs in educational leadership.

Educational Leadership Associate Degrees

An associate degree in education is typically a two-year program leading to transferring to a bachelor's program. Typically, these programs, which can serve as an entryway to licensure and the possibility of more advanced educational leadership, provide the general education courses required for a degree as well as other courses such as developmental psychology, basic education approaches, technology of education, and how to use state standards as the basis for class preparation. After two years, a student can typically transfer to a bachelor's program to focus on more in-depth education and gain licensure.

Educational Leadership Bachelor's Degrees

A strong bachelor's degree program in a relevant subject is crucial when considering pursuing a career in educational leadership. Many bachelor's programs focus on research-based, innovative approaches to teaching that are intended to encourage graduates of these programs to excel in their fields. A bachelor's in education is the foundational degree for potential teachers because it provides subject strength, pedagogy, and literacy; specific course topics will vary according to the subject or grade level a student chooses to specialize in. Once a student has a bachelor's degree, licensure and experience, they can continue their path into in educational leadership by pursuing graduate-level degrees.

Educational Leadership Master's Degrees

A Master of Education (Ed.M.) in Education Leadership program, or a related master's program, is typically a two-year, often part-time, program designed for emerging leaders in education aiming to move into P-12 school administration. These programs often require several years of teaching experience for entry and likely involve required coursework in administration, learning diversity and equity, finance, human resources, organizational management or teacher training. The second part of an Ed.M. typically involves an internship at a relevant organization. Other related degrees in the field include a Master of School Administration (MSA) in Educational Leadership and a Master of Arts (MA) in Educational Leadership. Like Ed.M. programs, MSA and an MA programs are also geared towards professionals already in the teaching or administrative field who want to advance to principal or other administrative positions.

Educational Leadership Graduate Certificates

The advantage of a graduate certificate in educational leadership is that it can complement your existing undergraduate or graduate education with a very targeted set of skills and knowledge. Programs could include a graduate certificate in educational technology or a graduate certificate in a population-specific field like special education. Other possibilities include subject-specific grad certificates in topics such as mathematics or science, or a more leadership-focused certificate for aspiring or existing principals. Graduate certificates will likely involve around four to six classes, often taken online or in a hybrid format, and can be completed in less than a year.

While producing qualified, district-level leaders is often the focus of Ed.D. programs, there are a variety of career paths graduates of these programs can pursue, including leadership positions in traditional P-12 organizations or executive positions in non-profit organizations. An experienced educational leader could look to state and federal positions, as well as philanthropic organizations or for-profit roles.

Become a Superintendent

A school superintendent is the chief leadership role of a school district, often managing hundreds to thousands of teachers across multiple schools at all levels. Typically, superintendents supervise and strategize the budget, operational goals, and policies of a district to support a financially healthy district with a thriving student population. Superintendents have to work with principals, teachers, town administrators and often parents. The median salary for superintendents was $165,707 per year according to Salary.com in June 2021, but with a very wide variation depending on experience, education, and location. Some superintendents work in small districts containing less than a thousand children, while others work in highly populated districts of thousands of children. School superintendents often have experience as principals before rising to the role and can become nationally certified by the School Superintendents Association (AASA).

Become an Education Policy Consultant

Training is ongoing throughout a teacher's career, and districts often hire educational consultants to develop their training curriculum. This involves consulting with district or state leaders to identify professional needs and plan out in-service days. Additionally, many states require educational consultants with a strong focus on a specific subject to develop teaching standards. Literacy or special education specialists, for example, may lead a team to develop or implement those standards for a given state. Successful consultants use current research and leadership skills to develop and evaluate current education methods. They are also skilled in planning, delegating, and managing educational reforms. According to Salary.com, the June median salary for education consultants was $102,799 with significant variation based on location, experience, and education.

Become a College President

Postsecondary education has a wide range of leadership roles suited to Ed.D. graduates, including college president and provost (essentially a vice-president). College presidents lead a strategic vision for the college to support student learning and faculty job satisfaction and will need extensive experience in previous roles within higher education administration. In addition to overseeing school departments, college presidents may meet with high-level donors, direct fundraising actions, and, depending on the size and nature of the institution, may even meet with state-level politicians and leaders to promote the future of the college. College presidents must be able to work collaboratively within a strong vision with provosts, deans and sometimes lower-level faculty to promote the academic success of the college and manage high-level financial planning. With a June 2021 median salary of $305,238 on Salary.com and a wide variation based on size and public or private institution, higher salaries can extend into seven figures for successful presidents.

There are many professional organizations geared towards professionals in the field of educational leadership. Superintendents can become members of the School Superintendents Association (AASA), an organization representing 13,000 public system-level leaders in P-12 education. They advocate for quality education for children across the country, offer ongoing training, and manage a nationally-recognized certification program. Aspiring and existing school leaders can join at differing rates and make use of the networking and professional development opportunities for their own advancement. Full membership for current superintendents also includes up to a million dollars of professional liability insurance.

If you are pursuing higher education administration roles, then the American Association of University Administrators (AAUA) may be a more appropriate organization to join. It covers all forms of higher education (for-profit, non-profit, public, and private) and offers early career administrators structured guidance to help them build a strong leadership resume. The AAUA also focuses on ethical leadership, publishes a journal of research and activities, and runs seminars for interested members.

Cost of an Ed.D. will widely vary depending on whether a student in in-state or out, as well as whether an institution offers any sort of financial assistance and if it is public or private. This could range from a basic in-state tuition cost of $11,000 for a full-time Ed.D. year at a public college up to around $26,000 or more a year at a private institution. Consider also whether you are able to pay out-of-state tuition for a school, as the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition can be vastly different. In-state tuition typically requires a year or more of residency before a student will qualify to receive that rate. Beyond the basic tuition cost, there are also other fees to consider. Books may cost up to $1,000 a year, and relevant room, board, health insurance, and travel costs must be considered across the years of the program. Fortunately, many programs offer financial aid that will not only cover tuition, but certain living costs as well.

The first step for graduate school funding is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). A single application to a number of funding opportunities, the FAFSA can lead to scholarships, work-exchange funding, grants and loans.

Some departments have excellent funding for their doctoral candidates, including full or partial tuition grants or work-study stipends. This funding is typically considered for all successful applicants, but be sure to read the application and website to ensure you qualify for all departmental financial aid.

There are numerous doctoral-level funding opportunities for different demographic groups and the PhD Project presents a good range of them. There are several grant opportunities for women offered by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), as well as grants for minority groups; the (AIGCS) offers grants to Native American graduate students. There are also major grant opportunities for all potential scholars as well.

The American Associations for Educational Researchers also offers grants for educational research for dissertations and other research projects.