Regulations

Admission
The candidate shall have:

• 1)
  fulfilled the normal requirements for admission to the Graduate Division of the University of California, San Diego as specified by the Graduate Council and the Dean of Graduate Studies;
• 2)
  met additional requirements that may be specified by the Department of Education Studies;

• 1)
  core courses that address fundamental issues in educational practice;
• 2)
  core courses that focus on the analysis of educational reform and innovation;
• 3)
  broad training in research methods appropriate to topics in education; and
• 4)
  preparation for doctoral dissertation research.

Doctoral Committee

• 1)
  The standard Ed.D. dissertation committee consists of three or more faculty members appointed by the Dean of Graduate Studies under the authority of the Graduate Council. Each committee will have no fewer than two faculty members at the level of Associate Professor or above or Lecturer with Security of Employment or above (those granted approval by the Office of Graduate Studies).
• 2)
  The Doctoral Committee shall supervise and pass on the student’s dissertation, and conduct the final oral examination, which shall be public and so announced.  Unless the reports of the committee to the Graduate Council concerning the examination and the dissertation are unanimous, the Dean of Graduate Studies shall be called upon to review the case and report his or her findings to the Graduate Council, which shall determine appropriate action.

Advancement to Candidacy

• 1)
  Before application to candidacy for the Doctor’s degree, a student must have satisfied all preliminary requirements set by the program and by the Graduate Council and must have written a qualifying paper approved by the faculty.
• 2)
  The oral and written presentation of the dissertation proposal shall serve as the candidate’s Advancement to Candidacy Examination. The Examination will be administered by the student’s Dissertation Committee.  The candidate must file his or her application, properly approved by the Doctoral Committee, and submit it to the Dean of Graduate Studies who shall determine if all formal requirements have been met.  A minimum period of resident study equivalent to three quarters must intervene between the date of formal advancement to candidacy and the date of the final examination.

• 1)
  A dissertation is required of every candidate for the Ed.D. degree.  The dissertation must contain original research on a significant issue in educational leadership and practice affecting K-12 or post-secondary institutions and be approved by the candidate’s doctoral committee.
• 2)
  A draft of the dissertation must be submitted to each member of the Doctoral Committee at least four weeks before the final examination.  The final form of the dissertation must be in accord with the “Instructions for the Preparation and Submission of Doctoral Dissertations and Masters’ Theses” which are established by the Graduate Council.  A copy of the approved dissertation must be filed for deposit in the University Library.

Residency
The minimum residence requirement for the Ed.D. is six quarters, three of which must be spent in continuous residence at UCSD.