Doctoral Degree Rules and Requirements

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Last updated: Aug 23, 2024 by Allison DeVoe
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Table of Contents

Continuous Registration Requirement

You must be continuously registered at Syracuse University during each fall and spring semester. If you are not registering for course work, you must register for GRD 998: Degree in Progress for 0 credit hours.

For the first four semesters, there is no fee to register for GRD 998 other than a student activity fee. You will be charged a $500 fee plus the student activity fee when you register for the fifth semester of GRD 998 and beyond.

This $500 fee indicates continuing engagement in a graduate program; it recognizes the continuing use of faculty, staff, and institutional resources, even during periods when courses are not being taken. It is designed to encourage you to enroll in courses on a continuous basis so that you complete your degree program expeditiously. Finally, it maintains your active status in the program

Continuing Registration for ABD Status

Once you achieve ABD status (see below), you will need to maintain continuous registration during every fall and spring semester, and you should register for either dissertation credits that you still need for your program (EDU 999), or—if you need none of these credits—for GRD 998 (with no fee except the graduate student activity fee).

Leave of Absence (LOA)

If circumstances are such that you have to register for GRD 998 for an extended period of time, you may take a one-year Leave of Absence. If you feel you need more than one year, you must take a permanent Leave of Absence.

If you decide that you want to resume your studies in the School of Education, you can contact your faculty advisor to be readmitted. A Leave of Absence cannot be taken retroactively.

Procedures for the Ed.D. Degree (Educational Leadership)

The Ed.D. is a professional degree available in the area of Educational Leadership. The Doctor of Education emphasizes applied research in areas relevant to school leadership.

While most students in the program are practicing administrators, neither administrative certification nor administrative appointment is required to pursue the Ed.D. The program does not lead to administrative certification.

Students are assigned a faculty advisor upon entry into the program.

Students draw on field projects to explore possible topics for the dissertation, while core courses provide opportunities to engage in field inquiry in particular school systems:

  • 48 credit hours in educational leadership or closely related courses approved by your faculty advisor. Work completed previously in a master’s or CAS program often satisfies part of this requirement. 15 of those credits must include multiple one-credit seminars (EDA 890), and coursework that addresses the following domains: instructional leadership, equity and leadership for adult or organizational development.

  • 12 credit hours of research methods courses. Students may take additional courses as determined by the student and faculty advisor.

  • EDU 781: Institutions and Processes of Education, or an exemption approved by the Assistant Dean.

  • Completion of a doctoral practicum.

  • Completion and defense of a dissertation. The dissertation normally carries 9-12 credits of EDU 999.

  • Completion of a residency or time-to-completion requirement, and completion of all requirements within five years of the qualifying examination.

  • An overall B average.

  • A total number of 90 required credits beyond the bachelor’s degree. Half of all credits associated with coursework, and all dissertation credits, must be completed at Syracuse University. Rules concerning transfer credits and counting a course toward multiple degrees are explained later in this book.

The following requirements are unique to the Ed.D. Requirements the Ed.D. degree shares with the Ph.D. are described in detail in the following sections.

  • Doctoral practicum field experience: This is a required component of the Ed.D. program instead of the research apprenticeship requirement that applies to Ph.D. students. Course credit is varied and optional. A report of the experience is required, written in a style appropriate for publication in a practitioner journal. To arrange an appropriate field experience and compose a suitable field report, consult with your faculty advisor.

  • Qualifying examinations: A set of qualifying examinations, required of all Ed.D. students, consists of responses to four questions that address substantive issues in educational leadership and two questions that address issues of research methodology and development. The nature of the qualifying exam questions for Ed.D. student may vary from those for Ph.D. students.

  • Dissertation: The dissertation for Ed.D. students normally carries 9-12 credit hours. Students are encouraged to address the immediate practical needs of one or more identifiable school systems, while simultaneously expanding the knowledge base on which theory and practice are grounded.

Procedures for the Ph.D. Degree

All doctoral programs in the School of Education other than the Ed.D. lead to the Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree emphasizing development or extension of theory and research in the field of study.

Students are assigned a faculty advisor upon entry into the program.

  • A minimum of 45 credit hours in the primary area. Your primary area is delineated in consultation with your advisor and may include courses drawn from related disciplines. Dissertation and practicum hours cannot be included among credit hours comprising your major area.

  • A minimum of 12 credit hours of coursework on methods of research and/or other forms of scholarly inquiry.\

    • Many programs require additional research methods, which you will select in consultation with your faculty advisor.

  • EDU 781: Institutions and Processes of Education, or an exemption approved by the Senior Assistant Dean.

  • A minimum of nine credit hours and a maximum of 24 credit hours of dissertation credit.

  • Completion of a research apprenticeship, including a supervised research activity over a period of not less than one year, under the direction of a University faculty member.

  • Completion of a residency or time-to-completion requirement, and completion of all requirements within five years of the qualifying examination.

  • An overall B average.

  • The total number of required credits beyond the bachelor’s degree is determined by the degree program as registered with the State of New York.

    • One-half of predissertation course credits and all dissertation credits must be taken at Syracuse University. Courses numbered 500-599 may not make up more than one-third of the Syracuse University course work. Rules concerning transfer credits and counting a course toward multiple degrees are explained later in this book.

Research Apprenticeship Requirement

The purpose of the research apprenticeship is to provide you experience in conducting a significant piece of work prior to your dissertation.

The project should engage you in all aspects of a research study, such as experimental design, data collection, data analysis and interpretation, and reporting. Usually, this project helps your learn the research methodology necessary for your dissertation.

The research apprenticeship is usually supervised by a sole faculty member who is either your faculty advisor or another member of the School of Education faculty. It is your responsibility, in consultation with your faculty advisor, to arrange the apprenticeship experience.

Some students complete the research apprenticeship experience within the context of a regular course, in which case the course instructor may sponsor the apprenticeship. Other students contract with their sponsor for an independent study course carrying 3 to 6 credit hours. Still others conduct the apprenticeship without any credit hours attached to it.

You must complete a Research Apprenticeship Registration Form to secure advanced agreement with your faculty advisor and faculty research apprenticeship sponsor for your research apprenticeship. Obtaining advance agreement regarding who will sponsor your research apprenticeship and detailing authorship with that sponsor should the research apprenticeship report be published are important steps in the planning process.

A copy of this document should remain on file and be submitted to the Office of Academic and Student Services. Upon completion of the apprenticeship, a Research Apprenticeship Advisor Approval must be submitted by your faculty sponsor to your department and to the Office of Academic and Student Services.

Research Using Human or Animal Subjects

If you are conducting research involving human or animal subjects, you must file an application with the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (ACUC) and receive approval to conduct the study.

The policies and forms for human or animal research may be found at Office of Research Integrity and Protections.

Completing the Doctoral Programs

File an Informal Doctoral Program Plan Form

During your first semester, you will complete an Informal Doctoral Program Plan and submit the original to SOE’s Office of Academic and Student Services. You will need to consult with your faculty advisor to determine such details as the number of courses you will be able to transfer into your program, when you will complete your core courses, what you will do for your research apprenticeship, and when you will do it.

The purpose of filing an informal plan so early in your doctoral career is to make sure that you have done some long- term thinking about your doctoral program before you have accumulated many course credits. This plan can be revised as you proceed with your studies. It is your responsibility to initiate a meeting about your informal plan with your faculty advisor.

Preliminary Review/45 Hour Exam

This review and/or examination generally occurs at the end of your second semester of full-time study, or upon completion of your 45th credit hour of course work beyond the bachelor’s degree (at least 15 credits must be earned at Syracuse University). Consult with your faculty advisor as to the review procedures for your program.

File a Formal Doctoral Program Plan

In the semester after your preliminary review, you must file your Formal Doctoral Program Plan with the Office of Academic and Student Services for review by the Faculty Director for Graduate Studies. Your formal program plan must be approved by your faculty advisor before submission.

Please note: Completed program of study forms are submitted to SOE’s Office of Academic and Student Services, not to the Graduate School.

If changes need to be made once the program plan is approved, you must file a new plan or amend it by petition. It is your responsibility to develop this plan in conjunction with your faculty advisor. The courses listed on your formal plan must match your official transcript.

The Qualifying Examination

Graduate School regulations require you to take the qualifying examinations when you have completed all your coursework and your research apprenticeship, but before beginning your dissertation study. The exam is administered by the academic area faculty.

The examination covers the field of study including research methodology. The examination consists of six (6) half days of written examinations or the equivalent.

The structure of the examination is variable by doctoral program, so check with your faculty advisor. The examination is prepared and evaluated by a faculty committee consisting of at least two faculty members.

The examination must be passed within a two-year period. If it is failed twice, the faculty advisor may recommend additional courses before the third trial. A candidate who fails the examination three times will be removed from the doctoral program. Your faculty advisor must report the results of your examination to the Office of Academic and Student Services.

All But Dissertation (ABD) Status

Once you have passed the qualifying examination, you are admitted to doctoral candidacy status and may represent yourself as such. Typically, the letters A.B.D. after one’s name represent this status to others.

  • To obtain ABD status, complete an All But Dissertation (ABD) Status Form.

  • You will need to maintain continuous registration during every fall and spring semester, and you should register for either any dissertation credits (EDU 999) that you still need for your program, or, if you need none of these credits, for GRD 998 (with no fee except the graduate student activity fee).

  • You have five calendar years after the date of your ABD status to complete and defend your dissertation research, and to complete your degree program.

Dissertation Procedure

A doctoral dissertation must be developed following these guidelines:

Doctoral Timeline for Full Time Students

First Year, First Semester: File informal doctoral program plan form
First Year, Second Semester: Preliminary review/45-hour benchmark
Semester Following Preliminary Review Completion: File formal doctoral plan form
Prior to the Qualifying Examination:
Complete Research Apprenticeship and submit forms

Submit IRB approval letter if applicable

Semester Following Coursework Completion and Research Apprenticeship: Complete qualifying exam(s)
When all steps above are complete: Complete All But Dissertation (ABD) status form
Final Steps:
Complete all Dissertation Procedure steps (see above)

Enter dissertation into Registry, file diploma request, and organize defense.