Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Leadership in Higher Education

Selection to the Ed.D. program is a competitive process based on the following criteria:

• Completed application and $50 application fee | Apply Online
• Completed master’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, with a final GPA equal to or greater than 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
• An official transcript indicating completion of a graduate degree from a regionally accredited institution (Sealed transcripts must be mailed or emailed directly to Baker University School of Education from the institution awarding credit.)

How to send transcripts to Baker

• Evidence of one year of experience in an accredited higher education institution
• Submission of the names of four references (with contact information) who will complete the Leadership Qualities Assessment Survey
• Acceptable scores on the assessments in critical thinking and writing and on the Leadership Qualities Assessment Survey
• For international students, please contact education@bakerU.edu for more information.

The doctoral dissertation is conducted in accordance with guidelines established for doctoral candidates of Baker University. The doctoral study follows recommendations found in “The Role and Nature of the Doctoral Dissertation: A Policy Statement,” Council of Graduate Schools.

Purpose

The doctoral dissertation will accomplish the following:

• Reveal the candidate’s ability to analyze, interpret and synthesize information
• Demonstrate the candidate’s knowledge of the literature relating to the project or at least acknowledge prior scholarship on which the study is built
• Describe the methods and procedures used
• Present results in a sequential and logical manner
• Display the candidate’s ability to discuss fully and coherently the meaning of the results

The dissertation is the beginning of the candidate’s scholarly work, not the culmination. The dissertation is expected to provide the candidate with hands-on, directed experience in the primary research methods of the discipline and should provide for the type of research that is expected after the doctor of education degree is awarded.

Process

Once a candidate has entered the program, he or she receives a full description of the process to be used for completing the study, including the following:

• Dissertation proposal development and approval
• Format of the dissertation
• Adviser–advisee relationship
• Administrative and faculty support
• Study presentation process
• Deadline for dissertation completion

A unique component of Baker’s doctoral programs is the availability of research analysts who assist students and their major advisor in research design and methodology and analysis of data and the results of the study.

Ed.D. Graduation Requirements

• Successfully complete the approved 59-plus-credit-hour Ed.D. curriculum.
• Maintain a minimum graduate grade point average of 3.0 with no grade below a B.
• Successfully complete both Field Experience I and II, as evidenced by artifacts and reflections provided in the electronic portfolio, scoring “proficient” or above.
• Satisfactorily complete both Field Experience I and II and receive recommendations from the educational mentor and university supervisor on the evaluation form with mean scores equal to or greater than 8.4 on a 10.0 scale.
• Successfully complete and defend the program electronic portfolio scoring at the proficient level or above.
• Successfully complete and defend the dissertation.
• Submit intent to graduate form three months before anticipated degree completion

DED 9010 Statistical Analysis 3 hours
This course addresses the application of descriptive and inferential statistical techniques for organizing research data and testing simple hypotheses. Candidates learn techniques for reporting statistical results including the generation of charts and graphs to describe data and to draw conclusions based upon data. The course is practical in orientation.

DED 9011 Methods of Inquiry and Research 3 hours
This course is divided into two parts: qualitative and quantitative methods. This course presents basic research design. The qualitative paradigm will be presented as complimentary to quantitative methods rather than as contradictory and competitive. Candidates begin developing ideas and researching topics for the dissertation.

DED 9012 Student Affairs and Enrollment Management in Higher Education 3 hours
This course develops the knowledge and performance areas needed to develop, implement, and assess a program of student services. Those services include but are not limited to: admissions, advising, financial aid, career services, housing, student organizations, disabilities services, student health (emotional and physical), Greek life, and Code of Conduct. Candidates will gain an understanding of the historical, philosophical, and holistic elements of Student Affairs in college and university settings. Candidates will explore major theoretical issues and organizational units that fall within Student Affairs. Issues associated with Enrollment Management (e.g. marketing, recruitment and retention) in higher education settings will be addressed.

DED 9014 Foundations and Contemporary Leadership in Higher Education 3 hours
This course presents candidates with an overview of key historical developments impacting contemporary higher education in the United States including the different missions and goals of higher education, the multiple sectors (e.g., public and private universities and colleges, community colleges, technical colleges) of higher education and the ways in which philosophy and history have shaped the higher education curriculum. The course is also designed to provide foundational grounding in the study of leadership theory and research. Leadership issues addressed include the nature of leadership; leadership models and styles; beliefs and values related to leadership; and research and best practices of leadership.

DED 9015 Administration Governance Accreditation and Strategic Planning in Higher Education 3 hours
This course develops the knowledge and performance areas needed to understand the organization and administration of varied types of higher education institutions including two and four year colleges/universities. Internal and external governance structures will be examined. Regional accreditation criterion and the role of discipline specific accreditation will be addressed. Critical elements of the institutional strategic planning process shared governance, and emergency operation planning will be discussed.

DED 9016 Curriculum and Instruction in Higher Education 3 hours
The emphasis of this course is learning theory and instructional design in higher education. It also introduces the supervisory process for curriculum and instruction for educational leaders in the higher education setting, including current research on teaching and issues in instructional supervision. Furthermore, the course provides candidates with the necessary leadership skills to analyse a curriculum, instructional, and assessment program that result in high levels of achievement by all students. Candidates focus on internal and external review and approval processes needed to garner input and ownership of a curriculum from a broad and diverse constituency.

DED 9017 Budget Finance & Advancement in Higher Education 3 hours
This course is designed to provide candidates with an overview of economics and financing of American higher education. Candidates will explore financial benefits of higher education, access and affordability issues, state and federal funding, price-setting, tuition discounting, merit aid sources of revenues and expenditures, cost-cutting measures, collective bargaining, and budgeting models. Candidates will review basic elements related to strategic planning in higher education. This course will also address advancement and fundraising applied to higher education settings, including accountability measures, income sources, and types of campaigns.

DED 9018 Program Planning Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education 3 hours
This course is a study of the theory of program evaluation, techniques used in program evaluation, and the standards of quality for professional evaluation practice in higher education settings. The focus is on application of program evaluation processes used by leaders in higher education settings, including department, school or college, and university-wide review. A candidate increases his or her leadership abilities to plan and evaluate educational programs in a systematic manner.

DED 9019 Communication collaboration and Decision-Making in Higher Education 3 hours
This course examines principles and practices associated with effective communication by leaders in higher education settings with internal and external constituents. Strategies for conflict resolution, collaborative problem-solving, risk management, managing the media, and other topics related to internal and external communication in higher education settings will be explored.

DED 9022 Ethical and Contemporary Issues in Higher Education and Readings in Leadership 3 hours
This course provides an overview of contemporary issues in higher education. An examination of contemporary issues will include varied topics including gender, ethnicity, and technology in higher education. Candidates will discuss case studies and examples of ethical issues common to higher education settings. Candidates will discuss several leadership books and develop a comprehensive personal leadership framework.

DED 9023 Legal Issues and Human Resource Management in Higher Education 3 hours
An overview of the major legal and ethical issues currently affecting higher education will be presented. Candidates will develop a deeper understanding about the importance of the rights of students, faculty, and staff related to ethical behaviour and legal issues within a higher education context. Legal issues to be addressed include: HIPAA, FERPA, Clery, ADAAA, Freedom of Speech, Athletics Compliance, Immigration, Intellectual Property Rights, Title IX, and other current Federal and state laws that have an impact on higher education settings. The importance of developing institutional policies and procedures consistent with Federal and state law will be discussed. This course provides an overview in the study of human resources development practices with emphasis on responsibilities for attracting, selecting, developing, evaluating, and retaining competent faculty and staff in higher education. This course examines how to manage human resources effectively in the dynamic legal, social, and economic environment currently impacting higher education institutions. Mediation and use of an institution’s legal counsel will be addressed. The tenure process and evaluation of tenured and non-tenured faculty will be addressed. Legal and ethical liability issues related to higher education will be explored.

DED 9030 Field Experience I 2 hours
Candidates plan and carry out two field experiences of a minimum of 60 hours each under the direct supervision and mentoring of an administrator within a higher education institution. During the first of two directed field experiences, a minimum of 12 clock hours must be spent working in a diverse setting. The two field experiences may be within the same higher education institution if with two different mentors. Field experience activities must be chosen from a listing of activities that coincide with program objectives and CAS standards. These activities are expected to provide real-world opportunities related to leadership in higher education.

DED 9031 Field Experience ll 2 hours each
Candidates plan and carry out two field experiences of a minimum of 60 hours each under the direct supervision and mentoring by an administrator within a higher education institution. During one of the two directed field experiences, a minimum of 12 clock hours must be spent working in a diverse setting. The two field experiences may be within the higher education institution if with two different mentors. Field experience activities must be chosen from a listing of activities that coincide with program objectives and CAS standards. These activities are expected to provide real-world opportunities to gain effective leadership experiences.

DED 9032 Portfolio Presentation 2 hours
The electronic portfolio is considered the key assessment piece for the candidate. The portfolio exhibits the knowledge, dispositions, and performances gained in the program and serves as a major vehicle for the candidate to apply theory to practice. The portfolio is organized and aligned with the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) Standards. A candidate is required to achieve a minimum of “Proficient” on each of the portfolio areas prior to the completion of Field Experience II. The candidate uses a variety of technology tools and applications to enhance the portfolio and to present its contents before the candidate’s major advisor, Field Experience supervisor, and appointed faculty member. Defense of the portfolio will be considered a major exhibit of the candidate’s abilities as a leader.

DED 9900-1 Dissertation Development 2 hours
The doctoral dissertation is a research study that provides the candidate the means to demonstrate breadth of scholarship, depth of research, and ability to investigate problems independently and efficiently. The dissertation is an extended, coherent, and written work that demonstrates the candidate’s comprehensive knowledge and mastery of methodological, historical, topical, empirical, and theoretical issues relevant to the chosen research subject. The dissertation contains the results of extensive critical research of documentary source materials and field work. The first dissertation development course is completed when a draft of Chapter 1 is submitted to and approved by the candidate’s advisor.

DED 9900-2 Dissertation Development 2 hours
The second dissertation development course is completed when a draft of Chapter 3 is submitted to and approved by the candidate’s advisor.

DED 9900-3 Dissertation Development 2 hours
Candidates will submit a final draft of Chapters 1 and 3 of the dissertation as well as a draft of Chapter 2.

DED 9900-4 Dissertation Development 6 hours
Chapters 1 and 3 are reviewed and approved by the dissertation committee.

DED 9902 – Dissertation Completion and Presentation *8+ hours
Chapters 1 through 5 are approved by the dissertation committee, the candidate successfully defends the dissertation, and all corrections are made. (*Continuous enrollment is required until completion.)

Total Program Credit Hours: 59+

Note: The university reserves the right to modify and resequence the core curriculum as necessary.

The curriculum consists of 59+ credit hours.

33 Credit Hours of Core Leadership Courses

• Statistical Analysis
• Methods of Inquiry and Research
• Student Affairs and Enrollment Management in HE
• Foundations and Contemporary Leadership in HE
• Administration, Governance, Accreditation, and Strategic Planning in HE
• Curriculum and Instruction in HE
• Budget, Finance, and Advancement in HE
• Program Planning, Assessment, and Evaluation in HE
• Communication, Collaboration, and Decision-Making in HE
• Ethics and Contemporary Issues in HE and Readings in Leadership
• Legal Issues and Human Resources Management in HE

4 credit hours of field experience

20+ credit hours of dissertation development

2 credit hours of portfolio presentation

Dissertation completion and defense

59+ total credit hours

The two field experiences help candidates transfer and make connections between theory and knowledge and real-world leadership practices. The directed field experience accomplishes the following:

• Helps the candidate develop leadership skills and behaviors through the engagement in meaningful real-life leadership activities
• Assists the candidate in transferring leadership knowledge and theory into leadership skills, behaviors and activities that enhance learning communities
• Provides service to the host educational community.

During Directed Field Experiences I and II, the candidate is expected to assist in significant and varied leadership responsibilities under the supervision of a Baker University supervisor and an educational field mentor, who is cooperatively chosen by the candidate, the Baker University advisor, and the directed field experience coordinator. The Baker University supervisor and field mentor work cooperatively with the candidate to select a series of meaningful field experience activities and projects from the suggested activities associated with the program objectives. Through a combination of coursework and field experiences, the candidate begins to develop leadership performance behaviors that are associated with program objectives and standards.

The candidate must enroll in two separate field experiences, Directed Field Experience I and Directed Field Experience II. Each of the two field experiences consists of a minimum of 60 clock hours at the educational site. Field experience activities should relate to program objectives and performance indicators. Time is distributed across the program standards. A candidate is expected to address all program objectives during the two field experiences. Candidates are expected to work with diverse school and community issues during one of the field experience activities.

Candidates who are accepted into the program receive detailed Directed Field Experience Handbooks.