Graduate Studies
Doctor of Education Degree [Ed.D.]
The purpose of this degree is to provide professional expertise, practical application, and preparation for research for qualified applicants preparing for educational leadership, in keeping with Pensacola Christian College’s commitment to Christian education.
Objectives: Graduates of this program will be able to
- demonstrate understanding of educational learning theories and develop a framework from which to make an application to the Christian perspective of the learning process;
- analyze primary writings on education for the purpose of professional development and the determination of philosophical foundations;
- demonstrate mastery of their specialized field of study in a written and oral comprehensive examination;
- successfully undertake high quality original research which will contribute to the cause of Christian, traditional education;
- demonstrate research competence by successfully writing and defending their research.
The course of study will be designed to meet the individual and particular needs of the student, taking into account academic preparation, experience, and school ministry. The applicant may specialize in educational administration or curriculum and instruction with specializations in elementary, English, history, or science.
Admission Requirements
In addition to the General Admission Requirements, applicants for the Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction must have earned at least 18 credits of English, history, or science on the undergraduate or graduate level according to the desired program. English credits should include content in both American and British literature. English education program also requires an entrance examination in English grammar. The science credits must include a general chemistry course and a physics course.
Requirements for the Ed.D.
Doctoral study consists of the mastery of a field of knowledge and the successful pursuit of research. Doctoral students act to some degree on their own responsibility. Doctoral programs are more flexible and varied than those leading to other graduate degrees. The general requirement is that the program should be unified in relation to a clear objective and that it be approved by the Doctoral Committee of the Pensacola Christian College Graduate Studies Division. The course requirements for doctoral degrees vary from field to field and from student to student. A minimum of 60 credit hours beyond master’s degree or 90 credit hours beyond bachelor’s degree, including all courses required for this program and doctoral research is required for the doctoral degree. A student’s course of study will be designed to meet his particular needs, taking into account his past academic preparation, experience, and local school ministry. Each student’s doctoral program will build upon previous education.
Residence Requirements
Each education doctoral student must complete a minimum of 48 credit hours of course work. The following residence options are available:
- Four Summers: A minimum of four 7-week summer semesters of residence work plus Continuing Dissertation Services to be completed at the student’s home residence is required.
- Summer/Fall/Spring/Summer: A minimum of 13 months of residence work beginning with the summer sessions plus Continuing Dissertation Services to be completed at the student’s home residence is required, including one Interterm and Post-term session.
- Two each: Summer/Fall/Spring: A minimum of 23 months of residence work beginning with the summer sessions plus Continuing Dissertation Services to be completed at the student’s home residence is required, including one Interterm and Post-term session.
Distance Learning
Up to one third of course requirements may be completed through PCC’s distance-learning program with the remainder completed on campus.
Plan of Study
During each summer in residence, the applicant may enroll for up to four 3-credit courses. During the second summer, the student may take ED 665 Research Methodology, where the doctoral student is introduced to the various types of dissertations, preliminary research necessary to prepare an adequate proposal, and proposal-writing process. The course project involves preparing a proposal for a dissertation. However, it is neither required nor guaranteed that this proposal will be developed into the student’s actual dissertation.
Within one year after completing all course work, comprehensive examinations must be taken. At the completion of all required course work, the doctoral student must be registered for Continuing Dissertation Services (equivalent to a minimum of 6 terms) continuously until the dissertation is successfully defended and presented ready for binding. Defense of the dissertation will be scheduled after the dissertation has been acknowledged by the Doctoral Committee as worthy of the formal defense procedures.
All work including the final oral examination of the defense of the dissertation must be completed within 7 consecutive years. The 7 years begins with the first course taken in the doctoral program. For example, if the first course listed were taken Summer 2011, the student must complete all requirements by August 2018.
The Doctor of Education degree will be conferred only upon those of strong character, displaying qualities of leadership and evidencing a high degree of scholarship in their chosen fields.
Dissertation
Every candidate for a doctoral degree is required to prepare and present a dissertation that shows complete independent investigation of a subject area and is acceptable in form and content to the student’s Dissertation Committee and the Doctoral Committee. It is necessary that the work be of publishable quality. The dissertation must exhibit originality and thoroughness of research and must be an exhaustive treatment of the subject chosen. The form of the dissertation must be approved by the college dissertation reviewer. In addition, the graduate student must present his research in an acceptable and correct grammatical style. Mere technical form is not enough; the material should reflect the high quality of research and knowledge expected of a doctor of education.
The student must register for Continuing Dissertation Services when he submits his dissertation proposal for approval or upon completion of his final course. Enrollment in Continuing Dissertation Services must continue each year without a break until the dissertation is completed, whether or not the student resides in Pensacola. If the final copy is not acceptable and not presented for binding within 30 days after the defense, a $150 Dissertation Final Copy Extension Fee will be charged for each additional 45 days.
All dissertations and other projects prepared as part of the requirements for a graduate degree automatically become the property of Pensacola Christian College and may not be published or reproduced without the written consent of the College.
Candidacy
See Candidacy.