Doctoral programs include a major in Education and four concentration options: Learning, Design & Technology, Literacy Studies, Special Education / Deaf Education / Interpreter Education, or Teacher Education. Further specializations are available for Literacy Studies and Teacher Education. Three years prior teaching experience is required for admission to any PhD program of study.
Admissions, Tuition and Fees, and Financial Aid Information
Concentrations and Specializations
–Learning, Design, & Technology Concentration
-Literacy Studies Concentration with the following specializations:
- Children’s and Young Adult Literature Specialization
- ESL Education Specialization
- Literacy Education Specialization
-School Psychology PhD
-Special Education / Deaf Education / Interpreter Education Concentration
-Teacher Education Concentration with the following specializations:
- Cultural Studies in Educational Foundations Specialization
- Elementary Education Specialization
- English Education Specialization
- Mathematics Education Specialization
- Science Education Specialization
- Social Science Education
Application Information
In addition, 24 hours of course 600 Doctoral Research and Dissertation are required (see Registration for Course 600 and Continuous below).
The major professor directs the student’s dissertation research and chairs the dissertation committee. The student and the major professor identify a doctoral committee composed of at least four faculty members holding the rank of assistant professor or above, three of whom, including the chair, must be approved by the Graduate Council to direct doctoral research. At least one member must be from an academic unit other than that of the student’s major field. This committee is nominated by the department head or college dean and approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.
The committee should be formed during the student’s first year of doctoral study. Subject to Graduate Council policies and individual program requirements, the committee must approve all coursework applied toward the degree, certify the student’s mastery of the major field and any cognate field, assist the student in conducting research, and recommend the dissertation for approval and acceptance by Graduate Student Services.
Departments may, at their option, administer diagnostic and/or qualifying examinations in the early stages of the student’s doctoral program. Successful completion of a comprehensive examination and a defense of dissertation is required for all doctoral degrees. Registration is required for the term in which the examinations are taken. Language requirements: Candidates for the PhD may be required to demonstrate a reading knowledge of at least one foreign language in which there exists a significant body of literature relevant to the major field of study. The doctoral committee will determine the specific language (or languages) required. When the student is prepared to take a language examination, he/she should complete an Application for Doctoral Language Examination at the Office of the University Registrar in accordance with the dates and times for the examinations published online.
Satisfactory completion (grade B or better) of German 332 or French 302 may be substituted for a language examination.
Residence is defined as full-time registration for a given semester on the campus where the program is located. The summer term is included in this period. During residence, it is expected that the student will be engaged in full-time on-campus study toward a graduate degree.
For the doctoral degree, a minimum of two consecutive semesters of residence is required. Individual doctoral programs may have additional residence requirements. A statement as to how and during what period of time the residence requirement has been met will be presented with the Application for Admission to Candidacy along with signatures of approval from the major professor and the department head/program director. More information about the rationale for the residence requirement may be obtained from the Graduate Council report available on the Graduate Studies webpage.
Admission to candidacy indicates agreement that the student has demonstrated the ability to do acceptable graduate work and that satisfactory progress has been made toward a degree. This action usually connotes that all prerequisites to admission have been completed and a program of study has been approved. A student may be admitted to candidacy for the doctoral degree passing the comprehensive examination, fulfilling any language requirements (for PhD), and maintaining at least a B average in all graduate coursework. Each student is responsible for filing the admission to candidacy form, which lists all courses to be used for the degree, including courses taken at UT or at another institution prior to admission to the doctoral program, and is signed by the doctoral committee. Admission to candidacy must be applied for and approved by the Office of the University Registrar at least one full semester prior to the date the degree is to be conferred.
TPTE 600 is reserved for doctoral research and dissertation hours. Initial registration for TPTE 600 should be determined by each department and generally corresponds to the time at which a student begins work actively on dissertation research. From this time on, students are required to register continuously for at least 3 hours of TPTE 600 each semester, including summer term. A minimum total of 24 hours of course TPTE 600 is required. A student who will not be using faculty services and/or university facilities for a period of time may request leaves of absence from dissertation research up to a maximum of six terms (including summer terms). The request, approved by the major professor, will be submitted by the student and filed in the Office of the University Registrar.
The dissertation represents the culmination of an original research project completed by the student. The Doctor of Philosophy and the Doctor of Public Health require the completion of a dissertation. The student submits the dissertation in electronic format to the Coordinator of Student Services in the Graduate School for examination, final approval, and acceptance. See Preparation and Submission of Theses and Dissertations for guidance on preparing the dissertation for submission and other publication policies.
The coordinator will review the material and assure that it is appropriately presented, free of technical errors in format. It must be prepared according to the guidelines established by the Graduate School and available on the Theses and Dissertations webpage. An electronic copy of the dissertation must be accompanied by one original Thesis/Dissertation Approval Form (not a photocopy). The approval sheet must have the original or electronic signatures of the members of the doctoral committee. The approval sheet reflects the final format for submission. The approval sheet certifies to The Graduate School that the committee members have examined the final copy of the dissertation and have found that its form and content are satisfactory. An Initial Embargo Request Form is required if a student would like to request an embargo on their work. More information about the embargo process is discussed in the Thesis and Dissertation Embargo Option in the Graduate Catalog. If the dissertation is not accepted by the Coordinator of Student Services, the student must make corrections and resubmit the material. More detailed information is provided in the Preparation and Submission of Theses and Dissertations section of this catalog, including the requirement to use university-approved plagiarism detection software prior to thesis defense
Comprehensive examinations must be taken within five years, and all requirements must be completed within eight years, from the time of a student’s first enrollment in a doctoral degree program. The semester(s) and/or year(s) of an approved Graduate Student Leave of Absence (LOA) will not be counted toward time to degree, and milestone deadlines such as Admission to Candidacy will be adjusted accordingly.