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Educational Policy Studies Doctor of Philosophy Program


Concentration Areas: Educational Leadership; Research, Measurement, and Statistics; Social Foundations of Education

The Ph.D. major in Educational Policy Studies allows students to examine the philosophy and practice of education and to develop skills in both the methodology and the study of educational practice. Students will prepare to become policy makers and examiners of policy and the effects of policy on education. The broader requirements of the Department of Educational Policy Studies offer students the opportunity to link their programs of study with broader social and educational issues in such areas as race, gender, leadership, and policy. This broader context establishes an understanding of the programs of study as essential components rather than separate structures of our social, economic, and political lives.
Application Deadlines:  Fall (January 15) and Spring (October 1)

Concentration Areas
Students shall select one of the concentration areas as part of his or her doctoral program. Newly admitted students will be assigned a temporary adviser from the department at the time of admission.

Concentration in Educational Leadership
This concentration emphasizes organizational leadership, policy development, supervision, and management. The leadership concentration will be designed to satisfy the career objectives of the students. Graduates may anticipate careers in school administration, governmental education agencies, and the professorate.

Concentration in Research, Measurement, and Statistics
This concentration prepares graduates to investigate research methodologies, to conduct research related to schools, and to conduct and critique research in educational practice, policy, and administration. Students develop knowledge and skills in qualitative and quantitative research and evaluation methods.

Concentration in Social Foundations of Education
Social foundations is a broadly conceived field of educational study that derives its character from a number of academic disciplines and interdisciplinary studies. At Georgia State University, the disciplines involved in social foundations inquiry are history, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, and political science; the interdisciplinary field is cultural studies. The purpose of social foundations study is to bring the intellectual resources derived from these areas to bear in developing interpretive, normative, and critical perspectives of educational theory, policy, and practices, both inside of and outside of schools.

Program Degree Requirements
A. Core Area (18)
The students must meet all general core area requirements with the following specifications:
The Social Foundations and Psychology of Learning Core requirements (6) must be completed during the first two years of the students’ program.

B. Major Area (24)
The students must take EPS 9270 during the first year after being admitted and EPS 9260 during the subsequent academic term.
Required (6):
EPS 9260 Issues of Race, Class, and Gender in Education (3)
EPS 9270 Research in Educational Policy Studies (3)

The students select one of the following four concentration areas:
1. Educational Leadership Concentration
    Program Theme: Improving Student Learning Through Effective Quality Leadership
Required (9):
EPEL 9000 Concepts of Leadership and Research in Educational Leadership (3)
EPEL 9970 Advanced Seminar in Education Leadership (3)
EPS 8360 Educational Policy Making and Analysis (3)

Select three (9): select courses with either a policy focus or an administrative focus.

2. Research, Measurement, and Statistics Concentration
Select six courses (18)

3. Social Foundations of Education Concentration
Select six (18):
EPSF 8010 Cultural Studies In Education: Film (3)
EPSF 8040 Cultural Studies in Education: Gender (3)
EPSF 8050 Cultural Studies in Education: Poststructural and Feminist Theory (3)
EPSF 8260 Sociology of Inner-City Children (3)
EPSF 8270 Philosophy of Education (3)
EPSF 8280 Anthropology of Education (3)
EPSF 8310 Sociology of Education (3)
EPSF 8320 Politics and Policy in Education (3)
EPSF 8340 History of American Education (3)
EPSF 8440 Foundations of Curriculum Development (3)
EPSF 9260 Epistemology and Learning (3)
EPSF 9270 Curriculum Theory (3)
EPSF 9280 Interpretive Inquiry in Education (3)

C. Cognate Area (18)
The major and cognate areas should represent a cohesive program of study.
Required (3):
EPS 9980* Research Seminar in Educational Policy Studies (3)
* EPS 9980 should be taken as the students approach candidacy.
Students who selected a policy focus in the Educational Leadership concentration within the major area must take EPRS 8620 Educational Evaluation (3) as part of their cognate area.

D. Dissertation
Required (9):
EPS 9990 Dissertation (9)

Program total: minimum of 69 semester hours