Postgraduate Preparation in Educational Leadership
This 36-credit Education Specialist in Educational Leadership degree is an alternative credential for those students who completed the required 33-credits of program core and research coursework in Shenandoah’s EdD in Educational Leadership (or EdD in Administrative Leadership) but will not complete the EdD degree. The EdS option will allow these students to earn a degree that reflects substantial preparation in educational leadership and social science research.
The EdS program prepares scholarly practitioners who apply theoretical and professional knowledge and skills in leadership, organizations, and research to their leadership roles in educational organizations; take a comprehensive approach to ethical leadership; and understand the context in which schools, school districts, higher education institutions and related organizations operate. The program provides a learning environment in which students think deeply, examine critically, and understand theoretically the opportunities and challenges facing schools and higher education institutions.
We prepare scholarly professionals committed to equitable, ethical, and reflective practice. We are:
- Learner-Centered: Learners bring to the program a general area of interest in which to ground their studies. We work with individuals to shape and examine a particular interest as it relates to leadership in educational organizations.
- Inquiry-Driven: We emphasize question-asking and synthesis rather than knowledge acquisition and the accumulation of facts. The learner’s topic of interest is explored systematically, thoughtfully, and deeply under the guidance of faculty members who share a vision of graduate education.
- Problem-Oriented: Learners examine problems of practice encountered in their educational organizations. Learners critically and intensively study these problems from interdisciplinary and diverse perspectives with the goal of deeper insight and capacity to positively impact outcomes in their organization.
Learn More About This Program
Admission into the program is limited to those who are enrolled in the EdD in Educational Leadership or EdD in Administrative Leadership programs; have completed the 33 credits of required coursework in the EdD program core, research core and applied research courses; but will not complete the dissertation (retroactive to EdD students who matriculated in and after Fall 2010). The program is organized around interdisciplinary leadership content and research coursework that is complemented by a 3-credit capstone project.
The EdS in Educational Leadership coursework integrates exploration of the core theoretical, professional, and research knowledge and skills of the educational leadership field. While enrolled in the EdD program for the first 33 credits, students are enrolled in a cohort and follow a prescribed sequence of required courses over three years. This sequence begins with a foundational course in both the research and program core in the first semester. The subsequent courses are designed to build on this foundation and then culminate in the third year with a spring course (LST 750 Contemporary Issues) that synthesizes learning from the previous program core and research courses. Following completion of the 33 credits in the EdD program, the newly enrolled EdS students will then select a 3-credit capstone course as the culminating experience for the EdS. The approved capstone courses require graduate students to undertake a guided inquiry into a specific problem of practice in organizations that applies the content knowledge and inquiry skills acquired during the prior coursework.
Classes & Capstone
33 credits earned will enrolled in the EdD program
Program Core (15 credits)
LST 710 Leadership: Theory and Application
LST 720 Societal Factors: Influence on Policy, Programs and Practice
LST 735 Organizational Theory and Behavior
LST 740 Governance and Public Policy
LST 750 Contemporary Issues in Leadership
Research Core (12 credits)
RST 684 Introduction to Research Literacy
RST 775 Quantitative Research Design and Data Analysis
RST 776 Advanced Quantitative Research Design and Data Analysis
RST 784 Qualitative Methods for Doctoral Research
Applied Research (6 credits)
RST 771 Quantitative Research – Proposal
RST 772 Quantitative Research – Pilot
RST 773 Qualitative Research – Proposal
RST 774 Qualitative Research – Pilot
Capstone
One of the following courses will serve as the EdS capstone. This capstone course must be completed after the student has been admitted into the EdS degree. (Courses taken prior to enrollment in the EdS will not satisfy this capstone requirement.)
- LST 693 Directed Study in Organizational Leadership I
- LST 694 Directed Study in Organizational Leadership II
- RST 672 Outcomes Assessment and Statistical Applications in Organizations
- RST 678 Practitioner Research I
Total Credits: 36
Faculty
Application Information
Graduate Application for Admission
Official transcripts from Shenandoah University indicating 33 credits of required program core, research, and applied research were completed at a grade of C or better (with a GPA no lower than 3.0)