Required courses listed in the master’s sequences should be taken if a student has not had equivalent courses in a master’s program. The Ph.D. requires a minimum of 45 semester hours of course work beyond the Master’s degree and dissertation research hours. Students must complete coursework as outlined within the emphasis area and in consultation with the advisor. The minor area concentration will be determined according to the student’s interests and goals.
The advisory committee may modify the outlined program of study according to the student’s needs. Individuals who have advanced training or experience in gifted education may pursue an advanced program of study and may be exempt from a course if they have completed it at an accredited institution of higher education.
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
Residency
The granting of the doctoral degree presupposes a residency requirement of full time work for an academic year (i.e. two consecutive semesters of 6 semester hours of course work). The residency requirement must be completed prior to admission to candidacy.
Time Limit
Students must complete all requirements for the doctoral degree, except the dissertation and final oral examination, within a period of six years. This time requirement dates from the first registration for graduate courses on the program of study. If the student fails to take the final oral examination within five years after passing the preliminary examinations and being admitted to candidacy, he/she will be required to take another preliminary examination and must be admitted to candidacy a second time.
Advisory Committee
The advisory committee, in consultation with the student, is charged with planning the program of study, arranging the preliminary written and oral examinations, approving a subject for the dissertation, and evaluating the dissertation presentation and defense. Although the student is responsible for selecting the four members of the advisory committee (see outline of events), final approval of the committee composition rests with the Dean of the Graduate School. The student is responsible for following the human subjects review procedures and meeting other departmental and university requirements.
Field experiences
Supervised field experiences are provided through the internship experiences (EPSY 9710).
Student Evaluation
There are three major competency evaluation points at which the student must demonstrate satisfactory completion of particular activities. Formative evaluations of progress toward completion of the program of study will be provided by the Gifted and Creative Education faculty each Spring Semester. Other evaluations occur immediately prior to admission to candidacy, and at the time of the dissertation defense.
Dissertation Prospectus and Defense
A dissertation prospectus is a written proposal consisting of a statement of a critical problem, supportive literature review, and methodology for studying this problem. The prospectus must be presented to and defended in front of the advisory committee. The proposal must be approved by the major professor before distribution to committee members. The committee must receive this proposal at least two weeks before the scheduled oral defense.
Dissertation Approval and Defense
When the major professor is satisfied with the completed dissertation, he/she will certify that it has his/her approval and is ready to be read. The major professor will then have the student distribute copies of the dissertation to the remaining members of the advisory committee, schedule a final oral defense, and ask the Graduate Coordinator to notify the Graduate School of the time and date for the defense. Subsequently, the Graduate School will announce the time and place of the defense of the dissertation to the University community. Committee members will have three weeks to read and evaluate the completed dissertation.
The defense of the dissertation will be chaired by the major professor. Three of the four members of the advisory committee must approve the dissertation and defense and must certify their approval in writing. The results of the defense of the dissertation must be reported to the Graduate School at least one week prior to the student’s graduation.
In preparing the dissertation, the student should register for the course number EPSY 9300. The student must register for a minimum of 3 hours of dissertation or other appropriate credit for each of two semesters. The student must also be registered for a minimum of three hours of credit in any semester when using university facilities and/or staff time. Instructions for typing and preparing the dissertation may be obtained from the Graduate School.
ADMISSION TO CANDIDACY
Preliminary Comprehensive Examinations
The student must pass formal preliminary written and oral examinations before being admitted to candidacy for the doctoral degree. These examinations are administered by the student’s advisory committee. An oral exam which covers approximately the same content areas as the written examination must be taken no later than one month after the written comprehensive examination. This oral preliminary examination is open to all members of the faculty and shall be announced by the Graduate School. The Graduate Coordinator will notify the Graduate School of the time and place of this examination at least two weeks before the date of the examination.
Guidelines
The student may be admitted to candidacy when:
- All prerequisites set as a condition to admission have been satisfactorily completed;
- Research skill requirements have been met;
- The final program of study has been approved by the advisory committee, the graduate coordinator, and the Dean of the Graduate School
- A GPA of 3.0 (B) has been maintained on all graduate courses taken and on all completed graduate courses on the program of study [no course with a grade below C may be placed on the final program of study];
- Written and oral comprehensive examinations have been passed
and reported to the Graduate School; - The prospectus has been approved by the advisory committee.
- The advisory committee, including any necessary changes in the membership, is confirmed and all its members have been notified of their appointment;
- The residence requirement of two consecutive semesters of 6 hours each has been met.(Note: After admission to candidacy, the student must register for a minimum of 3 hours of dissertation (EPSY 9300D) for each of two semesters.)
Program of Study