Social Studies Education

Doctoral Degrees

(Revised October, 2005)

This guide supplements regulations of the Graduate School contained in the current bulletin of The University of Georgia Graduate School. Every effort is made to help students stay informed of requirements and deadlines. However, it is the student's responsibility to meet deadlines and to seek advice regarding degree requirements.

Ronald Butchart, Graduate Coordinator

Todd Dinkelman, Social Studies Program Coordinator

The Ed.D. and Ph.D. Programs

The Social Studies Education Program offers both Ed.D. and Ph.D. programs. The Ed.D. program offers advanced training for individuals who wish to focus their careers primarily on social studies teaching, service, and/or educational leadership at any level. The Ph.D. program is primarily for individuals who seek careers in higher education where their coursework will have, among other purposes, a continuing emphasis on the development of theory and research on the teaching and learning of the social studies. The Ed.D. and Ph.D. programs differ in admission requirements and residency requirements. Both programs are designed to meet the following doctoral aims-- developing abilities for research in social studies education, gaining depth and breadth of knowledge in social studies education and related fields, and preparing for intellectual leadership in social studies education.

Admission Standards

All individuals wishing to pursue graduate study at the University of Georgia must submit a Graduate School application for admission. The Graduate School application for admission booklet contains information and forms that are required for admission to Graduate School. Departments and Programs may set higher, but not lower, standards for admission to graduate study. The following information represents the current standards for admission into doctoral study in the Department of Elementary and Social Studies Education, Social Studies Education Program.

Students applying for admission to either the Ed.D. or Ph.D. doctoral program must submit, in addition to the required Graduate School documents, the following: a completed Social Studies Education Program Application (see below), three letters of recommendation, and a writing sample.

Students applying to the Ed.D. program should have a Graduate Record Examination (GRE) score of at least 950 on the combined verbal and quantitative and 4.5 on the analytical writing portions of the exam; a 2.8 undergraduate grade point average (UGPA); and a 3.0 graduate grade point average (GGPA).

Students applying to the Ph.D. program should have a Graduate Record Examination (GRE) taken within the last five years with totals of at least 1100 on the combined verbal and quantitative and 4.5 on the analytical writing portions of the exam, at least a 3.00 UGPA, and at least a 3.50 GGPA.

Where other evidence warrants, the department may recommend acceptance of students who have lower GRE scores and/or lower UGPAs or GGPAs. However, such recommendations may be denied by the Graduate School.

Applicants are urged to apply as early as possible up to one year in advance of the desired matriculation date. The Social Studies Program suggests the following application target dates to assure full consideration for the desired semester of matriculation and funding opportunities: Fall and Summer Semesters, March 1; Spring Semester, October 1. International applicants are encouraged to apply ten months prior to the desired semester of matriculation. Applications received after these target dates may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Information on Graduate School Admissions

Social Studies Education Supplemental Application

Residency Requirements

The residency requirement for Ed.D students is a minimum of 20 consecutive credit hours of coursework of the minimum 33 graduate hours on the program of study. The residency requirement for Ph.D. students is 30 hours of consecutive graduate course work that is included on the program of study. Courses may be taken at a minimum of three hours a semester to fulfill this requirement.

A break in residence is not incurred if a student elects not to register for the summer term; however, if the student does register for a course on the program of study during the summer, that course may be used toward the residence requirement. A maximum of three hours of dissertation (9300) may be included toward the residency requirement. Excessive hours of dissertation research (9000) credit do not count toward the residency requirement, but they do not constitute a break in the residence if they are the only hours taken during a given semester.

Assistantships

The Social Studies Education Program offers a number of assistantships to graduate students who apply for assistantships and are qualified to accomplish the teaching, supervision, and/or research tasks needed to assist the faculty. Program graduate assistantships are competitive and award decisions are based on demonstrated scholarship, research and teaching potential, and experience. With limited exception, qualified doctoral student applicants are given higher priority for graduate assistantships than similarly qualified master’s students.

Program graduate assistantships are typically awarded for the nine month academic year. See the Graduate School web site for information on assistantship stipends and benefits. The target date for receipt of assistantship applications for students wishing to receive financial support starting in the fall semester is January 15th. The application form for departmental and program assistantships is available here [http://www.coe.uga.edu/esse/scholarships/application.pdf].

All program graduate assistantships are held on the basis of satisfactory academic progress and satisfactory task performance. Under conditions of satisfactory academic and task performance, the department's intention is to continue graduate assistantship support to doctoral students in residence for up to three years.

Advising

Advising for doctoral students is performed by the Program’s Graduate Faculty in coordination with the Department's Graduate Coordinator. All incoming students are initially assigned an interim faculty advisor who will assist the student in developing a tentative program of study, discuss potential dissertation topics, and help the student arrange a meeting of faculty to discuss the formation of the advisory committee, preferably before the completion of the 18th credit hour post-matriculation, and no later than the fourth semester of study, whichever comes first. At this meeting a tentative program of study will be developed, potential dissertation topics will be discussed, and the membership of the student's advisory committee will be recommended to the Graduate Coordinator..

Advisory Committee

Doctoral students form an advisory committee of a minimum of three members of the Graduate Faculty, including the student's major professor, who will serve as the chair of the committee. The major professor must be a full member of the Graduate Faculty. At least one member of the Advisory Committee must be a member of the Social Studies Education Program faculty. The committee determines the student's program of study, conducts the written and oral comprehensive exams over the program of study, and assists in developing and assessing the dissertation.

All doctoral students are required to submit a written prospectus of their dissertation and obtain approval from their committee prior to undertaking dissertation research. Students must have their dissertation research cleared by the Institutional Review Board if human subjects are used. The Graduate School publishes a guide to dissertation preparation and processing. The Department encourages students to use the APA (5th ed.) style manual for dissertation preparation.

Time Limit

All coursework requirements for the Ed.D. or Ph.D. must be completed within six years, beginning with the first course listed on the student's program of study. Once admitted to degree candidacy, the student has an additional five years to complete the dissertation. Extension of time will be considered only for conditions beyond the control of the student and will be approved or denied on a case-by-case basis by the Dean of the Graduate School.

Program of Study

A preliminary program of study, developed by the student and major professor and approved by a majority of the members of the advisory committee, must be submitted to the graduate coordinator by the end of the student’s first year of residence.

A final program of study, developed by the student and major professor and approved by a majority of the members of the advisory committee, must be submitted for the approval of the graduate coordinator and dean of the Graduate School by the time the notification of the oral comprehensive examination is given. The program of study must carry a minimum of 30 hours of course work, three hours of which must be dissertation (9300) for the Ph.D.; and 30 hours of course work, exclusive of dissertation (9300), for the Ed.D.

In developing a program of study, the student's major professor and advisory committee consider the student's career goals and interests; previous academic and teaching experiences; likely dissertation topic; and the goals of doctoral study in the program—developing abilities for research in social studies education, gaining depth and breadth of knowledge in social studies education and related fields, and preparing for intellectual leadership in social studies education. Courses typically are taken in social studies education, curriculum and instruction, educational foundations and policy studies, and relevant social sciences and history. A minimum of two quantitative research and two qualitative research courses are required. Social Studies Education doctoral students are required to complete the Social Studies Education Core requirement consisting of the following three doctoral seminar courses:

ESOC 8010: History of Social Studies Education. 3 hours.

ESOC 8990: Research Seminar in Social Science Education. 3 hours.

ESOC 9630: Critique of Educational Literature in Social Science Education. 3 hours.

Substitutions within the Social Studies Education Core are permissible with advisory committee approval.

A doctoral program of study should consist of 16 or more hours of 8000- and 9000-level course or be accompanied by a letter of justification as to the necessity of 6000- and 7000-level courses.

A minimum of 80 semester credit hours beyond the baccalaureate, excluding dissertation, is required.

Although there is no overall semester credit hour minimum requirement beyond that needed to fulfill the residence requirement, two full years of on-campus course work plus at least one year to complete the dissertation can be expected. Two or more years to complete the dissertation is typical.

Doctoral students matriculating Summer 2007 and later are required to complete a 7 credit hour block of Departmental doctoral seminars. This block includes a 1 credit hour Orientation Seminar (ESSE 8990) to be taken at the first available offering after matriculation, a Special Topics Seminar (ESSE 9100), and a Writing Seminar (ESSE 9200)."

Steps to Completing the Doctoral Degree

Admission to the doctoral program by the Social Studies Education Program, Department of Elementary and Social Studies Education, and Graduate School.
Completion of the Graduate School residence requirement.
Form advisory committee, including major professor.
Complete course requirements of the doctoral degree, as determined by the major professor and committee.
Take written comprehensive examination.
Successfully pass a scheduled oral examination in defense of the comprehensive examination.
Prepare a dissertation proposal for review and approval by advisory committee.
Complete research and prepare dissertation and dissertation abstract for review and approval by the advisory committee.
Successfully pass a scheduled oral examination in defense of the dissertation.

Forms Required for Degree Completion

To help ensure smooth progress through your graduate degree program, a variety of forms need to be filed.

FORM	PURPOSE	WHO NEEDS IT	TARGET AND DEADLINE DATES	WHERE TO GET IT
Application Materials	For entrance into graduate school	Everyone	Target-- Fall and Summer Sem. March 1; Spring Sem. Oct.1	Graduate School and Department
Assistantship application	To make sure you are considered for support	Everyone who seeks an assistantship	Target-- January 15 of each new academic year	Graduate or Program Coordinator
Employment Forms	Get paid and establish withholding	Anyone receiving a assistantship	One week before the start of classes	Department Financial Manager
Preliminary Program of Study and Advisement Record	To establish a plan for your degree	Everyone	Created at first advising appointment and updated each semester	Interim Advisor
Official Program of Study	To formally establish the plan for your degree	Everyone	Created no later than the end of the next to last semester	Graduate School web site
Advisory Committee for Doctoral Candidates	To formally establish your dissertation committee	Everyone	During the second semester or ASAP after	Graduate School web site
Application for Admission to Candidacy Doctoral Degrees	To establish admission to candidacy requirements	Everyone	At completion of written and oral Comp. Exam & no later than 2 semesters before graduation	Graduate School web site
Approval Form for Doctoral Dissertation and Final Examination	To certify your successful completion	Everyone	As soon as you defend your dissertation	Graduate School web site