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Department of Lifelong Education, Administration, and Policy

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M.Ed. in Adult Education

M.Ed. in HROD

Online M.Ed.

Ed.S.

Ph.D.

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Adult Education

Doctor of Philosophy Degree (Ph.D.)

Purpose

The Ph.D. program is designed to prepare students for leadership and research careers related to the education of adults. All phases of the program, from advisement to dissertation, encourage and support the acquisition of advanced knowledge and skills for conducting research and analyzing and reporting findings. The program provides classroom as well as experiential opportunities for students to develop research skills.

Admission Requirements

The faculty considers the following five factors in deciding whether to admit an applicant to the program:

  1. Demonstration of interest in a career in adult education through an interview with the Department admissions committee.
  2. Evidence of potential to contribute to the advancement of the field of adult education through research and professional leadership.
  3. Undergraduate Grade Point Average.
  4. Graduate Grade Point Average.
  5. Graduate Record Examination Score.

Course work

There are five major areas of course work: adult education core, electives, research in adult education, research methods, and post-candidacy course work.

  1. Adult Education Core (15 semester hours)

EADU 8020 Adult Education in Social Context 3 semester hours
EADU 9020 Adult Learning Theory and Research 3 semester hours
EADU 9030 Program Planning Theory and Research in Adult Education 3 semester hours

EADU 8010
or
EADU 8190

History and Philosophy of Adult Education
or
Human Resource Development
3 semester hours
And 1 course from the following:

EADU 8200
or

Theory and Practice of Educational Change 3 semester hours
EADU 8620
or
Adult Education Administration 3 semester hours
EADU 9750 Reflective Practice Seminar 3 semester hours
  1. Electives (12 semester hours)

    Courses should be selected through discussion with the student's major professor. A full listing of adult education courses is available online. This includes 9 semester hours of EADU courses and 3 semester hours of other courses.

  2. Research in Adult Education (12 semester hours)

    Research courses provide the student with the necessary background and skills to begin dissertation research. Twelve hours of course work are required to complete this requirement.

EADU 9601, Foundations of Adult Education Research; EADU 9630, Critique of Educational Literature in Adult Education (must be taken prior to EADU 9640 and comprehensive exam); EADU 9640 Prospectus Development in Adult Education (Comprehensive exams must be completed before or during course); EADU 9602 Research Practices in Adult Education (must be taken after comprehensive exam).

  1. Research Methods (12 semester hours)

    12 semester hours; At least one statistics course and one course not in statistics.

  2. Post Candidacy Courses (10 semester hours)

    After formal admission to candidacy, a student must register for a minimum of 10 hours of credit while completing the dissertation to be eligible to graduate. At least 3 hours of this credit must be EADU 9300. Because of the Adult Education Program Area continuous enrollment requirement (see next page), most students exceed the minimum.

Summary of Course Work
Area
Semester hours
Adult Education Core
15
Electives
12
Research Courses
12
Research Methods
12
Total
51
Post Candidacy Course
10
Grand Total
61

In addition to the course requirements described in the previous pages, Ph.D. students must also fulfill the following requirements.

Residency Requirement:
Students must accumulate 30 semester hours in consecutive semesters. (Students MAY use Summer semester to fulfill residency)

Comprehensive Examination:
Before beginning the dissertation process, students must demonstrate their preparedness by means of a month-long, take-home, written examination. The written examination is followed by an oral examination. The comprehensive examination process is described in detail in, "Guide to Comprehensive Examinations for Ed.D. and Ph.D. Students in the Department of Adult Education."

Submission of Manuscript for Publication:
In order to be admitted to candidacy, students must submit a manuscript for review in a refereed research journal related to adult education. See PhD Article for more information.

Dissertation Prospectus:
In order to be admitted to candidacy, students must have their research plan approved by the advisory committee. This plan, the dissertation prospectus, typically consists of the first three chapters of the dissertation.

Dissertation:
The Ph.D. program culminates in the preparation and defense of a dissertation. The dissertation is prepared under the supervision of the major professor and three other faculty committee members who compose the advisory committee.

Dissertation Submission:
The Graduate School requires dissertations to be submitted in an electronic format. In addition, the Department requires students to provide a bound copy of the dissertation to the Department library, to the major professor, and to any other committee member that requests one.

Continuous Enrollment Requirement:

The Program in Adult Education believes that students need to be continuously enrolled after entering candidacy and hence vigorously encourages students to be continuously enrolled. The official policy of the Graduate School on Continuous Enrollment as defined in the Graduate School Bulletin can be found at http://www.uga.edu/gradschool/academics/registration.html

The Continuous Enrollment Policy states:

All enrolled students pursuing graduate degrees at the University of Georgia must maintain continuous enrollment from matriculation until completion of all degree requirements. Continuous enrollment isdefined as registering for a minimum of three (3) credits in at least two semesters per year (Fall, Spring, Summer) until the degree is attained or status as a degree-seeking graduate student is terminated.Doctoral students who have advanced to candidacy and thesis-writing master’s students who have satisfactorily completed all required courses (exclusive of 7000 and 7300) will be allowed to register ata rate equivalent to the prevailing in-state tuition rate. This policy specifies a minimum for maintaining status as a degree-seeking graduate student only. It does not supersede the minimum enrollmentrequirements of other programs, offices, or agencies. Doctoral students must maintain enrollment during fall and spring semesters (breaking only for summer semesters) until the residency requirement (30 hours for PHD, 20 hours for EDD or DMA) has been met.

Students must register for at least three credit hours every semester until their dissertation is approved.

Time Limitations:
Students must be admitted to candidacy within six years of the start of their course work. After admission to candidacy, students have five years to complete their dissertation.

Page last Updated January 17, 2008

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mosley picture

Adult Education Graduate, Dr. Letha Mosley, is a Scholar Leader who participated in the Fall 2005: Scholars for Tomorrow Program of the Graduate School


 
 
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