The goal of the Special Education Leadership Personnel Preparation Program is to prepare students to assume positions as educators, researchers, and scholars in higher education settings. The program leads to the Doctor of Philosophy in Education degree (Ph.D.).
Students in the Ph.D. in the Department of Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education may select program focus areas in applied behavior analysis, assistive technology, learning and behavior disorders, moderate and severe disabilities, and interdisciplinary early childhood education. There is a formal option in Counselor Education. See the Counselor Education Doctoral Program that offers a Departmental Ph.D. degree with a formal option in Counselor Education, Research, and Policy.
Admission Requirements
Admission requirements for the Ph.D. program include:
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A minimum undergraduate cumulative grade point average of 2.75.
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Combined scores on the verbal and quantitative portions of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) of 300 (current scale) or 1000 (prior scale).
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A fifth-year certification OR a master’s degree in special education, interdisciplinary early childhood education, or counselor education with a minimum grade point average of 3.5.
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A minimum of three (3) years of successful experience in special education or related field.
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At least four (4) positive recommendations attesting to the candidate’s ability as a professional with potential for success in doctoral study.
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A statement of the applicant’s objectives for completing a doctoral program.
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A personal statement or brief autobiographical statement of the applicant.
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A sample of the applicant’s academic or professional writing.
If an applicant meets these criteria and appears to have the background, academic record, experience, and professional objectives that are consistent with Departmental expectations, the person is invited to campus to interview with faculty and to meet current doctoral students. If the candidate is unable to visit the campus, arrangements can be made for telephone or web-conference interviews with members of the Department’s Graduate Admissions and Standards Committee (GASC). However, it is highly recommended that applicants visit campus.
The GASC then makes a decision about admission. If all criteria are met, a recommendation is forwarded to the Graduate School via the Department’s Director of Graduate Study (DGS). Typically, admission decisions are made no later than 30 days after the interviews have been completed.
Deadlines: Application deadlines are March 1 for Fall applications and October 1 for Spring applications.
Degree Requirements
The first phase of study (up to 18 semester hours) is considered the preliminary year. During this period, students are expected to demonstrate basic competencies in applied behavior analysis, assessment, general special education content, instructional strategies, and technology. They may do this by fulfilling the requirements of the required graduate core courses.
Each student is required to develop and maintain a portfolio with entries included from each course. Collectively, these entries should reflect the post-doctoral role within institutions of higher education and/or other services for which the student is preparing. Thus, entries will include but are not limited to: (a) developing training curricula, (b) teaching content and methods courses, (c) supervising practicum experiences, including student teaching, (d) advising students, (e) providing consultation and other services, (f) giving professional conference presentations, (g) conducting research, including writing scholarly publications, and (h) writing research and training grant proposals for extramural funding in special education. The student work is guided, during the first year, by a temporary advisor, who may be selected by the student with the approval of the Department’s DGS. In the event that the student’s choice of an advisor is not available, or if the student does not have a choice, the DGS will appoint a temporary advisor after consulting with the Department’s GASC.
Students then select a faculty member to serve as a mentor. After obtaining the consent of a faculty member to serve as mentor, the student and mentor also select an Advisory Committee of three additional faculty members who will assist in the development and supervision of the student’s program of study.
Coursework, independent study products, and practicum experiences are selected by the student’s doctoral advisory committee to ensure that this level of specialization is appropriate for a person at the doctoral degree level. Following the guidelines adopted by the College of Education, the doctoral program must consist of a minimum of 42 credit hours past the master’s degree. Most doctoral students take between 60 and 100 semester hours of coursework (including the master’s degree).
Core requirements
Specific course requirements for individual students will vary according to each student’s background and stated objectives. Competency lists that have been developed by faculty in the Department guide the selection of courses and related training experiences. However, each student must complete a graduate core (23 credits), coursework in a departmental area of emphasis consisting of at least 15 credits, coursework in a support area (a minimum of 15 credits), and a research block of courses (minimum of 21 credits). The coursework is divided among four areas:
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Special education personnel preparation
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An area of emphasis selected from the following:
- Applied behavior analysis
- Assistive technology
- Interdisciplinary early childhood education
- Learning and behavior disorders
- Moderate and severe disabilities
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A thematic support area from outside the department area of emphasis.
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A research block of courses.
Students complete required doctoral core requirements include the following courses:
Electives
The student’s electives are individually determined by the doctoral advisory committee.
https://education.uky.edu/edsrc/eds/degrees-programs/doctorate/
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