The School of Education offers a Ph.D. in Education. The program seeks applicants from varied backgrounds and experiences who have the potential to become outstanding scholars and researchers in the field of education. The program currently offers three areas: (1) Human Development in Context; (2) Educational Policy and Social Context; and (3) Teaching, Learning, and Educational Improvement. Students enrolling in the program choose among these areas based on their research interests.

Course work for the program ordinarily takes two to three years to complete and involves a number of core courses, methodology courses, elective courses, and a directed research sequence. Before advancing, students are required to have successfully completed their first-year research poster project, second year research paper, and 12 courses as specified by the area requirements. Students should advance to candidacy in the fall quarter of their fourth year. The normative time for completion of the Ph.D. is five years, and the maximum time permitted is seven years.

Students are admitted to the program once per year to begin each fall quarter. Applicants must have completed a bachelor’s degree with a grade point average of at least 3.0 and have prior course work or background related to the area for which they express interest. Applicants are required to submit a UCI application, transcripts, a statement of purpose, a personal statement, CV or resume, a writing sample, and three letters of reference. General GRE scores are not required.

All graduate applicants, except those who have earned an undergraduate or master's degree from an institution at which English was the sole language of instruction according to the World Higher Education Database, are required to demonstrate English proficiency for admissions consideration. If English is not the sole language of instruction listed or if no language is listed at all, the waiver does not apply and the applicant is required to take and pass an approved English proficiency test (TOEFL or IELTS). More information can be found on the Graduate Division Website.

Students must complete degree requirements for one of three areas below. All students take a minimum of 12 4-unit courses, including five required research methods courses, two other area courses, and five area courses. Area requirements for the area courses and other area courses are described below.

Area courses are designated by specific letters. EPSC area courses are designated with an E, HDIC courses are designated with a D, and TLEI courses are designated with a T.

Required Methods Courses

A. Complete the following:
EDUC 222	Research Epistemologies and Methodologies
EDUC 265	Applied Regression Analysis for Education and Social Scientific Research
EDUC 283A	Qualitative Research Methods in Education I
EDUC 283B	Qualitative Research Methods in Education II
EDUC 288A	Educational, Social, and Behavioral Statistics

Other Area Courses

Each student must take one course from the other two areas they are not majoring in:

HDIC

Any HDIC course (EDUC course number that includes D)

TLEI

Any TLEI course (EDUC course number that includes T)

EPSC

Any EPSC course (EDUC course number that includes E, though EDUC 258 eligibility must be approved by the Associate Dean)

Area Courses

Students must take five courses based on their area requirements.

Human Development in Context (HDIC)

Students must select four HDIC courses, or other courses, from the following. They must also complete one additional EDUC methods course. 1,2
Developmental Processes (including biological development)
EDUC 208D	Reading and Writing Development
EDUC 211D	Writing Theory and Practice
EDUC 220D	Developing Adolescent Literacy
EDUC 223D	Oral Language Acquisition and Education
EDUC 229D	Foundations of Human Development
EDUC 236D	Applied Linguistics and Literacy
EDUC 238D	Special Topics in Human Development in Context
Social Emotional Development
EDUC 238D	Special Topics in Human Development in Context
EDUC 268D	Out-of-School Learning and Development
Cognitive and Neurological Development
EDUC 208D	Reading and Writing Development
EDUC 211D	Writing Theory and Practice
EDUC 220D	Developing Adolescent Literacy
EDUC 223D	Oral Language Acquisition and Education
EDUC 229D	Foundations of Human Development
EDUC 232D	Mathematics Cognition and Learning
EDUC 236D	Applied Linguistics and Literacy
EDUC 238D	Special Topics in Human Development in Context
EDUC 239D	Cognitive Neuroscience and Human Development
Cultural and Environmental Contexts of Development
EDUC 208D	Reading and Writing Development
EDUC 211D	Writing Theory and Practice
EDUC 220D	Developing Adolescent Literacy
EDUC 223D	Oral Language Acquisition and Education
EDUC 225D	Learning, Development, and Culture
EDUC 228D	Science Education for the 21st-Century Classroom
EDUC 229D	Foundations of Human Development
EDUC 232D	Mathematics Cognition and Learning
EDUC 236D	Applied Linguistics and Literacy
EDUC 238D	Special Topics in Human Development in Context
EDUC 268D	Out-of-School Learning and Development
EDUC 274D	Studies of Professional and Staff Development

¹

To satisfy HDIC area requirements, students must receive approval of their selected courses by the Associate Dean.

²

Of the four HDIC courses, students must select at least one course from three different sub-areas.

Educational Policy and Social Context (EPSC)

Students must select five EPSC courses, or other courses, from the following. 1,2
Economics of Education
ECON 249	Special Topics in Microeconomics
EDUC 264E	Economic Foundations of Education and Social Policy
EDUC 258E	Special Topics in Educational Policy and Social Context
Education Policy
EDUC 251E	Educational Policy and Politics
EDUC 254E	College Access and Persistence
EDUC 276E	Early Childhood Education Policy
EDUC 261E	Social and Cultural Foundations of Education
EDUC 258E	Special Topics in Educational Policy and Social Context
Social and Cultural Foundations of Education
EDUC 252E	Social Organization of Schools and Classrooms
SOCIOL 237	Educational Inequality
SOCIOL 279	Special Topics: Social Organizations and Institutions
EDUC 258E	Special Topics in Educational Policy and Social Context
EPSC students are strongly encouraged, but not required, to select additional methods courses from the following:
EDUC 287A	Quantitative Data Analysis in Education Research and Evaluation
EDUC 287B	Causal Inference: Methods for Program Evaluation and Policy Research

¹

To satisfy ESPC area requirements, students must receive approval of their selected courses by the Associate Dean.

²

Students must select one course in the Economics of Education, one course in Education Policy, and one course in the Structure and Social Context of Schools.

Teaching, Learning, and Educational Improvement (TLEI)

Students must select four TLEI courses from the following, and one additional EDUC methods course: 1
Digital Learning and Media
EDUC 212T	Literacy and Technology
EDUC 217T	Foundations of Digital Learning
EDUC 218T	Special Topics in Teaching, Learning, and Educational Improvement
Language and Literacy
EDUC 208D	Reading and Writing Development
EDUC 211D	Writing Theory and Practice
EDUC 212T	Literacy and Technology
EDUC 220D	Developing Adolescent Literacy
EDUC 223D	Oral Language Acquisition and Education
EDUC 236D	Applied Linguistics and Literacy
EDUC 218T	Special Topics in Teaching, Learning, and Educational Improvement
Sociocultural Perspectives on Learning and Educational Improvement
EDUC 225D	Learning, Development, and Culture
EDUC 231T	Interrogating Race and Education
EDUC 250T	Research Practice Partnerships
EDUC 255T	Immigration and the New Second Generation
EDUC 266T	Design-Based Implementation Research
EDUC 289T	Use of Video in Educational Research
STEM Teaching and Learning
EDUC 217T	Foundations of Digital Learning
EDUC 228D	Science Education for the 21st-Century Classroom
EDUC 232D	Mathematics Cognition and Learning
EDUC 218T	Special Topics in Teaching, Learning, and Educational Improvement
Teacher Learning and Professional Development
EDUC 218T	Special Topics in Teaching, Learning, and Educational Improvement
EDUC 226T	University Teaching: Concepts and Practices
EDUC 237T	Foundations of Teaching and Learning
EDUC 274D	Studies of Professional and Staff Development

¹

To satisfy TLEI area requirements, students must receive approval of their selected courses by the Associate Dean.

²

Students must select two courses in one TLEI sub-area and two other courses (either in the same or a different TLEI sub-area).

S/U Research Courses

Students who wish to engage in pre-dissertation or research for credit but not for a letter grade, may enroll in EDUC 295 for 2-4 units (pre-dissertation research) or EDUC 299 for 2-8 units (dissertation research). Both courses may be repeated for credit and both are graded on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis. As with other S/U courses, EDUC 295 and EDUC 299 may not be used to fulfill degree requirements.

Elective Courses

Students are expected and strongly encouraged to take courses beyond the 12 courses required, such as the additional research courses listed below, that provide training essential to the student's research interests and professional development throughout their five years of doctoral study. These courses may come from their own area, from the other two areas, from other appropriate classes in the School of Education, from other departments on campus, or from other campuses within the University of California. Elective courses must be graduate-level courses taken for a letter grade. Independent study courses (e.g., EDUC 298) are also acceptable when taken for a letter grade, pending approval and syllabus is provided.

Further information regarding the Ph.D. program, courses, and application requirements is available at the School of Education website.

Additional Research Methods Courses (not required but strongly encouraged)

EDUC 234	Measurement and Psychometrics
EDUC 259	Community Research and Action
EDUC 266T	Design-Based Implementation Research
EDUC 279	Advanced Qualitative Methods
EDUC 280	Research Methods: Hierarchical Linear Modeling
EDUC 287A	Quantitative Data Analysis in Education Research and Evaluation
EDUC 287B	Causal Inference: Methods for Program Evaluation and Policy Research
EDUC 288B	Structural Equation Modeling for Educ, Soc & Behavioral Analysis
EDUC 289T	Use of Video in Educational Research
Other courses in statistics or research methodology offered in the Department of Statistics, the School of Social Ecology, the School of Social Sciences, or elsewhere on campus, with the permission of the instructor.