Higher Education
Doctor of Education in Higher Education
Program Director: Sr. Ann M. Heath, Ph.D.
The Ed.D. in Higher Education program inspires and equips insightful, ethical administrators and faculty leaders. Current and future collegiate, educational practitioners benefit from practice-informed learning within the context of higher education’s trends, challenges, and vision.
The program offers three concentrations meeting the needs of a broad range of administrators, collegiate faculty, and nurse educators. The concentration,
- administration and instruction is designed for higher education administrators or faculty members who are seeking to advance their career opportunities by expanding their knowledge of current trends in higher education and developing their leadership skills.
- community colleges responds to the interests of collegiate administrators and faculty who desire to expand their knowledge of higher education while focusing specialized areas of study on two-year institutions.
- nursing education offers nurses seeking to work effectively within the broad higher education environment, the academic and research preparation for roles as collegiate nurse educators and administrators of a nursing educational unit.
The Ed.D. Program also prepares individuals working in related fields such as clinical nursing, law, and organizational or educational consulting, who are seeking to make a career change. The Doctor of Education in Higher Education program prepares students to meet the challenges of the changing landscape of higher education while maintaining the highest educational and ethical standards.
| Area | Student Learning Outcomes |
| Historical Foundations | Apply information, principles, and references from the historical foundations of higher education to current issues and practices including the recognition that social and cultural systems develop out of adaptation to environmental and historical circumstances |
| Contemporary Global Issues & Challenges | Apply theory to practice in analyzing potential solutions to contemporary issues facing higher education worldwide |
| Leadership & Ethics | Evaluate and employ leadership values, beliefs, and styles in the context of ethical decision making; demonstrate acquisition of professional identity consistent with the goals of scholar and practitioner with a doctoral education |
| Strategic Thinking | Illustrate strategic thinking in institutional planning, academic direction and programming, organizational budgets, operations, and institutional assessment and evaluation at all levels |
| Equity & Diversity | Articulate diverse perspectives and incorporate diverse viewpoints and cultural paradigms into program development, implementation, assessment, and personal interactions |
| Curriculum | Evaluate and employ current paradigms of curriculum design, delivery and assessment |
| Student Development, Access, and Completion | Evaluate and apply best practices in access, retention, and completion for all students in the context of student development theory and institutional environments |
| Administration & Operations | Evaluate current administrative, operational, legal and public issues and trends in higher education |
| Use of Research | Interpret with accuracy research in the field |
| Conducting Research | Conduct and disseminate current research |
| Administration & Instruction | Evidence breadth of understanding of factors influencing and supporting higher education, its purpose, and its practices viewed from the perspective of administration or faculty |
| Evidence in-depth knowledge of the roles, responsibilities, and governance of faculty and administration in higher education | |
| Demonstrate knowledge of the science of learning assessment and institutional effectiveness and best practices for institutional change and innovation in higher education | |
| Contribute to the advancement of administration and/or student learning effectiveness in higher education through intellectual inquiry and scholarship | |
| Community Colleges | Demonstrate knowledge of profile, issues, strategies, and practices of two-year collegiate institutions reflective of the varied constituents impacting or impacted by this area of the higher education community |
| Evidence in-depth knowledge of the roles, responsibilities, and governance of faculty and administration in community colleges | |
| Demonstrate knowledge of the science of learning assessment and institutional effectiveness and best practices for institutional change and innovation in community colleges | |
| Contribute to the advancement of administration and/or student learning effectiveness at community colleges through intellectual inquiry and scholarship | |
| Nursing Education | Evidence in-depth knowledge of the nurse educators’ roles and practices in higher education as faculty members and academic leaders |
| Conceive evidenced-based strategies to design, implement, evaluation, and improve nursing education to reflect modern theory and trends in higher education, healthcare, and nursing practice | |
| Design curriculum and programs in nursing education including planning for development, implementation assessment, and evaluation using 21st century delivery and assessment methodologies | |
| Contribute to the advancement of the science of nursing education through intellectual inquiry and creative scholarship. |
Required Courses: Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Higher Education (54 Credits)
Foundational Core (12 credits)
| HED 700 Seminar in Doctoral Studies | (3) |
| HED 705 Foundations of American Higher Education | (3) |
| HED 712 Higher Education Administration and Leadership | (3) |
| HED 721 Diversity and Multiculturalism in Higher Education | (3) |
Research Core (9 credits)
| HED 702 Methods of Research | (3) |
| HED 703 Quantitative Research Methods | (3) |
| HED 704 Qualitative Analysis and Mixed Research Methods | (3) |
Concentration (15 credits)
Administration and Instruction
| HED 715 Change and Innovation in Higher Education | (3) |
| HED 725 Finance and Strategic Planning | (3) |
| HED 732 Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes | (3) |
| HED 748 Enrollment Management | (3) |
| HED 820 Applied Field Experience in Higher Education | (3) |
Community Colleges
| HED 715 Change and Innovation in Higher Education (Community Colleges) | (3) |
| HED 725 Finance and Strategic Planning | (3) |
| HED 732 Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes | (3) |
| HED 757 The American Community College | (3) |
| HED 820 Applied Field Experience in Community Colleges | (3) |
Nursing Education
| HED 770 Program Development & Evaluation in Nursing Education | (3) |
| HED 771 Instructional Design & Curriculum Development in Nursing Education | (3) |
| HED 772 Learning Theory and Practice for Classroom & Clinical Nursing Education | (3) |
| HED 773 Advanced Scientific Inquiry in Nursing & Health Care | (3) |
| HED 820 Applied Field Experience in Nursing Education | (3) |
Electives (6 credits)
The Program offers a variety of electives on a rotating basis. In addition, students may take concentration courses from outside their area as electives. HED 725 is required of Nursing Education Students.
Dissertation Sequence (12 credits)
| HED 794 Dissertation Research and Evaluation | (3) |
| HED 795 Dissertation Design | (3) |
| HED 798/799 Dissertation I and II | (3, 3) |
All students entering the program must hold a master’s degree. The 54 credits are beyond the student’s master’s degree. Students must receive a B or higher in each course or retake the course, and maintain a minimal semester GPA of 3.3 or successfully fulfill an advisement plan. Transfer credits from a doctoral program taken at an accredited institution require a minimum grade of B+ (3.3) for acceptance. For policies specific to the doctoral program in Higher Education, please refer to the handbooks posted in the Moodle Higher Education Networking and Information Center.
Program Highlights
Fully Online with Synchronous and A-Synchronous Courses
The Doctor of Education in Higher Education Program is delivered in an online hybrid model that seamlessly blends asynchronous and synchronous delivery of courses, combining the flexibility of online learning with the benefit of real-time instruction.
Program Delivery
In fall and spring, courses meet in 7-week sessions with two courses per semester; web-based face-to-face synchronous meetings alternate with fully online weeks to enhance and support the learning experience.
In summer, concentration and elective courses generally meet in 5-week sessions with courses offered in sequence. The accelerated summer sessions enable students to balance a full academic schedule with other professional and personal goals often associated with summer plans.
The Cohort Model
The program is offered in cohort model creating a professional learning community to enhance student-to-student interactions and support throughout the program. Students meet in a cohort model for major courses and intermingle across groupings for elective courses and offerings in each concentration.
The Field Experience
The Field Experience is designed to provide doctoral candidates with opportunities to demonstrate knowledge, skills and abilities developed and/or enhanced in the Doctor of Education Program enriching and expanding their areas of concentration. In addition, the Field Experience (90 hours) provides a link between current experience and future goals in higher education by affording valuable networking experiences.
Dissertation Development
Preparation for dissertation research permeates the curriculum throughout the program, supported by coursework, advisement, and scholarly development.
Career Opportunities
Career opportunities exist in two- and four-year colleges and universities across all departments and divisions as well as in professional organizations dedicated to the advancement and support of higher education initiatives.
Master of Science in Higher Education
Program Director: Sr. Ann M. Heath, Ph.D.
Designed to provide a comprehensive and foundational preparation for a career in higher education, students will expand their capacity for professional service in institutions of higher education in the 21st century through a course of study focused on personal and professional development.
The program leads students to gain the knowledge and skills needed to be informed advisers, responsive leaders, effective educators, and administrators across all types of colleges and universities.
Graduates will be ready to seek career advancement in a variety of student-focused positions including student advisement, admissions and recruitment, student affairs, athletics, career development, communications and marketing, alumni relations, and other campus departments.
Student Learning Outcomes
Students who complete the program will be able to:
- Discuss factors influencing and supporting higher education, its purpose, and its practices
- Evaluate and respond to current administrative issues and trends in higher education
- Recognize social and cultural systems in the context of the environment and through an historical lens
- Articulate leadership values and styles in the context of ethical decision making
- Use research, knowledge of human dimensions, and interpersonal dynamics to inform practice.
Required Courses: Master of Science (M.S.) in Higher Education (30 Credits)
Core courses in educational leadership
| GEN 501 | Human Development |
| GEN 502 | Methods of Research |
| GEN 503 | Interpersonal Relations |
| EDL 615 | Contemporary Professional Ethics OR |
| LDR 603 | Organizational Ethics* |
Concentration courses in higher education
| HED 605 | Foundations of American Higher Education |
| HED 612 | Higher Education Administration and Leadership |
| HED 621 | Diversity and Multiculturalism in Higher Education |
| HED 632 | Assessment of Student Learning |
Applied capstone courses
| HED 637 | Professional Seminar, Part I |
| HED 638 | Professional Seminar, Part II |
*Fulfills requirements for MS and Certificate in Leadership
Program Highlights
- Program Delivery – Three distinct approaches to course delivery are adopted in the program, providing students with a truly “hybrid” approach to learning.
Online/Asynchronous
Core courses in educational leadership employ an online asynchronous pedagogy and delivery.
Online/Synchronous
Concentration courses in higher education employ an online synchronous pedagogy and delivery with synchronous class sessions held during weeks 1, 3, 5, and 7.
Hybrid
Two seminar courses at the conclusion of the program include both periodic synchronous sessions coupled with field experience and independent research. - Cohort Model – MS students follow a course of study designed to build a close professional network with peers in the program.
- Program Structure – The MS program requires 30 graduate credits that may be finished in five semesters with two courses per semester. Each course meets in accelerated seven-week sessions with students taking one course at a time.
- Higher Education Learning Community –The MS in Higher Education is part of a broader program of study in the field of higher education, encompassing graduate study at both the master’s and doctoral levels. The master’s curriculum is designed to integrate seamlessly with the doctoral program providing students with options to move directly into the Ed.D. program without repetition of course content. Faculty and students from a wide range of institutions have participated in this learning community, contributing to the growing body of research and leadership in the field.
- Alignment with Doctoral Program – The MS provides the pathway to doctoral study. Students who complete the MS in Higher Education and meet eligibility requirements for the Ed.D. in Higher Education program will be waived from four doctoral course requirements if enrolling within five years.
- Attain a Certificate in Leadership - Students may use LDR 603 Organization Ethics to fulfill course requirements in both the Certificate and MS program. Completion of 3 additional courses in leadership studies fulfills the requirements for a Certificate in Leadership. See catalog in Strategic Leadership for Certificate courses.