Note:
This supplement has been prepared because the publication schedule for
the School of Graduate Studies 2000-2003 Catalog could not accommodate
the newly approved Ph.D./ Ed.D in Higher Education Programs. Moreover,
the Ed.D in Higher Education (Community College Leadership) Program
that is presented in the current catalog on pages 159-161 has been updated.
Specifically, courses with an EDCL prefix now have the prefix EDHE and
the prefix for Ph.D. courses is RDHE. Except for provisions of the School
of Graduate College that apply to all graduate students, this supplement
contains full information about the Ph.D./Ed.D in Higher Education Programs,
including admissions requirements, course requirements, and the relationship
of the two Program paths in the Ph.D./Ed.D in Higher Education. The
new Ph.D. in Higher Education (Administration/Management and Policy
Analysis) is presented first and is followed by already operational
companion Ed.D in Higher Education (Community College Leadership Program).
General
Informationabout the Ph.D./ Ed.D in Higher Education Programs:
Similarities and Distinctions
Consistent
with the goals of the 1993-1997 Enhancement Plan, an immediate objective
is the establishment of a new unit for doctoral preparation programs
in higher and postsecondary education within the School of Education
and Urban Studies. The proposed name of this new unit is "Center
for Higher and Postsecondary Education" and is to be the administrative
umbrella for the Ed.D in Community College Leadership and the Ph.D.
in Higher Education. The Plan called for offering "a doctoral program
in Higher Education Administration as a companion to its existing doctorate
in Urban Educational Leadership".
The University's
decision to develop and implement a research doctorate in Higher Education
reflects its commitment to expand opportunities at the graduate level
for those persons whose interests are primarily related to high quality
professional preparation to pursue career fields in which research and
other scholarly skills are absolutely essential. Equally apparent in
the design of the Higher Education Program path for the Ph.D. is that
Morgan State University has purposely developed a program to complement
but to be distinct from the predecessor Ed.D. in Higher Education (Community
College Leadership).
The repositioning
of the Ed.D in Higher Education (Community College Leadership Program)
and the change in its organizational placement within the School of
Education and Urban Studies reflect more accurately its kinship to a
broader conceptualization of higher education, as contrasted with Higher
Education's disciplinary focus as a primary field of study. Though the
Ph.D. in Higher Education and the Ed.D in Higher Education (Community
College Leadership Program) retain their distinctive characteristics,
both are Higher Education Program paths to significantly different goals
as suggested by their designs. The two Higher Education Program paths
diverge at several important points. These involve both philosophical
and structural differences with respect to admissions requirements,
research core requirements, specialization and cognate requirements,
as well as the fact the Ed.D. in Community College Leadership is structured
around a cohort concept and the Ph.D. in Higher Education is not.
Nonetheless,
as Higher Education Program paths broadly conceived, the Ph.D. in Higher
Education and the Ed.D in Community College Leadership share some courses
that develop competencies across sectors of higher and postsecondary
education. Such courses or thematic seminars may include legal aspects
of higher education, higher education finance, institutional research
and planning, and the like, which will often be cross-listed for registration
purposes.
On the
other hand, the Ed.D in Community College Leadership is distinguishable
from the Ph.D. in Higher Education principally because of its emphasis
on the applied and the tailoring of a significant number of specialization
courses, which highlight the unique features of the segment of higher
education that is truly American in origin. Though community colleges
have come of age and have assimilated as a distinct higher education
sector, there are many practices for reasons of populations served and
institutional mission that often dictate decidedly different approaches.
By contrast,
the new Ph.D. in Higher Education is distinguishable from the Ed.D in
Community College Leadership because it treats higher education as a
field of study and requires a much heavier emphasis on research as a
foundation for its administration/management and policy analysis concentrations.
At the same time the design, both programmatically and administratively,
encourages the sharing of resources as well as the development and teaching
of some specialization courses, as well as the development of collaborative
research projects.
The addition
of the Ph.D. in Higher Education is simply a rounding out of the University's
capacity to address urban education issues from a stronger and more
deliberate research emphasis. The offering of the Ph.D. in Higher Education
and the Ed.D as two distinct program paths in the Center for Higher
and Postsecondary Education is also an expression of the University's
conviction about the inextricable relationship between the theoretical
and the applied. The University's School of Education and Urban Studies
is also well aware of the interconnectedness that exists between and
among the various levels of education. That is why it views as compatible
and complementary the offering of Ed.D. and Ph.D. preparation programs,
which are designed to produce graduates with common understandings about
American education as well as the specialized knowledge, skills, and
abilities to address specific issues related to K-12 systems, community
colleges, or other higher and postsecondary entities. It is within this
context that the design for the new Ph.D. in Higher Education Program
path at Morgan State University has been developed and is being presented.
And it is for these reasons that the Ph.D. in Higher Education and the
Ed.D in Community College Leadership have been juxtaposed administratively
as the Higher Education Program with two paths for excellence in the
Center for Higher and Postsecondary Education at Morgan State University.
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Corollary
Objectives for the program in Higher Education: Ph.D. and Ed.D. Paths
- To strengthen
and enhance the research capacity of the University and its ability
to a broader higher education research agenda.
- To strengthen
the University's competitive advantage in recruiting, admitting and
graduating students from all racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
- To complement
existing doctoral programs, especially to assure more collaborative
and cooperative research across educational levels.
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Ph.D.
in Higher Education: Conceptual Design and Components
The primary
purpose of the projected Ph.D. in Higher Education program path at Morgan
State University is to prepare highly qualified scholar-researchers
that will be able to take a variety of positions in higher education
settings in both public and private sectors. Graduates can be expected
to get positions as research scholars, college and university administrators,
policy analysts, higher education specialists in public and private
agencies, higher education specialists in corporate settings, and faculty
members in higher education programs, among others.
Conceptually,
the Ph.D. in Higher Education program path views higher education as
a field of study. Its curriculum focuses initially on two concentrations,
which are higher education administration/management and policy analysis.
Further, the curriculum includes five principal components (including
the dissertation project):
A.
Research Core (18 credit hours of advanced course work in quantitative
and qualitative methodology and required collaborative field research
modules; these hours do not include the expectation that matriculated
students present evidence of at least three credit hours each in basic
statistical analysis and in an introductory course in qualitative
methods) Note: this number represents a minimum and a student could
expect to take additional research hours depending upon levels of
competency upon admission, as well as upon what will eventually be
the methodology required for the successful completion of the field
research module and dissertation project.
All students
enrolled in the Ph.D. in Higher Education program path are expected
to become competent researchers. Therefore, the program design includes
a significant requirement for both quantitative and qualitative research
methods. The design also assumes that students admitted will demonstrate
competence in basic statistics as well as a working knowledge of qualitative
research methods. Students who do not demonstrate such competence
and ability will be required to take appropriate general survey courses
in basic statistical methods and/or qualitative methods. It is understood
that these general survey courses will not count toward the 18 credit
hours (minimum requirement) for the research core.
The 18
credit hours (minimum requirement) must consist of at least the following:
- Quantitative
Methods
(Two graduate-level statistics courses): Course work in experimental
and non-experimental design and multivariate techniques constitutes
part of the requirements. Also recommended are advanced courses
designed specifically to develop expertise with statistical techniques
commonly used in educational research. However, other equivalent
courses from other disciplines may be substituted. The Program will
maintain a list of such graduate-level courses that are offered
by other departments of the University.
- Qualitative
Methods (Two graduate-level courses): Courses that familiarize
students with qualitative approaches to research (e.g., case studies,
ethnographic studies, etc.) will be offered on an alternate semester
basis by faculty in the School of Education and Urban Studies and
through other graduate programs under the auspices of the School
of Graduate Studies. The emphasis will be on qualitative methods
used in the social sciences.
- Dissertation-related
research methods (At least one graduate-level course): Students
will be required to take at least one graduate course on methods
of inquiry or statistics that are related to their area of concentration
and/or dissertation research project.
- Collaborative
Field Research Project (1-3 credit hour research practicum):
Before being admitted to candidacy and undertaking their dissertation
projects, students must demonstrate their ability to design and
conduct research. Generally this will involve participation in a
published or refereed article that is presented at professional
conferences such as AAHE, AERA, ASHE, AIR, and the like. The study
may also be a cooperative or collaborative research project conducted
either with a member of the faculty or with a student or faculty
members from another institution. The Field Research Project (or
research practicum) provides an opportunity to directly experience
the research process prior to the dissertation and a chance to gain
entrance to professional networks that are important to the students'
career advancement. Alternatively, students can submit single authored
higher education-related research that they completed prior to admission
for faculty review and a waiver of the Field Research (research
practicum) may be given based on this review.
B. Required
Course Work in Cognate Discipline Fields (12 hours minimum), to
include but not be limited to the social and behavioral sciences,
business, economics, and engineering. Note: The School of Education
and Urban Studies will work collaboratively with other academic units
of the University - particularly psychology and other disciplines
related to higher education as a field of study - to develop appropriate
cognate courses to serve the Ph.D. in Higher Education Program.
The Ph.D.
in Higher Education requires a minimum of 12 credit hours be taken
in cognate disciplines. The rationale for the requirements is based
on the assumption that students derive the most benefit from course
work in one or two closely related disciplines or fields that share
some common theoretical base and methods of inquiry. Where appropriate,
courses from previous advanced study (e.g., Master's degree) may be
used to satisfy the cognate requirement. However, most students will
need to take additional cognate work that is related to their current
programs of study and to their proposed research areas. Typically
students will choose cognate work at the graduate level in disciplines
such as sociology, economics, history, engineering, business, psychology,
and mathematics, among others. Consequently, the theoretical frameworks
and research methods used to examine issues will often be shared across
disciplinary lines. Frequently, elements of different theories are
synthesized to create interdisciplinary frameworks and models that
are more appropriate to the phenomenon of interest.
C.
Foundations Course Work in Higher Education (24 credits minimum),
to include but not limited to historical foundations and contemporary
concepts in higher education, organization theory and higher education
administration, technological applications in higher education, curriculum
and instruction in higher education, the American College Student
and related student services, legal aspects of higher education, quality
assurance and accountability in higher education, pro-seminar in higher
education, and finance in higher education, among others.
The Program
requires a minimum of 24 credit hours of work in Higher Education
as a field of study. Unless students have been awarded transfer credit
or waivers of courses as a result of their pre-assessments at entry,
students must take in addition to the Pro-Seminar in Higher Education,
5 required courses and 2 electives. Following are the five required
courses:
- Pro-Seminar
in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Historical
Foundations of Higher Education (3 credits)
- Technological
Applications in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Higher
Education Policy Analysis
- Quality
Assurance and Accountability in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Diversity
and Multiculturalism in Higher Education (3 credits)
Two Electives
are to be chosen from among the following:
- Contemporary
Issues and Concepts in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Organizational
Theory and Administration/Management in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Curriculum,
Instruction and Assessment in Higher Education (3 credits)
- The
American College Student (3 credits)
- Student
Affairs Administration in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Legal
Aspects of Higher Education (3 credits)
- Finance
and Budgeting in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Governance
and Coordination in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Institutional
Research and Planning in Higher Education (3 credits)
- Politics
of Higher and Postsecondary Education
Note:
The division of courses into Required and Elective is not intended
to imply any priority of ordering with respect to their importance
in the preparation of higher educational professionals. It is rather
recognition that the clientele for this program would consist largely
of practicing professionals many of whom would have had prior exposure
to the concepts dealt with in some of these courses. Such courses
were made elective. Courses which treat with issues that are specific
to the filed of higher education were made compulsory. For example,
the concepts of "Organizational Theory…" while germane
to the practice of Higher Education are likely to have been treated
in other courses, the course is therefore an elective. Individual
students may be advised about which electives they should take on
the basis of their pre-entry assessment. The courses selected as compulsory
are reflective of important contemporary issues in higher education
and seek to take account of the social, political and cultural milieu
in which higher education occurs. In this respect the program has
a unique emphasis and one that is in keeping with the mission of Morgan
State University.
D.
Modular "signature" Courses (6 one-credit seminars
that involve specialty topics designed to enhance the knowledge, skills
and abilities of particular doctoral students in response to the results
of required diagnostic assessment at entry). For example, if the pre-assessment
of the successful applicant's skills reveals that he or she is deficient
in grant proposal writing or in enrollment management, then the program
would facilitate the student's acquisition of these traditional or
asynchronous methods. Note: It is necessary to underscore the importance
of the knowledge, skills, and abilities the successful applicants
will bring to Morgan, and to utilize information about the applicants
to complement-not duplicate-the competencies they already have. Thus,
the rationale for the implementation of "signature" or "thematic
courses to enhance a student's competencies and outcomes is that duplication
will be minimized and the extra time can be used to strengthen other
professional competencies and research sills of those matriculating
in the program.
Illustrations:
- Executive
Leadership in Higher Education
- Contemporary
Concepts and Practices in Enrollment Management in Higher Education
- Classroom
Assessment Strategies: Yours or Mine?
- Intellectual
Property Rights and Responsibilities for Higher Education Researchers
and Practitioners
- New
Paradigms for Graduate Higher Education
E.
Dissertation Project (12 credit hours minimum in two six credit
modules). Students whose dissertation projects extend beyond the normal
timeframe may be allowed to register for additional hours of dissertation.
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Admissions
Requirements (Including Items for Portfolio Assessment)
Note:
Admission to the Ph.D. in Higher Education at Morgan State University
involves the receipt and review of multiple sources of information (i.e.,
portfolio) that applicants are required to provide as written documentation
and that which is drawn from an analysis of personal interview data.
Applicants must meet the minimum criteria set forth for documentation
of previous academic study, academic and professional experiences, scholarly
accomplishments and potential, written communications skills, specific
research competencies and scholarly and career objectives. However,
it should be noted that the decision to admit or not to admit an applicant
is not made on the basis on any one criterion. The following minimum
criteria are taken together in the decision making process:
- A completed
application for admission
to the Ph.D. in Higher Education Program (available from the School
of Graduate Studies).
- Official
transcripts of all academic work completed at other regionally accredited
institutions of higher education, with a GPA of 3.0 or better on a
4.0 scale for the last two years of undergraduate work; and a GPA
of 3.5 or better on all postgraduate study beyond the baccalaureate
degree.
- Official
results of national entrance examinations such as the GRE (verbal
and quantitative sections), the GMAT or the MAT.
- International
students, whose native language is not English, must provide a TOEFL
score of 550 or higher and demonstrate through the required written
documentation and interview that they have requisite verbal and analytical
skills needed to successfully complete the program.
- 2-3
page written statement of applicant's philosophy and career goals.
- A current
resume or curriculum vita, documenting professional experiences.
- Three
letters of recommendation from previous employers, professors, and
professional colleagues.
- Samples
of professional writing, including publications and research proposal
abstracts, if available.
- Data
from personal interview.
The Program
Faculty will apply the admissions criteria and make recommendations
not only about admission but also about what are the entry-level competencies
of the applicants.
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Special
Features of the Ph.D. in Higher Education Program
1. Leadership
and Experiential Diagnostics
A feature
not found in a number of doctoral programs in higher education is the
assessment, through a variety of means, of the entry level competencies
(i.e., knowledge, skills, abilities) achieved by the applicant in prior
academic and leadership positions or as a result of other educational
and professional experiences. The University will do more than simply
pay lip service to the entry -level characteristics of the applicants
for advanced graduate study. It will utilize all information contained
in required application materials and what is ascertained from personal
interviews with each successful applicant as a basis for developing
individual student profiles and programs of study. This same assessment
information will be used to enhance program quality, to make adjustments
in program content, and possibly to make changes in admissions requirements
and expectations. The process used to determine competency levels and
leadership styles will also assist the University as a whole and the
School of Education and Urban Studies in particular to do a better job
of assessing program effectiveness and student learning outcomes.
2. The
Special Role of Technology: Administration and Research Applications
In our
contemporary society it is simply axiomatic that the new Ph.D. in Higher
Education, especially because of its emphasis on the development and
enhancement of research skills, will involve technology at every level.
Chief among the technological applications for administrative, academic
and research purposes (e.g., particularly the use of information databases)
will be those applications involving the computer. In addition to including
a required course in the specialization area on technological applications
in higher education, the Program has built in technological support
for its administrative functions, assessment responsibilities, as well
as the research activities to be carried out by Program faculty and
doctoral students. The Program is fortunate to have excellent computing
resources in this regard, including DEC Alpha 4100 Servers and a supercomputer.
3. Integrating
Traditional and Modular Course Formats
Using as
benchmarks similar practices-including successful higher education doctoral
programs such as those offered at the University of Michigan, Iowa State
University and the University of Georgia-Morgan State University designed
its Ph.D. in Higher Education to allow for a balance of traditionally
and innovatively formatted courses for the required core. For example,
the program will offer a more flexible series of "signature"
or thematic seminars that are designed around specific student needs.
As a means of diversifying the faculty resources available to the program,
the development and offering of thematic courses will make it possible
for the Program to expose students to expertise in the field of higher
education that would otherwise not be available. The program design
assumes that it is neither possible nor desirable to limit student-learning
experiences to standard courses taught only by either full time or adjunct
faculty. The design also recognizes the desirability of offering some
learning modules in asynchronous formats. Therefore, the Program incorporates
some curriculum content to be offered on line as Web-based courses.
4. Required
Collaborative Field Research Projects (or Research Practicum)
Unlike
many doctoral preparation programs in Higher Education, the Ph.D. in
Higher Education at Morgan State University requires that the student
develop in collaboration with an external institution or organization
a research project as a part of a Research Practicum. The research project,
which should ideally be related to the student's major research interests,
can be in the form of institutional research, a cooperative grant-supported
project, or a small pilot research project related to the student's
approved program of studies. Where appropriate and feasible, students
also will have the opportunity to meet this program requirement alternatively
through collaborative research with members of the Higher Education
Program faculty.
5. Primary
Though Not Exclusive Emphasis on In-Service Personnel (i.e., previous
experience in higher education)
The requirement
of previous experience in higher education is a common feature of a
number of doctoral-level higher education preparation programs in the
United States. However, the difference is that those persons who do
not have such experience but are interested in changing their career
emphasis will not be excluded from consideration. Less experienced applicants
can receive consideration because the program design accommodates differences
in entry-level student competencies.
6. Transfer
of Credit and Waiver of Course Policies
In addition
to maintaining a competitive position with other institutions, the program
has to be consistent in recognizing the value and importance of competencies
already achieved by persons capable of successfully completing the Ph.D.
in Higher Education. Therefore, Morgan State University will accept
for transfer of credit those courses taken at other accredited institutions,
which are deemed to be comparable to work required in core, specialization
or cognate areas. The determination will be made not solely on the basis
of transcript reviews but also on the basis of the information gained
through the pre-assessment of the successful applicant's competencies
at entry. More important as a rationale for Morgan State's Ph.D. in
Higher Education is the need to assure consistency in the application
of the guiding principle regarding the recognition of competencies already
achieved.
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Ph.D.
Program Path Design Elements: Other Requirements and Policies
A.
Residency Requirements and Maximum Time Permitted for Fulfillment
of all Degree Requirements
Students
must complete 18 semester credits of graduate study at Morgan State
University in any 12-month period prior to completion of their program
of study in order to meet the residency requirement of the School of
Graduate Studies. This requirement does not apply to doctoral students
who are employed more than half time by Morgan State University. All
credits must be earned at Morgan State University and should be approved
for graduate study in consultation with the student's advisor. From
the time of admission students can expect to complete all degree requirements
in 4 to 7 years but not to exceed ten (10) years. Except in rare cases
involving prolonged illness, medical emergencies, and compliance with
provisions of the American Disabilities Act, extensions will not be
granted.
B.
Comprehensive Qualifying Examination
Comprehensive
qualifying examinations are required of all PH.D in Higher Education
students. The examination is taken once the student has completed at
least seventy-five (75) percent of all course work, including at least
four of the courses required in the research core. The examination covers
the general area of higher education, the candidate's area of concentration,
and a question designed to assess the student's ability to construct
a research design or proposal. The examination, which must be scheduled
through the School of Graduate Studies, may be taken via the computer.
The time allotted for the examination is twelve hours, which are distributed
over a three-day period. Each part of the examination is allotted four
hours. The written examination may or may not be followed by an oral
examination, depending upon the overall quality of the results. The
decision to schedule an oral examination is made by the student's advisor
in consultation with other members of the supervisory committee.
C.
Internship/Field Project Modules
Depending
upon a student's competencies and level of experience in higher education
at entry, the program design allows for development of mini-internships
and field project (research) modules. The purpose of these modules will
be to provide the student with professional and/or research competencies
that are identified as weak or missing. With the approval of the student's
advisor and supervisory committee, some field project (research) modules
may satisfy this part of the research core requirement outlined on Page
19.
D.
Preparation and Defense of Dissertation Proposal
After successfully
completing the required Comprehensive Qualifying Examination, the student
must prepare and defend a proposal for the dissertation project. The
proposal for the dissertation project, which may be done as a part of
the Field Research Project (a.k.a. Research Practicum), must contain
the first three chapters of the dissertation. Specifically, it must
include a chapter on the nature, background and scope of the problem,
hypotheses, research questions; a chapter providing a literature review;
and a detailed chapter on the specific research methods to be used.
Once the proposal has the approval of the student's advisor, an oral
defense of the proposal is conducted.
E.
Preparation and Defense of Dissertation
The Ph.D.
dissertation must demonstrate conclusively the ability of the student
to conceive, design, conduct, and interpret independent, original, and
creative research. It must attempt to describe significant original
contributions to the advancement of knowledge and must demonstrate the
ability to organize, analyze and interpret data. In most instances,
a dissertation includes a statement of purpose, a review of pertinent
literature, a presentation of methodology and results obtained, and
a critical interpretation of conclusions in relation to the findings
of others. The completed dissertation project should be worthy of publication.
Responsibility for writing and editing of the dissertation rests with
the student, under the supervision of the chair of the student's supervisory
committee. General guidelines for formatting and submitting dissertations
are included in the Graduate Catalog.
F.
Continuous Enrollment
The School
of Education and Urban Studies requires continuous enrollment until
it confers the Ph.D. in Higher Education. All Ph.D. students doing research,
working on dissertations, taking comprehensive qualifying examinations,
or using University facilities or faculty time must be registered for
a minimum of one (1) semester hour of graduate credit regardless of
how many hours they have previously completed. Students should be enrolled
on their dissertation under faculty supervision.
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