Rossier -- Global Executive Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) Program

This Global Executive Ed.D. program prepares leaders to achieve large-scale improvements across educational systems through strategic use of policy, innovative practice and assessment. The program stresses the examination of educational solutions from around the world as participants work with their own local challenges.

The program is designed to increase students' capacity to:

Understand the context in which educational systems operate, including how systems define the purposes of education, how education systems have historically functioned, and the trends shaping educational policy and practice around the world;

Measure where an educational institution or system is and where it needs to be, by asking the right questions about performance, and knowing how to measure organizational and educational effectiveness;

Utilize a deep understanding of how people of all ages learn, meaning the research-based, technical aspects of learning, the application of that research to managing organizations, and the consequences of policy on learning outcomes; and

Mobilize human, fiscal, physical and technological resources to facilitate change.

Curriculum

The curriculum is comprised of four concurrent sequences of courses, each of which focuses on a critical aspect of educational leadership. The sequences are:

• Understanding complexity: Globalization and trans-cultural capacity

• Fostering creativity and innovation in decision-making

• Problem solving

• Policy making, analysis and implementation

Building on the foundation established by coursework, all students complete a Dissertation of Practice, which researches, diagnoses, and develop recommendations for a field-based educational problem. The problem may be one the student brings from his or her region, or may be one provided by one of the program's partner organizations.

The Dissertation of Practice results in an original and unique work of scholarship from each student, which must address an essential aspect of the topic and apply research and scholarship to clarify or solve a problem. The Dissertation of Practice in closely integrated into the coursework throughout the program to streamline completion of the degree.