EdD in Educational Leadership and Management
Drexel University School of Education
Global forces, emerging technologies, and federal mandates are just a few of the challenges that are transforming education entities into increasingly complex organizations that require exceptional leadership.
Drexel University's Doctorate of Education (EdD) degree program in Educational Leadership and Management stands alone as a rigorous, accelerated part-time doctoral of education program that produces leaders with the skills and knowledge to create educational reform. Through collaborative discourse, action research, and the latest learning technologies, students acquire a facility in finance, leadership, management, creativity, and strategic thinking within the context of their individual education entity, university, and state.
Drexel's EdD program is steeped in research and is a proud R1 Doctoral University by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, the highest level of classification for research activity.
What is an EdD Degree?
Drexel’s Doctorate in Education (EdD) degree prepares professionals for leadership positions in a wide variety of educational environments and addresses the challenges faced by today's schools and organizations. The program’s scholarly platform is based on a philosophy that diverse individuals develop transformational leadership skills appropriate for success in diverse, mainstream educational or business environments.
The EdD Program offers a number of distinctive benefits:
- Students learn in cohorts, exchanging ideas, challenging each other, and networking.
- Students choose from a list of concentrations to suit their career interests.
- The rigorous curriculum prepares students for leadership in a variety of organizations in public, private, and business environments.
- Personalized academic and career advisement helps students identify and work towards their goals.
- Students have access to the program’s customized portal, which includes online resources and opportunities to connect with other students for academic discourse and social networking.
- Students graduate prepared to meet the challenges of diverse educational environments and ready to serve in a variety of educational leadership roles.
Within the comparative field of part-time doctoral study, Drexel's EdD degree program offers an unrivaled path to career advancement in the field of education. It is ideal for principals, school superintendents, K-12 and higher education administrators, and directors as well as community-based, educational organizers who have already completed a master's degree and seek an academic credential from one of the nation's leading providers of education.
Education Doctorate Program Options
Drexel’s EdD in Educational Management and Leadership program is offered through a number of delivery methods to help accommodate a flexible class schedule for working professionals or career changers.
The accelerated three-year, part-time doctoral program delivery option allows students to have a flexible schedule while working in their respective field. Drexel University also offers an extended five-year, part-time doctoral program delivery option, which enables students to take 1 course per term, which can help increase the affordability and tuition reimbursement opportunities for students and their employers.
The EdD in Educational Leadership and Management degree program is offered as the following:
Online EdD Program
We understand that the lives of our students can be quite busy. That is why we offer a flexible, part-time online EdD program with a 3-year and 5-year plan of study. In the three year program, students take two courses per term. In the five year program, students take one course per term. Students learn online together in cohorts of up to 20 students. At no time will a student ever need to come to campus.
Drexel University has been offering online courses for doctoral students since 1996, bringing its recognized faculty and curricula to a worldwide student body. Today, Drexel offers over 100 online degrees and online certificate programs for adults. Drexel online programs offer the very same faculty, curriculum, and degree as Drexel's distinguished on-campus programs.
EdD Executive Weekend Hybrid Format
The EdD program is also taught in an "executive weekend" in-class/online format, with classroom sessions held on Friday (6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.)/ Saturday (8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.) three times per quarter. Students enroll in the EdD in cohorts taking courses together allowing for interaction and networking among peers and local leaders. Cohorts contain no more than 20 students at a time.
The executive hybrid EdD program format is offered at Drexel University's Main Campus in Philadelphia, PA and in Washington, DC. through an agreement with James Madison University's DC Center located at 1400 16th st. NW, Suite 320 Washington, DC 20036
Want to learn more about our courses and concentrations? Download our flyer!
EdD Program Curriculum and Concentrations
The goal of Drexel's unique EdD program in Educational Leadership and Management is designed to generate dynamic leaders with in-depth knowledge and expertise of the complex challenges that face school districts, colleges and universities, foundations, and government agencies.
Students complete study within their area of specialization in preparation for their required research courses prior to the dissertation phase of study.
EdD Degree Program Concentrations
The Education Doctorate (EdD) program is based on the Drexel philosophy that theory springs from practice. Students are encouraged to challenge their own thinking within a group and venture beyond problem solving to a unique model of individual leadership that will become a lifelong pattern of professional communication and growth.
Students may choose from the following EdD concentrations:
Athletic Administration Doctoral Concentration
The Athletic Administration EdD concentration is designed to meet the demands for strong and informed leadership in athletic departments at the K-12 and college and university levels. The program focuses on the growing depth and breadth of the industry including legal and ethical considerations, the need for external funding sources, and the major issues that confront sport domestically and globally.
Creativity & Innovation Doctoral Concentration
The Creativity & Innovation concentration provides program participants with a deep foundation and contextual background in the field of creativity to address the needs of education and industry. Collaborative creative leadership involved in innovation management is a focus where the vital role of creative strengths in fueling new bottom-line innovations is highlighted. Creativity serves as the stimulus to enhance educational and corporate innovations.
Educational Administration Doctoral Concentration (with Pennsylvania Superintendent Letter of Eligibility)
Students are challenged to develop interdisciplinary models of curricula and teaching strategies, and examine the impact on education of major social issues such as poverty, domestic violence, and drug abuse. An experiential component takes the student into various central office positions for a year-long internship.
Education Policy Doctoral Concentration
The Educational Policy concentration combines academics with Drexel University's tradition of applied learning. Students engage with policies and policy issues impacting education, those working in it, and those served by it. Policy studies are contextualized within the range of jurisdictional entities from local to national and international settings. Heavy emphasis is placed upon the roles of ethics and ethical decision-making in past and future policy-making.
Global & International Education Doctoral Concentration
The Global and International Education (GIE) concentration is designed for individuals interested in learning about the complex economic, political, cultural, and social structures that shape learning in different parts of the world. Coursework is centered on the analysis of international and comparative education and builds through the study of how culture, society, politics, and economics relate to education. Addresses how the role of state and market forces impact K-12, higher education, government and education special interests abroad.
Higher Education Doctoral Concentration
This path of study covers the historical growth and advancement of colleges and universities in the U.S., including the roles of school boards, community organizations, state boards of education, state government agencies, special interest groups, professional organizations, and unions. Courses examine strategies of success through an understanding of the career patterns of faculty, deans, vice presidents, provosts, and presidents and how decision-making and
change are implemented. Within this framework, coursework explores the impact of variables such as the law, politics, and power structures at an educational institution.
Human Resource Development Doctoral Concentration
The Adult Education and Organization Development concentration is designed to produce 21st century leaders with the competencies and capabilities to facilitate workplace learning, performance and change in any organizational setting.
Learning Technologies Doctoral Concentration
The Learning Technologies concentration is designed for individuals interested in leading change through meaningful technology integration in either the business or school environments. The five concentration courses focus on areas in Instructional Design, Performance Support, Virtual communities, Learning in Participatory Culture and E-Learning Leadership. Through this coursework, students learn how to design and incorporate different learning technology platforms into school curriculum and business training settings. Develop learning technology leaders with the capacity to solve learning and performance problems collaboratively through a transformational model of change.
Nursing Education
There is a nationwide shortage of nursing faculty. The Nursing Education concentration prepares registered nurses to assume faculty positions while providing them with a robust interdisciplinary education between Drexel's School of Education and the College of Nursing and Health Professions. Please note: students who wish to pursue this concentration must have an RN license.
Special Education Leadership Doctoral Concentration
Students are prepared to take on supervisory roles within the education system after gaining the unique leadership knowledge and skills needed to successfully direct programs within special education. Graduates are equipped with the advanced skills, knowledge, and competencies to head programs that meet the needs of students at risk for and with disabilities in a variety of environments.
For full EdD program course descriptions, please see the Drexel University Course Catalog.
How to Apply to the Education Doctorate Program
There are two ways to apply to the EdD in Educational Leadership and Management program:
We encourage students to visit the School of Education's EdD Admissions page to ensure they are aware of all the requirements for admission to the program.