Program Objectives

The Doctoral Degree in Curriculum and Instruction has been designed to prepare students to teach in teacher education programs across the country in college and university settings. Progress through the degree provides students with opportunities to develop their professional knowledge and skills in the areas of research, teaching, and service.

The graduate faculty is committed to offering multiple avenues for students to reach their goals and expectations for advanced study in teaching, learning, and teacher education. The program takes an integrated approach to pre-service teacher education. The study of the theoretical underpinnings of teacher education are carefully examined in the context of practical experiences in teacher education research, college teaching, and professional service.

The program is designed to be specifically tailored to each doctoral student’s area of research interest while providing cutting edge knowledge and skills in the research and theory. The program is structured to be completed in 3 to 4 years and attempts to provide tuition support for residential doctoral students.

Program of Study

Core Content ~ 16 Credits

Research (10 Credits)

• EDCI 500 Seminar: Intro to Research/Program
• EDCI 502 Educational Statistics II
• EDCI 506 Applied Educational Research
• EDCI 507 Qualitative Ed Research
• EDCI 607 Quantitative Ed Research
• Research Electives appropriate to area of specialization & approved by Graduate Advisor

C&I Core (3 Credits; choose from the following)

• EDCI 508 Advanced Educational Psychology
• EDCI 532 General School Curriculum
• EDCI 541 History & Philosophy of Education
• EDCI 544 Philosophical Issues in Education
• Curriculum & Instruction Electives appropriate to area of specialization & approved by Graduate Advisor

Internships/Apprenticeships (3 Credits; choose 3 of the following)

• EDCI 576 Internship - Teaching
• EDCI 576 Internship - Supervision
• EDCI 576 Internship - Research
• EDCI 570 Independent Study

Concentration ~ 15 credits

• Courses selected appropriate to area of specialization & approved by Graduate Committee

Concentration ~ 15 credits

• EDCI 690 Doctoral Thesis

Admissions Procedures

The Ed.D. in Curriculum & Instruction has been carefully designed to prepare students to teach in teacher education programs across the country in college and university settings. Progress through the degree provides students with opportunities to develop their professional knowledge and skills in the areas of research, teaching, and service.

Application Form Submitted to the Graduate School
The Montana State University online graduate application form can be found at www.montana.edu/wwwdg/apply.shtml. A nonrefundable $50 application fee must accompany the online application. The application fee may be paid online using a debit card, credit card, or a personal check from a financial institution in the United States. Applications will not be processed without receipt of the application fee.

Application Materials Submitted to the Department of Education
The following supporting materials are required to complete the application package and should be either e-mailed as attachments to edgrad@montana.edu or mailed to:
Department of Education
215 Reid Hall
Montana State University
Bozeman, MT 59717-2880

VIEW REQUIRED APPLICATION MATERIALS FOR Ed.D. IN C&I

Admission Process
Complete applications will be reviewed and rated by members of the Graduate Admissions Committee who then convene to make final admission decisions. Once applicants are accepted, their applications will be forwarded to the Graduate School for final administrative processing.

All PDF files require the most current version of Adobe Reader to view. Other documents can be read using Microsoft Office.

Comprehensive Exams

As Ed.D. students in the C&I option approach the end of their coursework (30 credits completed), and prior to the Dissertation proposal meeting, they will contact their Committee chair to discuss the content and format of the Written and Oral Comprehensive Examinations.

The Written Comprehensive Examination will be composed of one question from each of three primary areas: Educational Foundations (e.g., synthesis of theoretical and empirical literature regarding various aspects of teaching and learning), Educational Research (demonstration of mastery of aspects of both qualitative and quantitative projects such as sampling, validity, reliability, data analysis) and the student’s major area of study (e.g., methods of science education for preservice teachers). Students who are completing a minor (e.g., History) will answer one additional question in their minor area.

The Committee Chair will discuss the process with Committee members and based upon the members’ area of expertise, designate one member to compose an appropriate question for each of the areas outlined above. The members will submit their questions to the Chair who will compile them and give them to the student. The Written Comprehensive Examination will be structured as a written take-home exam that is to be completed over the subsequent 1 to 2 week period. Students are required to complete the exam using APA format.

The completed Written Examination will be submitted to the Committee Chair and copies will be distributed to the entire doctoral committee for evaluation. Committee members will have two weeks to read and evaluate the content and written competency of the student’s responses. At the end of the two week period, the committee will meet for a 2 hour Oral Comprehensive Examination. The chair will facilitate the meeting and determine the order of questioning. The faculty member responsible for writing the question will lead the clarification of that question. Committee members can ask follow up with questions and clarification for all areas.

At the completion of the questioning and in the absence of the student, the entire committee will discuss their evaluation of the outcome of the examination. The Chair will work with the Committee to make a determination regarding passing or failing both the Written and Comprehensive components of the Examination.