Education Specialist

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The Education Specialist degree is a planned 30-credit (minimum) post-master’s program in which candidates are expected to attain a broad and systematic understanding of professional education, a definitive knowledge of a particular field of specialization, and an ability to integrate and apply theoretical concepts of education in an actual educational context. This program is designed for the accomplished, experienced practitioner with specific professional aspirations. It is not designed for those who wish to pursue a research emphasis as a prelude to doctoral study. The Ed.S. degree may be pursued in the following areas:

Administration and Supervision

Counselor Education

Curriculum and Instruction

Gifted Education

English Education

Instructional Technology

Reading Education

Special Education

Program Requirements

To earn an Education Specialist degree, the following minimum requirements must be met:

Of the 30 credits , 24 must be taken on Grounds after admission to the program. At least 60 credits of graduate work must be completed prior to the awarding of the Ed.S. degree. For programs that combine the M.Ed./Ed.S. requirements, and those based on a master’s degree of more than 30 credits, exceptions may be filed with the associate dean.
All program requirements for the degree, as established by the individual department and program area, must be met.
The student must pass a comprehensive written examination as determined by the program area. In some program areas a project or thesis replaces this requirement.
No requirements, including transferred credit, completed more than eight years before the Ed.S. is to be awarded may be credited toward that degree. Exceptions to this rule must be approved by the advisor, the department chair, and the dean, and are granted only when some emergency, such as illness, interrupts the student’s work. In such cases, the student may be required to validate out-of-date work by examination.