Giftedness, Creativity and Talent Development

Doctoral Program

Overview

The Doctor of Philosophy program was created for outstanding educators who exhibit unusual ability and talent. Applications to the program are evaluated on the basis of their past performance in undergraduate and graduate education, experience, test scores, and career goals. The Doctor of Philosophy program is intended for persons who wish to become researchers, state department consultants, authors, university professors, and creative contributors in the field of education of the gifted and talented and enrichment education. Students accepted into this program are continually involved in research and service projects that focus on problem finding and creative problem solving. Each student’s advisor assumes the role of mentor and facilitates the development of professional skills associated with creative productivity within the university community.

Most doctoral students complete a residency of approximately three years. The doctoral program cannot be completed through summer residency only. Individual programs of study vary and are determined by personal interests, goals, and research ideas. Doctoral students ordinarily include in their plan of study a sequence of courses in research design. These courses help to provide the skills necessary for advanced level research and the preparation of a doctoral dissertation.

Doctoral students are expected to design and complete a dissertation that will be a significant contribution to the body of knowledge relating to this field of special education. Encouragement is given to explore possible dissertation topics early in the program and to integrate as much as possible the course work, internship and teaching experiences, and research responsibilities of the doctoral students.

For more information, please see other pages on this site and consult the Program Handbook.