Doctor of Education with a Major in Secondary and Middle Grades Education

The Ed.D. with a major in Secondary and Middle Grades Education is designed for candidates who possess a teaching certificate and hold a specialist’s degree in a Georgia Professional Standards Commission recognized area of certification.

The program of study provides skills necessary to integrate theory and practice by examination of local and global education issues; theory-based curriculum development; and equitable, democratic, humane, and socially just theories of education. Guided electives and cognate serve to deepen expertise in a chosen area of study. Through this program, candidates develop the knowledge, skills and dispositions to serve as learner-centered specialists engaging in scholarly inquiry and research.

The Ed.S. with a major in Secondary and Middle Grades Education is fully embedded in the Ed.D. program. Those students who complete the Ed.S. with a major in Secondary and Middle Grades Education at Kennesaw State may apply their entire program of study to the Ed.D.

To complete the program, candidates take 15 credit hours in Education and Research Core courses; 36 credit hours in Major Areas 1 and 2, teaching field pedagogy and content courses; 6 credit hours in guided electives/cognate; and 9 credit hours in dissertation.

The following are program-specific requirements beyond the general Graduate Admissions requirements. To be considered for admission to this program, the following application materials must be submitted to the KSU Graduate Admissions Office:

• An earned Specialist’s degree in professional education or a related field.

• A clear and renewable Georgia Teaching Certificate or departmentally approved equivalent.

• At least, three years of professional teaching or administrative experience or both in P-12 education (current full-time employment as a professional educator is preferred).

• Research Response & Analysis writing sample. The applicant will select from two recent research articles in their area of content expertise and provide a 3-5 page written response to the article. 

Admission Criteria for Unique Cases

Currently there are no exceptions to the admission requirements.

Transfer Credit

SMGE Graduate Bridge: candidates who complete their M.Ed. in SMGE at KSU may apply up to 9 credit hours from the M.Ed. (a 36 credit-hour program) to their Ed.D. (a 66 credit-hour program). Students who have completed their Ed.S. at another institution will be eligible to have their transcripts analyzed and can possibly receive up to 25% of transfer credit apply toward their Ed.D.

The Doctor of Education with a Major in Secondary and Middle Grades Education program leads to Professional Licensure.

Not all programs are available to residents in all states. Please check the institution's State Authorization and Professional Licensure website(s) to ensure you reside in an authorized state.

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Georgia Professional Standards Commission