The degrees of Master of Education and Doctor of Philosophy are offered in Education.

The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education is offered to qualified candidates, normally by full-time study. The General Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies of Memorial University of Newfoundland outlined in the current Calendar, and the Degree Regulations of the Faculty of Education outlined below will apply.

General qualifications for admission to the Ph.D. Programs at Memorial University of Newfoundland are set out in the University Calendar under School of Graduate Studies, General Regulation Qualifications for Admission, Ph.D. Program.

In addition, the following admission requirements apply:

1. an 'A' standing in a Master's Degree in Education or in an equivalent Master's Degree from an accredited university;

2. evidence of scholarly work, such as a master's thesis, directed research project, or qualifying research paper;

3. normally, completion of two years of professional experience in an educational setting.

Each candidate will have a supervisory committee comprised of a minimum of three members, at least two of whom shall be members of the Faculty of Education. The thesis Supervisor shall be a faculty member in the Faculty of Education, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

1. Courses

   1. Students are required to successfully complete two courses on the doctoral program.

      Education 7001 - Doctoral Seminar in Education: Area of Specialization

      Education 7002 - Advanced Educational Research

   2. Based on a consideration of educational background and research interest, students may be required to complete (or have completed at the masters level) as many as two (2) additional courses in research related to their program focus and specialty.

   3. Normally, no more than four courses may be undertaken on a candidate's program.

   4. Education 7003-30 - Special Topics (offered as required)

2. Comprehensive Examination

   The candidate shall undertake a written and an oral comprehensive examination, which will follow General Regulation Comprehensive Examinations, Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination which sets out the procedures for the comprehensive examination.

   1. A candidate in a Ph.D. program in Education shall normally take the written Comprehensive Examination prior to the seventh semester of the program. The candidate will have completed required courses prior to taking the Comprehensive Examination. In preparation for the Comprehensive Examination, the doctoral candidate, with the guidance of the candidate's Supervisor, will undertake study of the sub-disciplines/areas of concentration identified by the candidate and supervisory committee and approved by the Doctoral Committee. Normally, these will include the candidate's area of concentration and two additional sub-disciplines/areas of concentration.

   2. Such study of sub-disciplines will normally include but not be limited to developing a reading list of important historical and current publications within the sub-disciplines, identifying emerging research emphases within the sub-disciplines, and writing scholarly review papers of these publications.

   3. In preparation for the written comprehensive examination, the doctoral candidate and the supervisory committee will agree on the topics to be examined. The examination will be written over a two day period.

   4. Normally, the oral comprehensive examination will occur within six weeks of the written examination, which if judged to be successful by the Comprehensive Examination Committee, will form the basis of an oral comprehensive examination.

   5. The procedure for scheduling the Comprehensive Examination shall be initiated by the candidate's Supervisor who will notify, in writing, the Dean of Education of the candidate's readiness. The date of both the written examination and the oral examination will be determined by the Dean of Education. The candidate will receive a written notice of the scheduled date for both examinations from the Dean of Education.

   6. The Comprehensive Examination Committee shall be appointed by the Dean of Graduate Studies in accordance with School of Graduate Studies General Regulation Comprehensive Examination, Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination on the recommendation of the Dean, Faculty of Education. There will be six members of the Comprehensive Examination Committee as follows:

      • Dean of Education or delegate (Chair)
      • Chair of the Doctoral Committee of the Faculty Council of Education
      • Candidate's Supervisor
      • Second member of candidate's supervisory committee
      • Dean of School of Graduate Studies or delegate (non-voting)
      • Member of the Faculty of Education or educational community selected by the Dean of Education.

      In the event that the Chair of the Doctoral Committee is the candidate's Supervisor, the Dean of Education shall appoint an additional member.

3. Ph.D. Thesis Regulations

   1. The candidate must submit a thesis proposal based on his/her own research interest to all members of the Supervisory Committee for critical evaluation. Normally, the proposal must be approved prior to the eighth semester of the program. The Chairperson of the Supervisory Committee will inform the candidate within one month of its acceptance, rejection or acceptance with recommended changes.

   2. If the proposal is not acceptable, the candidate will normally be permitted a second attempt. The revised proposal must be submitted and deemed acceptable by the Supervisory Committee within a semester. Failure to resubmit within this time period will lead to termination of the candidate's program.

   3. The thesis shall give evidence of the candidate's ability to carry out independent and original research, develop the necessary theoretical and methodological framework and analyses, and present the findings in a scholarly manner.

   4. Each candidate will be required to present a seminar on her/his thesis research to the Faculty.

   5. Ph.D. program will conclude with the examination and oral defence of the completed thesis in accordance with the appropriate sections of the General Regulation Theses and Reports, Evaluation of Ph.D. Theses governing the School of Graduate Studies.

• 7001 Doctoral Seminar in Education: Area of Specialization
• 7002 Advanced Educational Research
• 7003-30 Special Topics