Phase II (pages 17-22 in 2013 Handbook) In Phase II of the Ed.D. program all students are required to pass a comprehensive exam that is based on the core courses. Students will take the exam when all the required courses in phase I are completed. Students must pass all parts of the exam before beginning Phase III - the Dissertation Phase and before registering for EDL 770 Administrative Apprenticeship and EDL 755 Dissertation Proposal. Typically the Comprehensive Exam is scheduled during Semester Six (Year 2, Summer). Re-examination will be scheduled by the Program Director one time per term. Comprehensive Exam All doctoral students must take the comprehensive examination administered by the doctoral program. Purposet The purpose of the examination is for faculty to assess and for the student to demonstrate the student’s capacity for conducting doctoral research based on evidence of writing skills, critical thinking content knowledge and other measures that the Graduate Council and faculty members view as important to a successful doctoral candidate. AGC Members Articulation of the Purpose: o Assure the student and the program that the student is ready to do dissertation research. He/she has research skills, writing skills, information literacy skills, is able to research a topic and write about it coherently at the doctoral level. o Identify readiness to write, gaps in skills o Demonstrate evidence of foundational content o Articulate their expertise and ability to communicate professionally. o Show depth of knowledge in a particular area of study e.g. student affairs o Show breadth of knowledge of the discipline o Demonstrate shift from consumer of knowledge to producer of knowledge Phase II Description from 2013 Handbook 1 o Respond/Answer question from their future peers about the field o Purpose is to move student forward on their dissertation research o To help students have the experience of feeling like “I know this, I know a lot, I have knowledge and expertise” Description/Form, Administration & Due Dates The comprehensive exam will have 4 parts: The Doctoral Study Committee will administer two parts of the exam: the literature review and the oral exam. 1. A Literature Review due May 1 to the Doctoral Study Committee on a topic related to the student’s area of study or dissertation topic. The topic will be discussed, approved and evaluated by the committee. 2. An Oral Exam on the topic examined in the literature review, taking approximately one hour, will be scheduled before May 30 with the Doctoral Study Committee. The chair will excuse the student to confer and deliver a decision on the same day. A one page written evaluation and recommendation to pass, fail, or revise & resubmit will be sent to the Director of the program. The Director of the Ed.D. program will administer the two-question essay portion of the exam. The Director will appoint 2 or 3 people to write and evaluate the essay portion of the exam. The members of the exam writing and evaluation committee should be familiar with the key topics of the core courses. The exam will either be a case or global essay questions that relate to the content of the core courses. Students must be registered for the semester in which the examination is taken. 3. A Written Essay, due May 10 at 11:55 pm to the Program Director on topic related to Higher Education Leadership. 4. A Written Essay, due May 10 at 11:55pm to the Program Director on a topic related to Research Methodology (not data collection methods, but approaches such as ethnography, phenomenology, narrative, etc.) Procedures for the conduct of the Literature Review and Oral Examination The oral exam is an opportunity for the student to demonstrate knowledge, identify gaps in the literature, and discuss how the literature review prepares them for the design of their dissertation research. A 3,000-4,500 word (10-15 pages, not counting references) limit on the literature review will be enforced. Phase II Description from 2013 Handbook 2 Steps for Literature Review portion of the Comprehensive Examination include the following: 1. Submission of the Literature Review topic. By March 1, the doctoral student must submit to the Doctoral Study Committee members a written proposal that identifies the topic to be examined and a list of readings associated. Sample questions may be included in the proposal. 2. Review. By March 10, the student’s Chair and committee members review the proposal and accept, reject or modify the proposal to the satisfaction of all committee members. In altering the proposal, the committee members may delete, supplement or propose a new area of study. 3. Student Reaction: The student must be given the opportunity to react to the committee’s recommendations. Students must submit their reaction to the committee by March 20. If not acceptable, the student should arrange a meeting with the committee to propose and negotiate changes until there is a mutual agreement. 4. Approval of the Literature Review question: By April 1, the student and the committee will have an agreed upon topic and question to guide the literature review. 5. Deadline: The literature review must be completed and submitted to the committee members by May 1. 6. Evaluation: The literature review is read and evaluated by all three committee members. The doctoral program rubric for writing and critical thinking will be used in addition to other criteria set by the committee. The results should be sent to the chair within two weeks, by May 15. The chair compiles the feedback and sends it to the student. The student should be clear on the committee’s assessment of areas of strength and weakness in the literature review. The committee chair is encouraged to coach the student based on committee feedback prior to the oral examination. 7. Oral Examination: The oral examination must be scheduled with the Doctoral Study Committee and completed before May 30. The student will schedule a mutually agreeable meeting time. The examination will take approximately 1 hour. Our expectation is that this meeting will take place face to face with the doctoral student. In extenuating circumstances Phase II Description from 2013 Handbook 3 the chair and the doctoral candidate can meet face to face and bring in the other committee member(s) electronically. All committee members must participate in the oral examination. A rubric will be developed to evaluate the oral examination. Evaluation of the Literature Review & Oral Examination At the end of the oral examination, the chair will excuse the student to confer with the other committee members and deliver a decision on the same day. Decision options are: Pass, Revise & Resubmit, and Fail. A one page written evaluation and recommendation to Pass, Fail, or Revise & Resubmit will be sent to the Director of the program. Doctoral students who need to “Revise & Resubmit” should meet with the chair and/or committee immediately to develop a clear plan for revision including a written, specific timeline. Students who fail will need to schedule an appointment with the program Director. A copy of the literature review and the committee’s one page evaluation and recommendation will be placed in the student’s file. Procedures for the Essay portion of the Comprehensive Exam The Comprehensive Examination Essay questions are posted by April 1 of each calendar year. The Comprehensive Exam Essays will be open book examinations and students will have at least one month to complete two essays at the location of their choice with full access to references resources. A 3,000-4,500 word (1015 pages, not counting references) limit on each paper will be enforced. It is important for the doctoral candidate to be articulate, clear, and succinct. Students will be responsible for the inclusion of key topics from the core courses. Students will want to demonstrate mastery of the knowledge of both theory and practice in educational leadership and specifically in their particular area of study; knowledge and competency essential for conducting scholarly, scientific inquiry into the field of educational leadership; and the ability to communicate the knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviors in written and oral forms. A study group to prepare for the exam is highly recommended. Evaluation of the Comprehensive Exams The doctoral program rubric for writing and critical thinking is used. The exam essay writing and evaluation committee designs any additional rubrics for the exam. The ranges to rate performance are: Pass, Revise & Resubmit, and Fail. Phase II Description from 2013 Handbook 4 Specific performance characteristics are arranged in levels indicating the degree to which a specific criterion has been met. The rubric is shared with students prior to the exam. Each part (4) of the exam is evaluated by more than one reviewer. Each exam receives one of three scores: Pass, Fail or Revise & Re-submit. Essay reviewers are expected to evaluate essays within two weeks and send feedback with their score: Pass, Fail or Revise & Re-submit to the Director. The Director compiles the feedback and communicate the results to the student. Policies Students who do not meet the deadline for one or more parts of the exam may sign up to take the exam in the following term. Students register for EXM 700. Students may re-take the exam one time. Students who do not pass on the second try will not move to Phase III- the Dissertation Phase and will be dismissed from the program. Students who fail one or more parts of the exam may sign up to re-take the exam in the following term. Students do not have to re-take parts of the exam they passed. Re-examination will be scheduled by the Program Director or the Committee Chair once in each term. Students are expected to re-take the exam in the next term, but may petition for taking the exam in a different term. Students must complete Phase II - the comprehensive exam within one calendar year of completing the course requirements for Phase I. Approximate Timeline – The student and committee members share responsibility for establishing clear expectations including the timeline. March 1 Submission: Student submits literature review topic, question and references to Committee March 10 Review: Committee members review the literature review proposal and accept, reject or modify March 20 Student Reaction: Student reacts to Committee review of literature review proposal Phase II Description from 2013 Handbook 5 April 1 Approval: Student and Committee come to consensus and identify the approved literature review question. Any Evaluation Rubrics in addition to Writing & Critical Thinking Rubric are posted. Two Essay Questions are posted by this date. Any Evaluation Rubrics in addition to Writing & Critical Thinking Rubric are posted. Early April Study Period begins for Comprehensive Exam May 1* Deadline for Student to Submit Literature Review to Doctoral Committee Set tentative date for Oral Exam May 10 11:55pm Deadline for Student to Post Comprehensive Exam Essays 1 and 2 May 15 Recommended two week deadline for feedback on Literature Review May 25 Recommended two week deadline for feedback on 2 Essays May 30* Deadline for Committee Chair to Report to the Director on the results of the Oral Exam * Note: Early decision-making about the topic and question guiding the literature review and submission of the literature review will allow more time for possible revision prior to the oral examination. Phase II Description from 2013 Handbook 6