Help lead in higher education
As the challenges facing the American higher education system continue to mount, there’s a growing need for visionary leaders who can address the issues facing educators and find innovative solutions that will benefit current and future learners.
The Doctor of Education in Higher Education Leadership from Regis College can prepare you to take on such a role. Blending online coursework with on-campus Saturday classes, this program is designed to equip you with the skills to have a positive impact.
Overview
Build your skill set
Our comprehensive program is designed to help you qualify for leadership roles in a wide range of secondary and higher education settings, including teaching, administration, and finance.
You can develop the skills to collect and analyze data, consume relevant reference material, conduct learning sessions, and create positive learning communities. When you graduate, you can be better prepared to apply what you’ve learned to effect change in the secondary and higher education landscape.
Overview
Grow as a scholar-practitioner
At Regis, our EdD program is grounded in transforming theory into practice, and this is reflected throughout the curriculum.
As a student, you will consider authentic problems of practice and design, implement possible solutions, and report findings so that others may benefit from their experiences. We designed our program to help you build practical and theoretical knowledge as you prepare to meet challenges of modern-day educational leadership and address a range of issues throughout the field.
Overview
A practical dissertation
To cap off your doctoral experience with Regis, you will complete a dissertation in practice project that allows you to take an in-depth look at a critical issue in higher education and share your work with the higher education community.
This project is designed to give you the opportunity to choose a topic relevant to your career and your interests in higher education, then create new research regarding higher education leadership that will be put into practice immediately.
Overview
Why choose Regis College?
- Benefit from small cohorts and dedicated student support.
- Get support from a program with a 96% student completion rate.
- Address real-world challenges through your dissertation in practice.
- Learn in a hybrid format designed for working professionals.
- Graduate in as few as 36 months.
- Earn your doctorate from an institution regionally accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.
Strong support and mentoring
When you choose Regis, you can benefit from dedicated faculty who are invested in your success and your continued ability to teach in higher education. That means they are available to provide individual guidance in small classes sizes to help you get the most out of your learning experience.
Our Doctor of Education program utilizes the Carnegie Project on the EdD (CPED) format, which is based on creating a small, innovative, and supportive learning cohort as our model.
Program Details
Build real educational skills
Instructors use a hands-on learning approach to encourage intellectual growth, ethical leadership skills, and a scholar-practitioner perspective on resolving organizational issues. Combined with case studies and a comprehensive dissertation on a topic of your choice, you can develop skills to have a real impact in today’s higher ed landscape.
The strong faculty mentoring that each student receives has helped lead to a 96% completion rate in the program, compared to a 50% national average.
Program Details
Learn around your schedule
We built our EdD in Higher Ed Leadership with dedicated educators like you in mind. So we utilize a hybrid learning model with classes that meet one Saturday per month with online work between in-person class sessions. Summer courses are also offered in a hybrid model.
This format blends the best of distance and on-campus learning. You can complete the majority of coursework when it’s most convenient for you, while also benefiting from in-person interaction with your classmates and instructors.
Program Details
A practice-based dissertation
We’re here to help you build skills that are relevant to your career. This approach is reflected both through your coursework and in your dissertation in practice.
Unlike a traditional dissertation, a dissertation in practice allows you to take an in-depth look at a critical issue in higher education and share your work with the community. This project is designed for you to create new research that can be put into practice immediately and influence positive change in higher education.
Program Details
Dissertation components
The dissertation in practice includes:
- Problem identification and literature review
- Methods and data collection
- Reporting conclusions
Get continuous dissertation in practice support and guidance—from professors and colleagues alike. During the project, you will also be provided with a primary advisor and dissertation in practice committee to ensure your project is as effective as possible in leading change
Program Details
Prepare for diverse opportunities
When you earn your EdD in Higher Education Leadership from Regis, you can build the skills to become better prepared to pursue a wide range of roles. Recent graduates and current students are currently working in higher education leadership positions like:
- Academic and student affairs
- Enrollment management
- Athletics administration
- Institutional research and strategic initiatives
- College faculty
Gain the skills to enhance your impact in education
Our EdD in Higher Education Leadership consists of 17 courses, totaling 51 credit hours, and can be completed in as few as 36 months. Courses are focused on a mix of theory, research, and dissertation.
Note: This program is designed to be completed in three years. Students who do not complete the program in three years must take ED 999 EdD DiP and Capstone Continuation Course for each additional semester past the three-year timeframe.
ED 801 Authentic Leadership
This course will examine higher education leadership and ethical issues that colleges and universities face in the twenty-first century. Students will explore theory in order to objectively assess current leadership practices, systems theory, culture, diversity and change processes as they relate to individuals and higher education institutions.
Note: ED 801 includes an optional Global Learning Exchange trip to Dublin, Ireland.
ED 802 Research I
In this introductory research course, students will acquire to become consumers of educational research through reading, understanding, and critically thinking about educational issues. This course provides students with an introduction to qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches to research as well as the opportunity to identify and discuss a problem within higher education around which they will design a research proposal.
ED 803 Organizational Theory
In this course, students will explore organizational theory, as well as strategies to lead change in higher education. Areas of focus will include organizational structure and management, group dynamics, strategic planning, current issues in leadership, executive board relations and understanding of oneself as a leader. Through problem-based learning, students will engage in a semester long consulting project in which they will conduct a comprehensive educational program evaluation and propose innovative solutions.
ED 804 Research II
This research course provides an overview of research design and analysis in social and behavioral research. Emphasis is placed on understanding the process of social and educational research in field settings, developing data collection tools, producing high-quality quantitative and qualitative data, and descriptive analysis. The course content and assignments build upon readings and themes addressed in ED 802.
ED 805 Higher Education: Past, Present, and Future Context
In this course students will examine the history, accreditation, current issues and trends, and the future of higher education. Through examining the consistently changing landscape of higher education, students will explore issues such as access, retention, inclusion, engagement, and success.
ED 806 Research III
This course will precede the writing of chapter three in ED 902. Focusing on quantitative skills from applied statistical analysis, emphasis is placed on inferential methods acknowledging, understanding, and applying the role of uncertainty in data analysis used for testing hypotheses the researcher formulates.
ED 807 Ed Talks: Dissertation to Publication and Post-Doctoral Success
This course is a continuation of ED 801. Students will know and apply theory in order to objectively assess current leadership practices, systems theory, culture, diversity and change processes as they relate to individuals and higher education institutions. Students will leave this thought-provoking course thinking about what leadership in higher education should look like, feel like, and sound like.
ED 808 Dissertation in Practice II: Literature Review
This course is the development of Chapter 2 (Literature Review) of the DiP and will focus on the analysis of literature as the basis for research to make seminal contributions in the context of applied research.
ED 809 Dissertation in Practice I: Proposal
This course is the development of Chapter 1 (Proposal and Introduction) of the DiP which is a student centered, independent research proposal that requires the comprehensive working-knowledge of all research courses in this culminating and integrative experience. In this first DiP course, students will identify and discuss a problem in higher education leadership, conduct a literature review, and plan a research design. Students will present their research proposal for their capstone project at the end of the course and, with committee approval, will submit materials to the Institutional Review Board (IRB).
ED 811 Advanced Scholarly Writing
This course is designed to familiarize doctoral students with the demands of scholarly writing, including composition and organizational skills necessary for completion of a dissertation and submission of articles for publication. Discussion of differing parameters of writing assignments, common writing errors, and structural and editing strategies will be discussed. This intensive analysis of the principles of excellent academic writing will prepare students for a range of projects including research papers, conference proposals, book chapters, technical reports, and dissertations.
ED 827 Higher Education Law and Policy
In this course students will explore legal issues and their impact on post-secondary institutions. Topics include but are not limited to student legal issues, faculty governance, employment law, tort liability, and copyright law. Students will engage in a variety of problem-based learning activities, including case studies and will conclude the course addressing law and policy in higher education.
ED 829 Co-Curricular Engagement
This course focuses on the evolving learning-centered co-curricular experiences within higher education. Students will research student development theories to utilize a problem-based learning approach that examines the theory and application of experiential learning, including service learning, internalization, and career development. Students will explore student development theories inherent in cocurricular learning.
ED 830 Psychology of Learning for Higher Education Leadership
This course will prepare students to identify, develop, and lead innovative strategies in teaching and learning in higher education. Areas of focus include the relationship among curriculum, instruction, and assessment as related to new research in the neurology of learning. Students learn to analyze key issues and challenges impacting teaching and learning in higher education and will develop strategies for effective professional and personal development.
ED 835 The Business of Higher Education
This course focuses on the knowledge and skills required to effectively respond to the financial changes and trends for institutions of higher education, including fiscal planning and management, enrollment management, alumni management, grant writing, and institutional advancement/comprehensive campaigning. Students will analyze and evaluate issues from multiple perspectives, including administrative, consumer, and societal.
ED 901 Dissertation in Practice III: Methodology
This course is the development of Chapter 3 (Methodology) of the DiP, focusing on the research design and data collection. Students will also gather the necessary data to answer the research question(s).
ED 902 Dissertation in Practice IV: Findings
This course is the development of Chapter 4 (Findings) of the DiP. Students will analyze, interpret, report, and discuss the results of the data analysis.
ED 903A Dissertation in Practice V: Conclusion and Recommendations (2 credit hours)
This course is the development of Chapter 5 (Conclusion and Recommendations) of the Dissertation in Practice. Students will make recommendations for future research and education practice based on the findings in their study.
ED 903B Dissertation in Practice V: Capstone (1 credit hour)
This course is the development of the Capstone project. The project is to be based off the student's individual research and findings, and is to contribute to the field of higher education.
Here’s what you need to apply
- Official transcripts
- Two letters of recommendation
- One academic recommendation letter strongly preferred
- Writing sample (two parts)
- 750-word introduction letter and statement of professional goals (see next slide for more info)
- Academic paper on a higher education problem of practice (chosen by applicant) to include a minimum of five pages. The paper must be formatted using APA Style 7th Edition
Admission Requirements
Statement of goals components
The 750-word introduction letter and statement of professional goals should cover the following three prompts:
- Overview of self
- Overview of your professional journey and greatest accomplishment or challenge that contributed to shaping your career path
- Why you are pursuing an EdD in Higher Education Leadership, and how this degree will advance your professional goals
Admission Requirements
Interview and presentation
Upon receipt of all admission documents, a minimum of three representatives from the EdD Advisory Committee will schedule and conduct an interview and presentation in which prospective students will be asked to present on a higher education of problem of practice topic directly aligned with the academic paper submission.
About Regis College
For more than 95 years, Regis College has supported learners in their journey to realize their full potential, reach their personal and professional goals, and become forces of good in the world. It’s our mission to help empower people to challenge themselves as they prepare to serve and lead through education.
With our focus on student success and our commitment to social justice and service, we help students in the greater Boston area and around the globe achieve more and go further.
College Details
Diverse learning opportunities
Regis College is a coed university 12 miles west of Boston in Weston, Mass., founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston.
With more than 3,200 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students enrolled on campus and in fully online graduate programs, Regis provides an academically rigorous education within the schools of nursing, arts and sciences, business and communication, and health sciences.
College Details
A culture of curiosity
Our School of Arts and Sciences gives students an avenue through which to engage with and study a range of subjects, including biomedical engineering, criminal justice, cybersecurity, education, environmental sustainability, and the humanities. Here, we promote universal skills like creative thinking, problem solving, and communication through theory and real-world practice.
The School of Arts and Sciences also houses our Public Heritage Institute, as well as the Pi Gamma Mu Honor Society.
College Details
Via Veritas Vita
Our motto, Via Veritas Vita, translates to “the way and the truth and the light.” These words drive our mission of empowering learners through knowledge to live meaningful lives and contribute to our global society.
Today, Regis boasts an alumni network more than 20,000 strong. This supportive, tight-knit community has a history of professional success in the job market: 97% of our graduates find full-time work or pursue further education within six months of graduation.
Priscilla Boerger, EdD, MEd
Dr. Priscilla Boerger previously served as an elementary school lead teacher and as faculty in the School of Education at Lynn University. At Regis, she is the department of education chair, program director of the EdD in Higher Education Leadership, MEd in Teaching Special Education, and the MEd in Student Success programs.
Her research explores college access and transition for first-generation students, women college presidents, and diversity/equity/social justice in the classroom.