The PhD program in Educational Psychology is directed toward increasing students’ competence in educational inquiry, and provides rigorous knowledge and expertise with two specializations, 1) human learning and development; and 2) measurement, statistics, and evaluation (MSE). Courses are offered in the areas of human learning, cognition, and development; and statistics, measurement, evaluation and research design and methodology. The program prepares individuals to conduct applied and original research and evaluation in public and private educational settings and provide instruction and consultation appropriate for all educational levels.
Admission Requirements
In addition to the application form required by Graduate Division, prospective students must also submit:
- Department of Educational Psychology professional goals statement.
- Three recommendation forms attesting to academic and professional strengths. Academic recommendations are preferred.
- A curriculum vitae or resume.
- Transcript(s) of all prior undergraduate and graduate course work to Graduate Division.
- For non-native speakers of English, a minimum TOEFL score of 600/100 or a minimum IELTS score of 6.0 (overall band test results) unless waived in accordance with Graduate Division guidelines.
- A master’s thesis or other individual writing samples that demonstrate your academic writing skills and ability to synthesize information. Please submit 1-3 samples.
Note: Applications for admission to the PhD program must be received by March 1 for the fall semester and by October 1 for the spring semester.
Procedure for Completing the PhD Degree
Each student works closely with members of the graduate faculty to define an individual program of study. A typical program spans three to five years of concentrated study within the broadly defined discipline of educational psychology.
Program requirements include (a) completion of required core courses; (b) completion of required interdisciplinary specialization; (c) college teaching experience in conjunction with one or more faculty members; (d) documentation of directed research experiences; and (e) a minimum residency of three semesters of full-time work or the equivalent in credits at UH Mānoa.
Completion of Core Courses
Students must receive a grade of at least B in all core courses. The purposes of the core courses are (a) to determine whether to encourage students to proceed in the PhD program; (b) to develop an appropriate plan of study; and (c) to advance to candidacy. See EDEP handbook for a list of core courses.
Dissertation Prospectus
The development of a dissertation prospectus is done in conjunction with the identification of the dissertation committee chair. The prospectus is a 10-15 page description (exclusive of references) of the proposed dissertation that is developed in consultation with a prospective chair and submitted to the faculty. The prospectus includes the statement of the problem, its relevance to educational psychology, the design of the investigation, and analysis. If there are no major objections to this prospectus from the graduate faculty as a whole, the student forms a doctoral committee based on mutual interest.
Comprehensive Examination
The comprehensive examination is taken after the prospectus is approved and either before or after the proposal defense, as agreed upon by the committee. Committee members typically formulate two to four questions that may be related to the student’s proposal but may be broader in scope. Typically, students are given between two to four weeks to complete the written comprehensive exam; however, each committee determines the exact timeline. An oral defense will be scheduled after the written answers are turned in. The committee will have at least two weeks to read the written answers before the oral defense. A student who fails any portion of the comprehensive examination twice will be dismissed from both the graduate program and Graduate Division, unless recommended otherwise by the graduate chair.
Dissertation Proposal
The student develops a dissertation proposal in consultation with the dissertation committee. The dissertation proposal includes a literature review that contextualizes the question(s) within existing research and theory. The proposal also includes a description of the proposed research methods, including how the data will be analyzed. A formal oral defense of the proposal is made by the student to the doctoral committee in order to confirm approval of the proposed research. When students pass the comprehensive exam and proposal defense, and receive Human Studies Program approval, the Doctorate Form II will be submitted to Graduate Division.
Completion of the Program
Students will work closely with their dissertation chair as they collect data, analyze it and write the dissertation. It is the responsibility of the student to keep all members of the dissertation committee informed of the scope, plan, and progress of the dissertation research. Copies of the completed dissertation must be submitted to the committee members at least two weeks prior to the date of the final oral examination. Upon successful defense of the dissertation, Doctorate Form III is submitted to Graduate Division. After completion of revisions, the final edited document is submitted to Graduate Division. Form IV should be submitted at the same time.
