CASE STUDIES OF EdD AND PhD DISSERTATIONS

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to provide an understanding of how faculty describe the purpose, expectations and quality of dissertations in education administration. The study also investigated differences and similarities between PhD and EdD dissertations. This study was guided by this general question: How do faculty describe is the purpose, expectations and quality of a PhD and EdD dissertation in education administration. This study is a qualitative case study of five education administration programs housed at research universities that offer both the PhD and EdD degree in education administration. The study found that the purpose of the PhD and EdD degree is similar and focuses on career preparation. In addition, PhD and EdD education administration programs have similar expectations in their coursework, exams and with the dissertation. And that faculty use the same terminology to describe the quality of PhD and EdD doctoral dissertations. Based on these findings, future research should consider how education administration doctoral students learn to do research and the effectiveness of having two doctoral degrees with very similar expectations and purposes.