Program Description

Wenzhou-Kean University’s Doctor of Educational Leadership (Ed.D.) program is designed to help experienced educators acquire the key knowledge and skills needed for independent research capabilities and encourage them to conduct education research and solve existing education problems in an innovative way. The program is based on an innovative, interdisciplinary, professional-oriented model that integrates coursework and practical experience, culminating in a full-year internship in a school, University/College or other education agencies. The program follows two distinct strands, K-12 Education and Higher Education.

The K-12 program prepares students for leadership positions in school and other educational organizations. The program emphasizes practical leadership competencies including instructional leadership, organizational change, policy implementation, budget management, and data-driven decision making to effectively improve educational quality. This program mainly offers courses such as Leadership, Personnel Administration & Negotiations, Program Assessment and Evaluation, School, Community Partnerships and Educational Research, Clinical Practicum, and other professional courses.

On the other hand, the Higher Education strand prepares students for leadership and administrative roles in colleges, universities, and other educational organizations, focusing on applying research and theory to solve real-world problems in educational settings. The program emphasizes developing practical skills to drive positive change and innovation in higher education institutions. This program includes courses such as Organization of Leadership in Higher Education, Curriculum and Instruction in Higher Education, Literature of Educational Leadership, and research method courses, just to name a few.

While applicants submit the same application for both strands, they can decide to choose which strand they intend to follow by mentioning their preference on the ‘Statement of Purpose’ in their application.

Important features of the program include:

• Collaboration among leaders from schools, Colleges/universities, and other educational and community agencies;
• Study of current research, theories, and practices in education, leadership, policy, curriculum, and instruction;
• Opportunity to engage in research, resulting in a doctoral dissertation;
• An extensive internship in a school, University/College, or other educational setting.

Admission Requirements

1. Master’s degree from an accredited college or university

*Applicants, if not graduated from U.S. institutions, must submit a course-by-course evaluation of their official university transcript by the National Association of Credit Evaluation Services (NACES) (http://www.naces.org), such as the International Education Evaluation (IEE) or World Education Services (WES) (need to choose course-by-course evaluation).

2. Statement of purpose (mention your preference for School OR Higher Education Strand)
3. Official transcripts of all colleges or universities attended, 3.0 minimum cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) in the last degree attained (lower GPAs may be considered based on the overall strength of application)
4. Optional, not required: Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Miller Analogies Test (MAT) taken within five years of application
5. Professional résumé/CV
6. Substantial experience working in education or family-support agencies
7. Two letters of recommendation
8. Optional, not required: Letter of Endorsement from a superintendent or agency director
9. Official TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo score reports of tests taken within the past two years of application
10. *TOEFL iBT / TOEFL at home: 79, paper-based: 550; IELTS: 6.5; Duolingo English Test:
11. A departmental interview may be required

Curriculum & Academic Standards

 * The Doctor of Educational (Ed.D.) Leadership requires the completion of 90 credits beyond a bachelor’s degree. The Graduate Admissions Committee of the program will evaluate the applicant’s background and decide whether the applicant needs to take bridging courses and the credits that need to be taken. An applicant without having a master’s degree in Educational Administration usually has to take 6-30 credits of bridging courses. Candidates who already possess a master’s degree in Educational Administration, and their master’s level coursework meet the requirements of the courses at Kean University would be exempted from taking bridge courses.

After a graduate student attempts six (6) total graduate credits as a matriculated student, a 3.0 cumulative GPA must be achieved. Failure to meet this minimum may result in the student being placed on Academic Probation. Upon completion of twelve (12) attempted graduate credits, if a student fails to achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.0, the student may be academically dismissed from the University at the discretion of the program/department. If a student who is on Academic Probation achieves a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher, they will be removed from Academic Probation. However, if at any time during subsequent semesters the student falls below a cumulative 3.0 GPA, they will be academically dismissed from the University.

36 credits of bridging courses are listed below:

Foundations and Fundamentals of Administration (6 credits)

• EL 5502 Public School Administration I
• EL 5503 Public School Administration II

Supervision, Curriculum, and Instruction (12 credits)

• EL 5606 School Supervision and Organizational Theory
• EL 5607 Supervision and Evaluation of Instruction
• EL 5613 Curriculum Development and Evaluation: Theory and Practice
• EL 5614 Learning, Instruction, Evaluation and Curriculum Development

Policy, Procedure, and Practice (9 credits)

• EL 5551 Basic School Law and Policy
• EL 5541 Computer Applications in Education Administration
• EL 5520 Management of Educational Finance

Research, Synthesis and Application (9 credits)

• EL 5030 Educational Research
• EL 5813 Field Study in Administration and Supervision I
• EL 5814 Field Study in Administration and Supervision II

The Graduate Admissions Committee of the program will evaluate the applicant’s background and decide whether the applicant needs to take bridging courses, and the credits that need to be taken. An applicant without having a master’s degree in Educational Administration usually have to take 18-30 credits of bridging courses.

After a graduate student attempts six (6) total graduate credits as a matriculated student, a 3.0 cumulative GPA must be achieved. Failure to meet this minimum may result in the student being placed on Academic Probation. Upon completion of twelve (12) attempted graduate credits, if a student fails to achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.0, the student may be academically dismissed from the University at the discretion of the program/department. If a student who is on Academic Probation achieves a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher, they will be removed from Academic Probation. However, if at any time during subsequent semesters the student falls below a cumulative 3.0 GPA, they will be academically dismissed from the University.

Graduation Requirements

The Doctor of Educational Leadership (Ed.D.) curriculum is comprised of 18 courses (3 credits each) for a total of 54 credits. Upon successful completion of 54 credits (and designated credits for bridging courses, if any), students must maintain their status as matriculated students (GPA no less than 3.0) until they successfully complete and defend their dissertation. In case students are unable to complete their thesis within the stipulated two years, they must register for a 2-credit course (Dissertation Continuation EDD 7103), while they work on their dissertation. Students can only get a maximum of two C grades and no grades lower than C on their transcript. Finally, students will be conferred the Doctor of Educational Leadership (Ed.D.) degree of Kean University.

In order to Graduate, students must:

• Successfully complete all the required credits
• Maintain the stipulated academic standards
• Successfully complete and defend Doctoral Dissertation
• Obtain from the Chair-Dissertation committee a certificate of successful completion of the Thesis.
• Submit three copies of bound Dissertation to the Office. A sample format could be obtained from the dissertation committee Chair.
• Obtain a letter of confirmation of completion from the Program Director

Contact Us

Email: edd@wku.edu.cn

Tel: 0577-55870587

*For more information on 2025 graduate admissions, please refer to the Wenzhou-Kean University Graduate Admissions Guidelines 2025.