Foundations component (six hours minimum). This component will consist of a writing-intensive seuence of two courses (three credits each) to be taken in the fall and spring semesters of the first year. The experience will begin with practical knowledge (what it means to be a doctoral student, the students place in the program, the programs place in the realm of education, how to engage in research-related activities, etc) and move toward theoretical and formal knowledge, taking care through course structure and content to illuminate the interplay between the two. Students will learn about the nature of scholarly inquiry and the worth of situating research within its wider social and political contexts while becoming members of VCU and their disciplinary scholarly communities.
Research component (12 hours minimum). This component emphasizes the prerequisite skills essential to designing, conducting and interpreting research. It also provides the research, statistical and computer tools and resources necessary to produce research beneficial to the urban leader.

An applicant’s level of research competence is considered prior to admission. Research-related prerequisites and/or corequisites may be established for individuals based on past academic and/or work experience.
Concentration component (18 hours minimum). This component is designed to allow the student to pursue a series of courses that provide a specific focus and serve as the student’s primary discipline. These courses are expected to develop the in-depth knowledge and skills in an identifiable area that is congruent with the student’s current or projected career field. It is at this point in the program that the student pursues study in one of the following tracks:
- Adult education and human resource development
- Educational leadership
- Instructional leadership
- Research and evaluation
- Special education and disability policy leadership
- Urban services leadership
At least six hours of course work in research and/or concentration component must be taken outside the School of Education.
Externship component (three hours minimum). The semester externship refers to a minimum of 120 hours of work experience, 90 hours of which must be completed on-site, designed to enhance the student’s program, career goals and professional development. The externship site is outside the setting in which the student is employed currently and ideally in a different, but related, career area in which the student has had no or limited prior work experience. It is expected that the student will develop an appreciation for the network of service delivery systems in the urban setting and acquire additional leadership skills to function more effectively within that network.

Externships are developed jointly by the student and the student’s adviser and approved by the program director. Students may begin the externship experience only after being awarded continuing doctoral status. The required 120 clock hours of the externship may be extended over two consecutive semesters, if appropriate.
Dissertation component (nine hours minimum). This component consists of EDUS 890 Dissertation Seminar, three hours, and EDUS 899 Dissertation Research, six hours. EDUS 890 Dissertation Seminar is designed to aid the student in identifying the resources and refining the skills required to initiate, develop and complete a scholarly prospectus and dissertation. The remaining credit hours of EDUS 899 Dissertation Research are assigned to the scholarly pursuit and completion of the dissertation.
Co-curricular activities. These are activities designed to meet the core values of the Ph.D. program and include those related to instruction (e.g., serving as a teaching assistant for a course or teaching a course), scholarship (e.g., writing an article or conference proposal, participating in grant writing), professional development (e.g., attending workshops or seminars), professional service (e.g., participating in a program t enhance achievement of K-12 students in an urban setting), as well as other activities deemed appropriate by the individual tracks. It is anticipated that these activities will occur throughout the program and will be configured to represent increasing sill and sophistication as students move throught the program.

	Credits
Foundation component	6
EDUS 702 Foundations of Educational Research and Doctoral Scholarship I
EDUS 703 Foundations of Educational Research and Doctoral Scholarship II

Research component	12
EDUS 710 Educational Research Design
EDUS 711 Qualitative Methods and Analysis
STAT/SOCY 608 Statistics for Social Research
Three credit selective

Concentration component	18

Externship component	3

Dissertation component	9
EDUS 890 Dissertation Seminar
EDUS 899 Dissertation Research

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