The goal of this concurrent, equal status mixed methods study was to investigate the potential differences between EdD and PhD programs in the United States with the following overarching research question: Are there differences in EdD and PhD programs in schools that have both programs? Data were collected from 34 university websites where both a…

This essay discusses the emergence of the program evaluation dissertation in our doctoral program as the preferred dissertation in practice (DiP) option. We also outline important considerations that must be reviewed with students when considering this approach. Our students are professional educational leaders in the settings where they conduct…

As faculty of an educational leadership doctoral program (EdD) aligned with the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) principles, we acknowledge the importance of inquiry to develop scholarly practitioners. Applying the tenet of Inquiry as Practice, our EdD faculty critically examined the doctoral curriculum to explore ways to…

The CPED Framework (CPED, 2022) envisions the EdD as a professionally-oriented alternative to the PhD. Within the framework, two professional aims are proposed: stewardship and scholarly practice. In this essay, I distinguish between the two terms, exploring how Erving Goffman's (1986) concept of frame analysis can be a useful approach to…

Education doctoral programs have an essential role to play in this moment of American history, as we train, teach, guide, and prepare education professionals to learn, unlearn, and lead as antiracist education activists. EdD program faculty and administrators sit in critical roles and must examine our own antiracist beliefs, while also…

Prospective doctoral students face a daunting challenge choosing between Doctor of Education (EdD) programs and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Education due to programmatic ambiguity, inconsistency, and ill-defined career alignment (Carpenter, 1987; Perry, 2012; Shafer & Giblin, 2008). This qualitative study employed comparative analysis to…

A qualitative descriptive approach was followed in the research, starting with a theoretical conceptualization of scholar activism within doctoral education as a basis for further inquiry. Seventeen doctoral candidates described how they conceptualized and applied the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate's (CPED) Framework for the Emerging…

This essay discusses the utilization of safeguard strategies, particularly Improvement Science principles, in the academic and professional writing of scholar-practitioners within EdD programs. These strategies bridge the gap between theory and practice, enabling graduate students to apply their scholarly insights meaningfully. The essay…

This essay describes the design, and subsequent redesign, of the research methods courses included in an Instructional and Performance Technology (IPT) EdD program at a regional comprehensive university in the southeast United States. The program under examination was developed based on the principles of the Carnegie Project for the Education…

Given the significant challenges PK-12 educational leaders currently face, the purpose of this essay is to orient EdD faculty with Noddings' (1984/2003) care ethics as a framework for conceptualizing their work and employing care acts to support EdD scholar-practitioners through the COVID-19 pandemic. Practical strategies for this work are…

The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) fundamentally shifts how educational knowledge is created, shared, and validated. Through the lens of epistemic technologies--tools that transform knowledge creation and dissemination--we analyze how GenAI challenges traditional notions of practical wisdom in education doctorate (EdD)…

In this reflective essay, I explore learnings and reflections along my doctoral journey and analyze how this journey has been untraditional for an education administrator. As a scholar-practitioner, I include a section on the impact of societal changes since the COVID-19 pandemic. I then document continuing challenges for women of color…

The Capital Area North Doctorate in Educational Leadership (CANDEL) program is committed to educational equity and supports, amongst others, K-12 schoolteachers, administrators, and teacher educators who are committed to bridging the worlds of theory and practice. As teacher educators, we advocate for those in doctoral programs to consider…

EdD programs affiliated with the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate encourage dissertations in practice (DiPs) focused on equity, social justice, and transformative practice. Conversations in our program revealed surface-level or late-stage social justice connections in our students' DiPs. Therefore, inspired by an existing framework that…

The year 2020 brought not only the COVID-19 pandemic but also a wave of racial injustice, which impacted many in the U.S. and beyond. Combined, these phenomena have been characterized as dual pandemics, which introduced new demands that forced faculty to redesign aspects of their doctoral programs to ensure sustainability during the pandemic and…