Specialist Program

EdS brochure

The specialist program in educational leadership prepares students as educational leaders of public and nonpublic schools, state departments of education, intermediate school service units, and national and state professional associations. The Ed.S program consists of 65 credit hours, at least 35 of which must be taken either at the IUB or IUPUI campus. The remaining credit hours may be transferred from other accredited universities. An advisor will be assigned to each student when admitted. Applicants must submit university transcripts, two letters of recommendation, GRE scores, and a goal statement. One of the letters of recommendation should be from a professor. To be admitted into the Ed.S program, applicants are expected to have a combined verbal and quantitative GRE score of 900 and a 3.5 score on the analytical writing section and a 3.5 graduate GPA. However, applicant decisions will be based on a careful consideration of all factors combined.

A residency period is required for the Ed.S degree. This consists of the successful completion of nine credit hours within one semester or summer. Specialist degree students must complete all degree requirements within seven years of the date they begin taking courses after admission. Students who fail to meet this time limit are terminated from the program. Such students may apply for readmission to the program and will be subject to current admission requirements.

The Ed.S program culminates in the completion of a capstone project or comprehensive examination.

Students must complete a substantial project at the culmination of the Ed.S. program. The substantial project could come in several forms, including an in-depth literature review or a project involving inquiry.  The capstone advisor and student should work together to choose the most suitable project.  Most students enroll in A680 for three credits when completing the capstone. 

Students completing a capstone should submit a three page prospectus to their capstone advisor for approval before beginning their project.  The prospectus should outline the proposed course of study.  Please note that generally for a three credit course, students would spend 40 hours in class and 90 hours engaged in outside reading and assignments.  Your prospectus should reflect a similar time commitment.

In addition to the prospectus, students should include a timeline indicating when they will submit drafts of the project and when the final project will be due.

Forms for the Ed.S program of studies can be found HERE.