The international Doctor of Education degree is designed for teachers and leaders who want to improve education around the world. Advance to the next level in your career or invest in your personal development through this unique program.
We believe the educational landscape today demands that all educators think like leaders. Our international EdD program is conducted in a convenient low-residency format that blends online coursework with annual, four-day residencies at several international sites around the world. If you are currently teaching or living abroad, our program will connect you with fellow educators that share your passion for making meaningful change in classrooms, schools, and communities.
Why Study Education at Wilkes?
Our mission is to empower leaders with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to effect change in educational systems through the synthesis of theory, scholarship, and practice. Our vision is to develop authentic, ethical, courageous, and innovative leaders who transform educational culture and practice. Students choose the Wilkes doctoral leadership program because they care deeply about their students and school communities and want to join us in achieving our mission and vision.
Our EdD offers a variety of innovative concentrations for international educators. Coursework is built around educational theory and research, combined with key connections to unique international challenges and leadership practice in the international educational environment.
International students who meet the admissions criteria are eligible to earn certifications while living abroad in PA Principal Leadership, PA Superintendent Letter of Eligibility, Instructional Technology Specialist, or Supervisor of Curriculum and Instruction. PA certificates may be transferred to other states using current Department of Education reciprocity agreements.
Admission Details
Admission to the EdD program is competitive and cohort size is limited. Students applying to the international doctoral cohort must be living outside of the US/Canada at the time of application or upon the start of the program. US students seeking to join an international cohort must attend three residencies at the selected international site. Choose the International Graduate application when applying and the semester and residency location best for you.
- Fall: New Delhi
- Spring: Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Bangkok
Program Format
Enjoy online learning combined with three four-day residencies at international sites throughout the program. Our cohort model allows students to collaborate with peers and professors in person and online, forming a strong support system that extends beyond graduation. The connections you make in our program are life-changing and expand your reach both personally and professionally.
Mentorship
Our highly skilled full-time and adjunct faculty hold terminal degrees and possess extensive experience as educators, leaders, and researchers, worldwide. They serve as mentors to accepted students throughout the program and guide the research process as dissertation chairs. Faculty encourage and support high standards from conception through defense providing each doctoral candidate a personalized, scholarly leadership journey.
Research
The international EdD is designed to address the needs and challenges facing all educators in contemporary society, while meeting the unique needs of international teachers and leaders. Coursework combines the principles and theory of leadership, scholarship and practice to prepare leaders who can affect change in educational systems worldwide, advance student learning and inform future practice through research.
The program is designed to empower international classroom teachers, as well as advance current or aspiring educational leaders. The completion of required doctoral-level coursework culminates in the development of a dissertation proposal. The final dissertation and its defense are the capstone requirements for the EdD in Educational Leadership.
Curriculum
The curriculum consists of 54 post-master's credits, including 9 credits of leadership core courses, 24 credits of content area courses, 12 credits of research courses, and 9 credits of dissertation.
The AAIE Institute and International Leadership Certification
Fifteen credits from the Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE) Institute external website, when taken post-master's, can be transferred into the EdD program. This allows students a unique specialization and the ability to become an AAIE Fellow external website.
Wilkes is a leading provider of graduate programming for educators. In addition to the doctor of education, Wilkes offers more than two-dozen master's degrees and certificate programs to education professionals around the world. Wilkes also offers doctor of philosophy in nursing, doctor of nursing practice and doctor of pharmacy degrees, master's degree programs in various fields, and 47 undergraduate majors.
Wilkes was recently recognized by The Chronicle of Higher Education as one of the fastest growing universities in the country. Wilkes is regionally accredited by the Middle State Commission on Higher Education.
Senior Associate Director
Graduate Admissions