In preparation for the PhD Degree, emphasis is placed on the development of competencies necessary to careers devoted primarily to the conduct of research, scholarly inquiry, and teaching. In addition to the common requirements, students must enroll for two consecutive terms of full-time, on-campus study, including involvement in research activities, and must complete a dissertation that reports research contributing to the development of theory or methodology in the student's area of specialization or one of the recognized disciplines. At least one member of the doctoral committee must be from the graduate faculty outside the School of Education.

PhD students must take a sequence of courses in a supporting field that is outside the School of Education. For the student who does not have a bachelor's degree or its equivalent in an academic discipline, a minimum of 18 credits must be taken outside the School of Education in one field or in an interdisciplinary concentration as approved by the department; no more than six of these credits may be used to satisfy research methodology requirements. For the student who has a bachelor's degree or its equivalent in an academic discipline, a minimum of nine credits must be taken outside the School of Education in one supporting field or in an interdisciplinary concentration approved by the department; none of these nine credits may be used to satisfy research methodology requirements. For the student who has a master's degree or its equivalent in a relevant academic discipline, no additional credits outside the School of Education are required.