Urban Education

Course of Study A minimum of 61 credits of approved coursework are required for a Ph.D. in Urban Education. All students must complete the four core courses (totaling 12 credits, as listed below) and enroll in the one-semester, one credit Core Colloquium in their first year. In consultation with the academic adviser, students select additional coursework in research methods (minimum 9 credits) from a range of research seminars and/or research methods courses offered in the Urban Education Program. Three courses should include methods for analyzing qualitative and quantitative data in Urban Education research, including (but not limited to) the following areas of study: research design, statistical reasoning and analyses; ethnographic methods and data analysis; nonverbal data, and historical, narrative, and philosophical analyses. Students also complete a program of required area seminars and elective courses approved by their advisory faculty Studies Committee, totaling at least 24 credits in the studies specialization area.

Under general University regulations, no more than 30 qualifying graduate credits may be offered as transfer credits toward a Ph.D. degree, but only credits that are programmatically relevant and have clear CUNY equivalents (as determined by the program) will be accepted toward the Ph.D. in Urban Education. (It is normally expected that no more than 15 credits will be accepted, except in the case of an applicant with prior doctoral study beyond the master’s degree at another institu- Urban Education 247 tion.) No more than 15 CUNY graduate credits required at the time of admission to prepare the student for doctoral-level work in the program may be applied toward the Ph.D. in Urban Education.

After successfully completing the core courses, students are eligible to take the First Examination. They must take the exam before completing 30 credits in the program (excluding transfer credits) and may not continue in the program beyond 45 credits until they have passed all parts of the examination. The First Examination covers the same general topics as the required core courses.

The Second Examination covers the content areas of the student’s chosen research topic, as designated appropriate preparation by the student’s Studies Committee. The examination may be given in more than one part. Students must pass each part to pass the examination as a whole.

The student is advanced to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree after completing all other program requirements, passing all parts of the Second Examination, and receiving approval of a written dissertation research proposal from a committee of three program faculty members approved by the Executive Officer, one of whom has agreed to supervise the candidate’s research.

The degree is awarded after the dissertation has been approved by the committee and has been successfully defended by the student in an oral examination and the dissertation is deposited in the Graduate Center Library.

Note: Students in the Urban Education Ph.D. Program may register for courses offered by other CUNY doctoral programs with the permission of their Studies Committee and the Executive Officer of the host program.