Executive EdD in Education: Leadership or Teaching & Learning (Online & Accelerated)

GMercyU's Doctorate in Educational Leadership program is a leader in EdD programs with a graduation rate of 62% in 3 years and 76% in 4 years vs. 56.6% in 10 years nationally.

Because our doctoral program is designed for working professional educators, we have designed it to focus on convenience and flexibility as well as relevance and academic rigor. It features:

• Small class sizes organized within a cohort model, so you can expand your professional network and create meaningful relationships with colleagues
• An accelerated course schedule, which focuses on one course at a time in seven-week blocks, except for residencies
• Convenient online coursework combined with field experience, a weekend on-campus residency, a week-long on-campus residency, and a week-long international study experience
• Rigorous coursework applicable to public education, private education, higher education, government, and business leadership and instruction
• Instruction and mentorship from field-experienced faculty members who are passionate about helping shape a new generation of education leaders
• Dissertation support from day one of your program, to ensure you can complete your degree and take your place as a transformational change agent in education

Our Online Accelerated Executive EdD program challenges you to make new discoveries in your field of interest while honing your professional instructional and leadership skills as you prepare to lead in:  

• U.S. and international schools
• School districts
• Colleges and universities
• Educational policy organizations
• Government and nonprofit organizations that support education

The rigorous course of studies in our accelerated doctoral programs will prepare you with the global outlook, research skills, policy analysis capabilities, and practical executive leadership abilities you need to lead and transform educational institutions to meet the needs of all learners.

If you are a school administrator, teacher, higher education faculty or staff, or other professional actively engaged in education and want to build skills for executive-level leadership, our Ed.D. program may be the best choice for you.

Rigorous, Accelerated Doctoral Education

The Online Accelerated Executive EdD program challenges you to make new discoveries in your field of interest while honing your professional leadership skills.

Most of your coursework for the accelerated Executive Doctorate in Education takes place online, with classes presented one at a time in seven-week blocks. You will also perform field research, take on practicum experiences, and attend three residencies: two on our Gwynedd Valley campus and one international experience. The international residency travel, lodging, and conference costs are included in your tuition costs, as well as your required textbooks.

From day one, you’ll have the support of a faculty advisor who will help you prepare your dissertation. The result is a program that can help you be part of the next generation of education leaders.

The online Accelerated Executive EdD program challenges you to make new discoveries in your field of interest while honing your professional leadership skills. As a GMercyU doctorate in education graduate, you will be able to:

• Provide leadership in teaching and learning at the K-12 and college levels
• Articulate an educational organization’s mission, goals, and guiding principles that distinguish the organization from others
• Understand the foundational base of organizational theory and demonstrate the ability to bridge theory and practice
• Given scenarios of conflict, choose ethical courses of action consistent with Gospel values
• Synthesize and analyze data to reveal relations and causality and convert raw data into actionable information
• View problems and challenges through the lens of a scientist, seeking evidence-based conclusions
• Practice and model steward leadership in transforming organizations to better serve all constituents
• Demonstrate facility in the application of technology to solve problems, analyze and synthesize data, and manage information

GMercyU faculty members understand the challenges of doctoral education — they’ve all experienced it. That’s why they’ve helped us develop a doctorate of education program that offers superior support to doctoral students like you.

You’ll join a small cohort of classmates and be matched with a faculty advisor early in your program. You’ll take supervised dissertation preparation courses early in the program, ensuring your research and writing are on track for timely completion. And you’ll be challenged, day in and day out, to pursue research that makes a tangible difference in the lives of students.

Methodological support is available for doctoral students and their advisors to support the dissertation process. Areas in which support is provided include refining research questions, operationalizing variables, general study design, development of instrumentation methods (e.g., interview questions), the IRB application process, data analysis, and writing of results. The methodologist can support students by providing resources for better understanding a process or topic, or by reviewing individual work. Depending on the particular needs and project, students and advisors can work virtually or in-person with the methodologist. See contact information for access to the methodology support. 

After you complete your online EdD program, you can connect to our extensive national and worldwide network of alumni. The colleagues, contacts, and friends you meet will inspire you.

If you are an administrator or principal with at least three years’ experience, you have the option of earning your Superintendent Letter of Eligibility as part of the online EdD programs. Your Letter of Eligibility can open the door to superintendent positions in Pennsylvania. 

*Certification: This program was designed to meet the certification requirements of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. If you reside in a different state, you should carefully review your home state’s certification requirements prior to enrolling in this program.

Special education professionals, you have the option of earning your Special Education Supervisor Certification as part of the online EdD programs. This option can equip you to provide special education leadership within a wide variety of public and private settings.

*Certification: This program was designed to meet the certification requirements of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. If you reside in a different state, you should carefully review your home state’s certification requirements prior to enrolling in this program.

Admission Requirements 

To qualify for admission to our EdD in Educational Leadership or Teaching & Learning in Higher Education, you must provide:

• A master’s degree in a field related to your preferred area of concentration from an institution accredited by the Middle States Association, or comparable accreditation, with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above
• Official graduate transcripts
• A professional resume showing a minimum of three years’ relevant experience
• Three letters of reference from persons in leadership roles in your chosen area of concentration attesting that you have the ability to engage in studies at the doctoral level and to conduct research
• A personal interview with a member of the graduate faculty representing the applicant’s preferred area of concentration (in person or via electronic means, if the distance is a factor)
• A written statement of your professional goals and topic of research interest
• A 750-1000 word sample of your writing abilities
• Official results showing a minimum score of 550 (written), 213 (computer), or 79 (internet) on the TOEFL examination if your first language is not English

Personal interviews are provided for all applicants. The interview permits both the student and the faculty to ensure that the program is a good fit for the student’s needs and aspirations.  After enrollment, you will also need to obtain a Child Abuse Clearance, Criminal Background Check, and Federal Criminal History. 

"Too often, the story heard from doctoral candidates is one of feeling isolated and unsupported as the graduate coursework finalizes and the dissertation process ensues. To those enrolled in the Educational Leadership program at Gwynedd Mercy University this is a foreign concept. From the moment an individual elects to embark on the doctoral journey, Gwynedd stands by their side to ensure success.

"Selecting a dissertation topic and designing a quality research study is scary! This will be the focus of your work for months. I remember the pressure of choosing the “right” topic and getting the design “correct” to avoid complications in the future. Each email, phone call, and conversation with various professors in the program brought guided support and assurances to allow me the opportunity to expand myself as a student and a first-time researcher. I became dedicated to my study and because of my own passion for my work, the professors were just as invested in my efforts. While writing my dissertation, I had access to not only professors in the program but also library and writing specialists to help me acquire relevant literature and review my work (multiple times) providing construction feedback to strengthen the writing. Writing a dissertation requires time, energy, and commitment. These are characteristics both students and program leaders need to display.

"My time in the doctoral program at Gwynedd Mercy University afforded me the opportunity to cement myself as a practitioner and researcher. It is in part because of the university’s dedication to each individual student’s success that I have succeeded in my doctoral program and dissertation research."

— Dawn Durham, winner of the Outstanding Dissertation Award by the Pennsylvania Association of Colleges and Teacher Educators (PAC-TE)

Online with Three Residencies 

Foundation Courses for Educational Leadership - 27 credits

Concentration Courses for Educational Administration - 15 credits

Dissertation Advisement Courses - 12 credits

Practicum Experience - Letter of Eligibility Superintendent Certification Only - 6 credits

You may also need to take the following prerequisites to qualify for the Superintendent Letter of Eligibility:

Three courses and two practicum experiences are identified in this doctoral program for the Letter of Eligibility. PDE requires 360 hours, 2 semesters, of central office practicum hours for Letter of Eligibility for Superintendent. PA requires 3 years of prior professional experience in an educational setting relating to the instructional process and evidence of satisfactory achievement on the required test for Letter of Eligibility.

Online with Three Residencies 

Foundation Courses for Educational Leadership - 27 credits

Concentration Courses for Educational Administration - 15 credits

Dissertation Advisement Courses - 12 credits

Practicum Experience - Supervisor of Special Education Certificate Only - 6 credits

You must possess an Initial Special Education certification with a Subject certification in order to meet the minimum requirements for Supervisor of Special Education (Single Supervisory certificate).  Three courses and two Special Education practicum experiences are identified in this doctoral program for Supervisor of Special Education. PDE requires 360 hours, 2 semesters, of special education supervisor practicum hours.

Online with Three Residencies 

Foundation Courses for Educational Leadership - 27 credits

 Concentration Couses for Educational Administration - 15 credits

Dissertation Advisement Courses - 12 credits

 Practicum for ABD online - 3 to 6 credits in lieu of above

Online with Three Residencies 

Foundation Courses for Educational Leadership - 42 credits

Dissertation Advisement Courses - 12 credits

3 to 6 credits in lieu of above with Program Director approval

A minimum of 54 credits is required for this degree with certification.

Doctorate in Education Foundation Courses - 18 credit hours

Teaching and Learning in Higher Education - 9 credit hours

Dissertation Courses - 12 credit hours

Nursing Education Concentration Courses - 15 credit hours

An Ed.D. degree is a doctoral-level degree focused on professional education leadership and practice. It differs from a Ph.D. in Education, which primarily focuses on developing researchers. Designed for experienced administrators and teachers who want to achieve the highest level of instruction and leadership in the profession, Ed.D. degrees provide a combination of advanced theory and skills development in:

• Teaching, assessment and curriculum development
• Faculty and staff management and development
• Education policy and regulation
• Education research
• Community relations and outreach

GMercyU's Accelerated Executive EdD program prepares you for the highest levels of education leadership. The exact nature of the roles you pursue will vary depending on your area of interest and previous experience. 

Job titles may include, but are not limited to:

• Superintendent of schools
• State board of education official
• College Dean or administrator
• Education policy analyst

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 15,300 openings for post-secondary education administrators are projected each year, on average, through 2033.