The Specialist Diploma is available only in the field of Educational Leadership. This program requires the equivalent of two full years of study beyond the bachelor’s degree or one full year of study beyond the master’s degree. The Specialist Diploma ordinarily is a terminal program of advanced preparation for professional practice.

Admission Requirements:

1. A master’s degree, normally in Educational Leadership.
   
   
2. Significant experience in teaching and administration.
   
   
3. A minimum of eighteen semester credits, including student teaching, of undergraduate preparation in Education.
   
   
4. A GPA of at least 3.50 for all graduate work completed.

Course Requirements. A minimum of 64 credits beyond the bachelor’s degree is required for the Specialist Diploma, including 4 credits for the Independent Study Report (997). One half of the credits for the diploma must be for courses numbered 500 or higher. The program in Educational Leadership will include an area of concentration of at least 40 credits, including at least 20 credits in Educational Leadership and one or two cognate areas totaling 12-24 credits.

Students are referred to the section of this catalog entitled Department Programs for additional departmental requirements.

Residence Requirements. Following the awarding of the master’s degree, all students must spend either one semester or one summer session in residence.

Independent Study Report. The independent study is designed to require the student to investigate a topic related to the major field of study. The study need not be an original contribution to knowledge but may be a presentation, analysis, and discussion of information and ideas already in the literature of the field. The requirement is to ensure that a student can investigate a topic and organize a scholarly report on the investigation.

The topic for an independent study must be approved by the student’s Advisory Committee. Approval is effected by the student’s completing a form titled Proposal for Independent Study, available with instructions from the Graduate School, then submitting the proposal to the Committee for approval. The proposal, which must be approved no later than the beginning of the semester or session in which the student expects to graduate, must be filed in the Graduate School before a student is advanced to candidacy.

A report of an independent study must be prepared and submitted to the Faculty Advisory Committee for approval. Three copies of the report (one each for the student, the advisor, and the department) must be accepted by the Faculty Advisory Committee who will certify completion of the report to the Graduate School by the deadline specified in the Academic Calendar. The advisor will submit a grade for 997-Independent Study to the Office of the Registrar.

Candidacy for the Diploma. Candidates for a Specialist Diploma will not be permitted to graduate in the same semester or summer session in which they become a candidate. Students in Approved Status may be advanced to candidacy for the Specialist Diploma when the following requirements have been fulfilled:

1. Completion of the equivalent of a full-time semester (12 semester credits) with a satisfactory GPA.
   
   
2. Appointment of a three-member Faculty Advisory Committee. This Committee is appointed by the Dean upon the written recommendation of the chairperson of the student’s major department. The chairperson of the Committee must be a Full member of the Graduate Faculty. Until the appointment of the Committee, the department chairperson, or designate, will act as the student’s temporary advisor.
   
   
3. Approval of a Program of Study for the diploma. The program is developed by the student and the Committee on a form available from the Graduate School. The program, which must carry the signatures of the student and the committee, is submitted to the Dean of the Graduate School for approval.
   
   
4. Approval of a Proposal for Independent Study on a form available from the Graduate School. This proposal, when approved by the Committee and filed in the Graduate School, indicates acceptance of the topic for study and incorporation in a report.
   
   
5. Completion of the required practicum or internship.
   
   
6. Completion of departmental testing requirements.

Students and their advisors will be notified in writing of advancement to candidacy.

Final Examinations. All students must pass written comprehensive examinations covering the program of work approved for the diploma. The examinations normally are given and evaluated by the department in the period 30 days before the Final Report deadline. Comprehensive examinations which are failed may be repeated only with the prior approval of the Advisory Committee, the department, and the Dean, but in no event earlier than at the next regularly scheduled offering.

Candidates may not take the final comprehensive examination(s) unless they have applied to receive the diploma, have been advanced to candidacy for the diploma, and have been certified, in writing, as eligible by the Graduate School.