Educational Research

Doctoral Degree Program

Opportunities for graduate studies

Educational research is one of four program areas in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of North Texas. The doctoral program in educational research is one of several in Texas and offers you challenging courses in research design, measurement, evaluation, statistics and computer data analysis. Two concentrations are available: research, measurement and statistics, and human development and family studies.

The program's faculty members have experience in statistics, research design and measurement, providing a broad range of learning opportunities. This program area is also a service unit for the College of Education, offering courses in research, measurement, evaluation and statistics for students in other degree programs in the college.

The Department of Educational Psychology and the College of Education maintain state-of-the-art computer labs and classrooms that provide you with practical experience in using sophisticated data analysis and modeling software.

Admission requirements

You must meet the admission requirements of the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies, including a minimum 3.4 GPA on master's degree work, as well as the following requirements.

• Scores on the verbal and quantitative sections of the GRE.
• a writing sample of research or course work
• written analysis of an article (from the department)
• a personal resume
• 3 letters of recommendation
• a personal statement of career objectives including how this doctorate will advance those objectives (two page maximum)

Program acceptance is based on a holistic review of these materials. Additional information about the admission requirements is online at www.coe.unt.edu/educational-psychology/admissions-1.

Degree requirements

A master's degree in educational research is not required, but you must complete a minimum of 60 graduate credit hours beyond a master's degree to be a candidate for the Ph.D. degree:

• 18 hours of research, measurement and statistics
• 21 hours of concentration area courses
• 3 hours in a capstone seminar
• 6 hours of tool subjects
• 12 hours of dissertation work

Career opportunities

Educational research, measurement and statistics have long been established as a formal area of study, but graduates continue to define the field in the many different ways they use their knowledge and skills. Federal and state mandates on public school performance have created a demand for research and evaluation personnel. At universities and colleges, institutional research provides executive-level management information to decision-makers and outside agencies. Corporations stay competitive with sophisticated data analysis while relying on test development and training assessment to keep their work force prepared. Some career opportunities that encompass educational research are:

• public schools: research and evaluation; testing services; regional service center positions; director of research positions
• higher education: institutional research; presidential staff positions; teaching of research and statistics
• private enterprise: test development; data analysis; program and training assessment

The human development and family studies concentration provides you with strong training in human development, family studies, research, measurement and statistics. You are prepared for academic careers in colleges and universities; government careers in agencies concerned with research, families or social policy; and in a range of community agencies or private enterprise. For more information on this concentration, contact the program in development and family studies at 940-565-2093.

Faculty research

Educational research faculty members teach required courses for doctoral students in the College of Education and regularly serve on dissertation committees, providing you with the necessary assistance to complete your dissertation. The Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Analysis provides additional research assistance for students in the College of Education. As a doctoral student in educational research, you may work in the center and obtain practical experience in helping faculty members and students with measurement, statistics, research design and computer data analysis problems.

Educational research faculty members are also active professionally in obtaining grants; writing books; attending and presenting papers at international, national and regional conferences; conducting workshops; and publishing scholarly, peer-reviewed journal articles. The program's doctoral students participate in conference paper presentations, journal articles, grants and other professional activities.

Faculty members publish scholarly research in structural equation modeling, latent trait theory, applied statistics, score reliability, attitudes toward statistics, teacher efficacy, motivational theory and problem solving in mathematics. Other research areas include methodological uses of the general linear model; factor analysis and multivariate statistics with a focus on statistical concepts accessible to applied researchers; and psychometric applications in latent trait theory, including Rasch and Item Response Theory.

Senior faculty members have published numerous textbooks, including An Introduction to Educational Statistics: The Essential Elements; A Beginner's Guide to Structural Equation Modeling; Advanced Structural Equation Modeling: Issues and Techniques; Interaction and Nonlinear Effects in Structural Equation Modeling; Understanding Statistical Concepts Using SPLUS; and Advanced Structural Equation Modeling: New Developments and Techniques. One senior faculty member founded Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal and created a special interest group within the American Educational Research Association for structural equation modeling. Faculty members serve or have served in several editorial positions for journals, such as Educational and Psychological Measurement, the Journal of Educational Measurement and Structural Equation Modeling, and on many journal editorial boards.

Faculty members also are active in developing distance learning courses at UNT. Distance learning courses in research methods and statistics are offered each year. More Internet-based classes are being planned to meet your needs.

Financial assistance

A number of fellowships and assistantships are available. These opportunities include working with professors on research grants and projects, serving as a teaching assistant or teaching undergraduate classes. You may apply for these positions by submitting a letter of application and a current resume to the department chair. The letter should address your particular strengths and interests.