Purpose

The Specialist in Education (Ed.S.) Degree in School Superintendency provides opportunities for specialized study in the school Superintendency. The program assists qualified individuals in developing the knowledge, performances, and disposition essential for success in the day-to-day operation of the school system and develops broad understandings relative to the scope and nature of educational programs. The program schedule will qualify the student for the superintendent license. The program includes appropriate work from the field of educational administration and related fields, such as educational psychology, curriculum, adult and community education, educational foundations, and counseling psychology.

General Degree Requirements

The Ed.S. degree in School Superintendency requires the satisfactory completion of prescribed graduate course work beyond the master's degree with a 3.2 grade-point average. All candidates for the degree will have completed a minimum of 63 semester hours of graduate credit including the master's degree. A minimum of 24 semester hours of the "specialist required courses" must be completed at Ball State University.

Required Courses in the Major

The specialist degree student will ordinarily take the following educational administration courses for an Ed.S. Degree in the School Superintendency.

Masters Courses:			Credit Hours
EDAD 630	Human Resources Development		3
EDAD 635	Educational Decision Making		3
EDSUP 650	Supervision of Instruction		3
EDAD 684	Educational Finance and Ethics		3
EDAD 686	School Law		3
EDAD 689 (old 610/620)	The School Principal		3
EDPSY 640	Methodology of Educational & Psychological Research		3
EDCUR 601 (old 610/620)	Principles and Procedures of Curriculum Development		3
One of the following:			3
EDFON 631	Philosophy of Education (3)
EDFON 641	History of American Education (3)
EDFON 651	Educational Sociology (3)
EDMUL 660	Multi-Cultural and Multi-Ethnic Education in American Schools (3)
			_____
		Subtotal	27 Hours
Specialist required courses: (A minimum of 24 semester hours must be taken at Ball State.)
EDAD 640	The Educational Administrator and Public Relations		3
EDAD 685	Fiscal Management of Educational Agencies		3
EDAD 687	Special Education Law for Administrators		3
EDAD 688	School Facilities		3
EDAD 698	Seminar in Theory of Educational Administration		3
EDAD 696	Superintendent Internship		6
EDAD 780	The School Superintendent		3
EDAD 782	Specialist Capstone Seminar		3
EDCUR 610	Elementary School Curriculum		3
OR
EDCUR 620	Secondary School Curriculum		3
Choose 6 additional hours from the courses listed below:			6
CPSY 600	Introduction to School Counseling (3)
EDFON 631	Philosophy of Education (3)
EDPSY 603	Psychology of Human Development (3)
EDPSY 641	Statistical Methods in Educational and Psychological Research (3)
EDCUR 671	Evaluation of Educational Programs (3)
EDMUL 660	Multi-Cultural and Multi-Ethnic Education in American Schools (3)
EDEL 644	Education of the Cultural Different Child (3)
EDPSY 646	Tests and Measurement (3)
EDFON 641	History of American Education (3)
EDFON 651	Educational Sociology (3)
			_____
		Subtotal	36 Hours
			_____
		Total Hours	63 Hours

Internship

Each student in the Ed.S. program must complete a supervised internship.

The internship assignment will be arranged by the department in consultation with the student. Students are responsible for any necessary leave and other arrangements related to this assignment. Internship assignments will ordinarily be arranged in a school setting to provide a practical, supervised experience in educational leadership. Ball State faculty, in cooperation with an outside agency, will supervise all interns.

The Specialist Committee

A three-member committee, consisting of educational administration faculty members, will usually be appointed during the first semester that the student is accepted into the degree program. The committee chair, in consultation with the student, will develop a plan of study. The committee will also conduct the required written and oral examinations when the student has completed all coursework.

Deadline for Completion of Degree Work

All requirements (30 sem. hours) listed in the "specialist required courses" section must be met within a six-year time limit from the date of the completion of the first class in the Specialist in Education degree program.

Application Process

The student applies for admission to the specialist degree program by submitting the following to the Graduate School:

• Graduate Application (obtained from the Graduate School or on the Internet)
• One copy of all college/university transcripts
• Graduate Record Examination Scores

The student submits a professional portfolio consisting of the following items to the Department of Educational Leadership:

• Autobiography (500-1,000 words)
• A 3-5 page paper containing the applicant's philosophy of education and statement of purpose to be accomplished by earning the specialist degree and describing the contributions the candidate expects to make to the specialist program and to the profession of educational administration
• A current vitae
• Names and addresses of five references (department will contact them directly)
• One copy of all college/university transcripts

Applicants are expected to have a GPA of 3.2 or higher on all previously completed graduate work.

When admission materials have been received, the Department of Educational Leadership reviews and evaluates the submitted materials. Following this evaluation, the applicant may be invited to campus for a personal interview.

Assistantships

Graduate assistantships are available to Ed.S. candidates. In addition to the assistantship stipend, remissions on selected fees are also provided.  An assistantship application is available from the department or download the Assistantship Application here.

For additional information contact

Dr. William Sharp
Doctoral Program Director
Department of Educational Leadership
Teachers College Room 918
Ball State University
Muncie, IN 47306-0590
Phone: 765-285-8488
FAX: 765-285-2166