Educational Psychology and Research Major, PhD - Applied Educational Psychology Concentration

The Applied Educational Psychology (AEP) concentration represents all major areas of traditional Educational Psychology, including learning, development, measurement, instructional strategies, and academic assessment. Completion of the Ph.D. concentration requires a total of 72 graduate credit hours beyond a Master’s degree (24 of which are dissertation hours).

Students select a Cognate from a rich array of options which are listed below. In addition, the Concentration curriculum includes four of the six courses required to satisfy curriculum requirements for the Board Certified Behavior Analysis (BCBA) credentials. The other two courses required for meeting the BCBA coursework requirements may be completed through the Special Education Cognate (SPED 430  and SPED 555 ). The major learning outcomes in the concentration are (a) extensive knowledge of the traditional areas in Educational Psychology, (b) the skills necessary to contribute to relevant scholarship in the field, and (c) contributions to the professional literature through oral and written products.

Admission to the Concentration will be based on successful completion of a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology or a related field such as teacher education, GRE scores, grade point average at all collegiate levels, statement of career goals, and professional references. Other prior graduate work will be examined on a case-by-case basis to determine if it can be used to satisfy some course requirements for the PhD concentration. Entering students must have completed graduate coursework in life-span human development, learning theory, and introductory research.

Professional Development Core (6 credit hours minimum)

• EDPY 601 - Professional Seminar  (1)
• EDPY 655 - Research in Psychoeducational Studies  (5)
• EDPY 668 - Practicum in Instructional Planning  (3)

Advanced Core (21 credit hours)

• EDPY 517 - Direct Assessment and Interventions for Academic Skills Deficits *
• EDPY 515 - Educational Applications of Behavioral Theories of Learning *
• EDPY 636 - Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues in Psychology and Behavior Analysis *
• EDPY 516 - Educational Applications of Cognitive and Affective Models  
• LEES 671 - Advanced Seminar in Theories of Learning  
• LEES 604 - Special Topics  
• CSE 607 - Advanced Seminar in Educational Studies  

Research (15 credit hours)
Must complete the following two research courses

• EDPY 682 - Educational Research Methods  
• EDPY 559 - Introduction to Qualitative Research in Education  

Select three of the following research courses

• EDPY 577 - Statistics in Applied Fields I  
• EDPY 677 - Statistics in Applied Fields II  
• EDPY 678 - Statistics in Applied Fields III  
• EDPY 505 - Quasi-Experimental and Single-Subject Design Research *
• SPED 603 - Reading and Applying Research for Diverse Learners: Single-Subject Approaches *

Cognate (6 credit hours)

Students choose at least two courses from one of the following areas for a cognate: Gifted/Talented Learners, Instructional Strategies in Special Education, Educational Technology or Instructional Technology, Higher Education Administration, or Cultural Studies in Education. Other cognates may be negotiated with the Applied Educational Psychology faculty. (Note: Students planning to work toward BCBA certification will need to complete SPED 430  Applied Behavior Analysis in School Settings and SPED 555  Methods of Teaching Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders to satisfy the Cognate requirement for the AEP PhD or in addition to another Cognate.)

EDPY 600  Doctoral Research and Dissertation (24 credit hours)

Total hours for program = 72 credit hours

*Note: To complete the BCBA curriculum, students must complete EDPY 517 , EDPY 515 , EDPY 636 , SPED 555 , and SPED 430 . In addition, students much choose either EDPY 505  or EDPY 603 .