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For questions about this site, please contact:
Todd.Greenspan@ucop.edu
(510) 987-9430

Last updated August 1, 2007

 

The Ed.D. and doctoral degree issue

In Master Plan deliberations beginning in 2001, the California State University sought a change in the Master Plan's delineation of function to allow it to offer the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) degree. The University of California opposed this change.

In November 2001, CSU and UC reached agreement on the issue and agreed to establish a new Joint Ed.D. program.

The Legislature passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 93 (Res. Ch. 157) in 2002 supporting these programs.  Since then, six new CSU/UC Joint Ed.D. Degree programs have begun involving 6 UC campuses and 13 CSU campuses.  

Four new programs were enrolling students as of Winter 2005 and two more have accepted applications and are expected to begin in Summer and Fall 2005, respectively.  Including expanded enrollments in the CSU Fresno/UC Davis Joint Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership (JDPEL), Joint CSU/UC Ed.D. programs are now on track to enroll 400-500 doctoral students each year and to produce about 150 new Ed.D. degrees each year.

UC submitted its legislative report on the progress of the Joint CSU/UC programs as required by SCR 93 on March 24, 2005:

  • SCR 93 report cover letter [pdf]
  • SCR 93 report [pdf]
  • SCR 93 report table of Joint Ed.D. programs[1 page pdf]
  • Table of all CSU/UC Joint Doctoral programs [1 page pdf]

    • 2005 legislation (SB 724) making an exception to the Master Plan for Higher Education
    to allow CSU to award a specific Ed.D. in educational leadership

    Despite the progress on the Joint CSU/UC Ed.D. Degree programs, the Senator Jack Scott introduced legislation on behalf of CSU in 2005 to alter the Master Plan to award independent doctorates in education and other professional and clinical fields.  The University of California opposed this legislative change. On June 30th, UC and CSU reached compromise on a proposal to make an exception to the Master Plan to allow CSU to award an independent Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) Degree specifically designed for K-12 and community college administrators.

  • Chaptered legislation -- SB 724 (Ch. 269, 2005)
  • Joint UC/CSU statement on the compromise (7/5/05)
  • UC letter removing opposition after compromise was reached with CSU (7/5/05)
  • UC letter of opposition to SB 724 -- Assembly Higher Education Committee (6/22/05)
  • UC letter of opposition to SB 724 -- Senate Appropriations Committee (4/29/05)
  • UC letter of opposition to SB 724, as amended 4/5/05 [pdf] (4/11/05)
  • UC letter of opposition to SB 724 [pdf] (3/23/05)
  • Senate Education Committee analysis of SB 724
  • Provost Greenwood's prepared testimony to the Senate Education Committee (4/13/05)
  • UCSF Executive Vice Chancellor Washington's testimony to the Senate Education Committee (4/13/05)
    • A March 2005 report by Arthur Levine, the president of Teachers College, Columbia University, examines the Ed.D. from a nationwide perspective. That report calls for the abolition of the Ed.D. Degree and the creation of a focused Master's degree.

    Selected California Educational Leadership Programs

    Selected Correspondence

    Selected Documents

    CPEC report

    Selected Press Coverage 2005
    Selected Press Coverage 2000-2001