The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) with a major in art education is designed for individuals who wish to teach pre-service art education or art museum education at the university level or to pursue scholarly inquiry and/or leadership roles in public and private education settings. Applicants to the program must have completed the equivalent of a master’s degree in art education or related field and have obtained teacher certification in art. Those who do not hold a master’s degree in art education or have never obtained teacher certification may still be accepted to the program but may be required to complete additional semester hours of studio art, art education, or certification leveling course work, which will be determined on an individual basis and in consultation with the student’s major advisor.

The program consists of a minimum of 60 hours:

• 12 hours of doctoral core of art education classes
• 12 hours in a specialization (must be approved by major professor)
• 9 hours of research courses
• 6 hours of theoretical/conceptual framework courses (must be approved by major professor)
• 9 hours of electives (it is strongly recommended that 6 of these hours be reserved for the last semester of course work)
• 12 hours of dissertation

Doctoral degrees are conferred in recognition of scholarship as shown by (1) the satisfactory completion of a prescribed course of study, (2) the ability to function at a professional level in the designated area of major, (3) the completion of examinations showing a satisfactory grasp of the field of specialization and its relation to allied areas and (4) the preparation of a dissertation demonstrating ability to investigate a problem with originality and independent thought. The candidate must earn a minimum of 60 hours of graduate credit beyond the master’s degree and must complete the doctoral residence requirement.

Successful completion of a qualifying examination determines admission to candidacy. Once admitted to candidacy by the dean of the Toulouse Graduate School, the doctoral student must conduct independent research in the field of specialization and submit a dissertation. The final oral examination will be a defense of the completed dissertation.

For additional information concerning doctoral study in art education, contact the College of Visual Arts and Design, Department of Art Education.

Satisfactory progress

Each student is expected to make satisfactory progress toward the completion of the doctoral program. Satisfactory progress towards the PhD with a major in art education is defined as the following:

• Degree plan designed and approved prior to the completion of 24 credit hours.
• A 3.0 semester GPA in student’s major area (art education) and a 3.0 cumulative GPA.
• All art education courses passed with a grade of B or better.
• Successfully passing written and oral qualifying examination within one year of completion of course work.
• Final dissertation proposal approved one long term/semester after written/oral qualifying exam.
• Dissertation progress reviews – completed by major professor each term/semester.

Should a student not meet any of the above standards, he or she may be counseled, evaluated as unsatisfactory, placed on academic probation and/or dismissed from the program.

Probation

Any PhD student not meeting satisfactory progress will be notified in writing by the department chair. After receipt of notice of probationary status, the student is required to seek formal counseling with his or her PhD major professor to discuss his/her progress. The student will then be given the following long term/semester to correct the situation. The following are criteria for probation:

• Degree plan has not been completed after 24 credit hours.
• Student’s GPA falls below a 3.0.
• Student receives a grade of C or lower in any one* art education course.
• Student receives two grades of W in any two courses in the same term/semester.
• Fails or does not take either the written or oral examination within one year of completion of course work.
• Dissertation proposal not approved.
• Student fails to make adequate progress on dissertation.

Dismissal

Any PhD student who does not correct the infraction which caused him or her to be placed on probation within the probationary term/semester will be subject to removal from the program. The department chair will notify the student of his or her dismissal in writing with a duplicate for the student’s file and the Toulouse Graduate School. Such notification will cite the reason(s) for removal.

Any student wishing to appeal his or her dismissal from the doctoral program may petition the Graduate Faculty Committee within 30 days of the notification or attempted notification of the student’s removal.

*Note: Receipt of two or more grades of C or lower in any two art education courses, whether in the same term/semester or in separate terms/semesters, is an automatic cause for dismissal from the program.