Academic
Catalog August 2008 - August 2009 Undergraduate
and Graduate
The following section describes the general requirements for our doctoral programs. You can find specific information about your academic plan in the NAU’s Academic Plans section and by contacting your department.
The following requirements pertain to all doctoral students pursuing the doctor of education degree.
The purpose of our doctoral residency requirement is to provide you with opportunities for conferences, seminars, individual study, and interaction with resident faculty and other graduate students.
To make this possible, you must agree to remain free from outside activities that would detract from your scholarly study, research, writing, and the other professional activities that further your program of study. You cannot satisfy this residency requirement while working full time.
We define residency as carrying a minimum load of 9 units during a semester or 5 units during a summer session. In all cases, the courses you take must be approved by your adviser and program committee. Course credits counting toward your residency requirement accrue only after you have been formally admitted to your program.
The specific residency requirements for the Ed.D. degree vary by academic major as follows.
Curriculum and Instruction
After being admitted to a Flagstaff-based program, you can meet the residency requirement in one of two ways.
by completing at least two sequential semesters at NAU-Flagstaff, which can include either or both academic-year and summer semesters (two five-week summer terms are equal to one semester)
or by completing at least two semesters at NAU-Flagstaff that are not sequential, which can include either or both academic-year and summer semesters
Educational Leadership
You must satisfy the residency requirement by completing at least 24 units of coursework on the Flagstaff campus that meets the conditions described in the preceding section (titled Residency Requirements) or by pursuing an alternative residency plan approved by the department. You must indicate on your program of study how you plan to fulfill this requirement.
Normally, you must be enrolled as a full-time student during the semesters, summer sessions, or workshop terms in which you are earning residency credit. Working part time (for instance in a graduate assistantship) is permissible; however, working full time, on or off campus, does not satisfy the residency requirement.
Pending a favorable faculty decision on admission, you may count your residency from the semester you complete your application portfolio.
If you are an NAU employee earning a degree in educational leadership, consult with the Graduate College for the most current residency requirement applying to your status.
Regardless of which Ed.D. degree you are pursuing, you must apply for admission to candidacy after you:
have been admitted to the program
complete the courses listed on your program of studies with a grade point average of 3.0 or better
complete your residency requirement
submit an approved dissertation prospectus
successfully complete your comprehensive written exams
You can get the form for applying for candidacy from the Graduate College or your department. After you complete this form, submit it to your adviser for approval and subsequent submission to the Graduate College. If we do not approve your admission to doctoral candidacy, your enrollment will be terminated.
Students who are admitted to an Ed.D. or Ph.D. program with an earned master's degree have eight years to complete all requirements for the doctoral degree. The eight years starts with your first semester of doctoral study at NAU. If you do not complete the degree in eight years you may petition the Graduate College for one extension of this time limit.
To be eligible to graduate with the Ed.D. degree, you must have been admitted to candidacy and must meet the following requirements.
You must complete an approved program of study beyond the bachelor's degree totaling at least 90 credit units of graduate work.
You must complete a dissertation in your area of emphasis. Please note that you may end up taking more units of dissertation (799) credit than you can count toward your degree because you must register for dissertation credit each semester while you are working on your dissertation.
You must pass a final oral exam covering your dissertation. Your dissertation committee may also require a written comprehensive exam if your chair presents evidence of the need for such an exam.
The following general requirements pertain to all students pursuing the doctor of philosophy degree.
You can find additional information about your specific degree program in the Academic Programs chapter of this catalog and by contacting your department.
The purpose of our doctoral residency requirement is to provide you with opportunities for conferences, seminars, individual study, and interaction with resident faculty and other graduate students.
To make this possible, you must agree to remain free from outside activities that would detract from your scholarly study, research, writing, and the other professional activities that further your program of study. If you work full time, you cannot satisfy this residency requirement.
You must spend two consecutive semesters of full-time study in residence after you have been admitted to your degree program. We define residency as carrying at least 9 units during a semester or 5 units during a summer session. In all cases, the courses you take must be approved by your adviser and program committee. You can only accrue course credits counting toward your residency requirement after you have been formally admitted to your program.
The Ph.D. in Educational Psychology requires that two consecutive semesters be Fall and Spring during the academic year to meet full-time residency requirements.
You must apply for candidacy on a form supplied by the Graduate College, which you submit to your adviser for approval and subsequent submission to the Graduate College.
Before applying for candidacy, you must have satisfied the following requirements.
You must remove any course deficiencies specified by your committee.
You must have your program of study and research plan approved by your graduate committee and filed in the Graduate College, and you must have completed all coursework on the program of study except your dissertation.
You must have completed your residency requirement.
You must submit an approved dissertation prospectus.
You must demonstrate reading competence in one foreign language (in an exam administered by the Department of Modern Languages) or in a research skill if approved for your program by the University Graduate Committee. (If you are a doctoral student in biology or forestry, you may, in consultation with your graduate program committee, select either the foreign-language option or the research-skill option.) (Educational psychology students must complete the research-skill option.)
You must successfully complete a comprehensive written and oral exam administered by your department. Ordinarily, you take the comprehensive exam no less than six months before your final oral exam (dissertation defense).
After your application for candidacy has been approved, you will be notified by the Graduate College. If your admission to doctoral candidacy is not approved, your enrollment will be terminated.
Students who are admitted to an Ed.D. or Ph.D. program with an earned master's degree have eight years to complete all requirements for the doctoral degree. The eight years starts with your first semester of doctoral study at NAU. If you do not complete the degree in eight years you may petition the Graduate College for one extension of this time limit.
Students who start the Ed.D. or Ph.D. program with a bachelor's degree have ten years to complete all requirements for the doctoral degree.
To be eligible to graduate with the Ph.D. degree, you must have been admitted to candidacy and have met the following requirements.
You must complete an approved program of studies totaling the number of credit units specified for your program. We require at least six semesters beyond the bachelor’s degree to complete your degree.
You must complete a dissertation on a topic related to your major area of emphasis, and your committee must approve it. You can apply at least 15 dissertation (799) units toward your degree; (9 units of 799 for the Ph.D. in Educational Psychology.) However, you may end up taking additional units--because you must register for dissertation credit each semester while you work on your dissertation.
You must pass a final oral exam (dissertation defense) primarily over your area of research. This exam is administered by your dissertation committee.
The doctor of physical therapy is a clinical doctoral plan emphasizing didactic study and clinical experience. This degree emphasizes the development of competencies in examination, evaluation, diagnosis, application of interventions, and evidence-based practice in order to fully prepare you to meet emerging health care needs.
The entry-level doctoral degree, designed for individuals who wish to enter into the physical therapy profession, requires 111 units beyond an earned baccalaureate degree and prerequisite course completion.
The post professional doctoral degree, designed for the physical therapist wishing to earn the clinical doctoral degree, requires 45 units beyond the earned physical therapy degree and licensure to practice physical therapy within the United States.