DOCTORAL STUDENT SCHOLAR GUIDE
EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS
The Graduate Scholar Guide has been developed to assist prospective and new scholars in learning more about the department and specialized program areas. Further, the Guide addresses frequently asked questions about issues related to the university and department.
In many cases, the graduate scholar is the person primarily responsible for initiating and completing many required actions, with the guidance and consent of the Major Advisor.
Admissions
Applying to a doctoral program at UNT is a two-step process which involves meeting the application requirements of the Toulouse Graduate School as well as the academic department. Requirements for the Graduate School may be viewed at http://tsgs.unt.edu/admissions/programs. Requirements for the Department of Educational Psychology may be viewed at http://www.coe.unt.edu/educational-psychology/doctoral-and-masters-admissions.
· Once all application requirements have been met and all required materials received, an application is reviewed holistically by a faculty committee. Recommendations are made to the department Chair who will render an official final decision.
· Questions regarding admissions, the application process, or application status, please contact Laura Musgrove Coleman at or 940-565-3486.
· Newly admitted scholars are assigned an initial faculty advisor, but have the freedom to change advisors in the future.
Graduate Financial Support
The Educational Psychology Department has a limited number of competitive assistantship positions for which admitted doctoral students may apply. These positions are intended for full-time enrolled doctoral scholars who are not working outside of UNT. Scholars on assistantships are expected to provide a combination of the services (i.e., Teaching Assistant, Teaching Fellow, or Research Assistant) for 20 hours/week. The assignments are made each semester based on department need. Once admitted, scholars may request an application form to apply for an assistantship.
· There are several department scholarships. Application forms and information may be viewed at http://www.coe.unt.edu/educational-psychology/scholarships.
· The College of Education provides scholarships. Additional information may be viewed at http://www.coe.unt.edu/scholarships/college-education-scholarships.
· There are funding opportunities are provided by the Toulouse Graduate School and may be viewed at http://tsgs.unt.edu/graduatelife/toulouse_fellowships_scholarships.
· Financial Aid and loan information may be available. Access http://financialaid.unt.edu/
for information.
· Department faculties often have research grants for which they need graduate scholar support. Scholars may check with their advisors and/or other faculty to inquire about possibilities.
· A wide variety of on-campus jobs are available to students and may be viewed at http://careercenter.unt.edu/employment/gradStudentResources.
CURRENT AND NEW STUDENTS
EPSY
Students are encouraged to be part of the learning community of doctoral students and faculty as well as their profession.
· Mathews Hall 322 is set aside for doctoral student work space and a place to network with other doctoral students.
· Students are encouraged to develop leadership and networking opportunities through participation in:
· Doctoral Student Association
· Professional association affiliates
UNT
Students are expected to read information on the Toulouse Graduate School website.
New students will find the Graduate Student Success Manual particularly helpful at https://tsgs.unt.edu/graduatelife
Registration
An overview of registration may be viewed at http://essc.unt.edu/registrar/overview.html. The schedule of classes is updated for each term at http://essc.unt.edu/registrar/schedule/scheduleclass.html. Below are some helpful hints:
· Always refer to your approved degree plan and/or faculty advisor before enrolling in courses.
· If courses need a permission code or are currently full, please contact Laura Musgrove Coleman at or 940-565-3486 for assistance.
· For instructions on using the EIS Student Center for Registration, please go to the Help for Scholars page at: http://essc.unt.edu/eis/students.htm.
· If you are unable to register, make certain you are eligible to enroll during the dates and check the My Holds box on MyUNT page. There are often holds on student accounts that can be removed online.
· When searching for courses, always unclick the ‘view open sections only’ box. This way you will see if a class is being offered but is already full, and can add yourself to a wait list.
· If registering for online courses for the first time, or you are unfamiliar with UNT’s online teaching (Blackboard), you can take the tutorial at http://ondemand.blackboard.com/students.htm.
· Register early and pay on time= the best way to ensure you will get the courses you need!
KEEPING ON TRACK
Forms
Graduate scholars will find there are numerous forms—one for every milestone/procedure. Below are links to specific forms:
· Links to most academic forms can be found on our Resources site at http://www.coe.unt.edu/educational-psychology/resources
· If you have questions about where to find a particular form, please contact Laura Musgrove Coleman at or 940-565-3486.
Degree Milestones for Doctoral Scholars
All doctoral students in the Department of Educational Psychology are required to successfully accomplish the following tasks/milestones (also see flowchart):
· Assist his/her academic advisor in preparing and submitting the degree plan before the end of his/her first or second semester following admission and fully follow that degree plan. Any subsequent changes to the degree plan must be signed and submitted by the advisor, and approved by the department and the UNT Graduate School;
· Pass the DEPARTMENTAL CORE EXAM no later than the semester after completing 24 required doctoral level credit hours (this also includes any transferred courses that are approved by the department to replace the CORE doctoral courses). Failure to take the test during that semester earns a “Failed” designation for the exam (students are responsible for tracking this and making sure they do not pass the deadline). Work with faculty advisor to ensure courses that cover the Core competency areas are taken first.
· Pass the QUALIFYING EXAM (see below) no later than the semester after he/she completes all required courses. This will admit the student to Candidacy (ABD). Dissertation hours are not permitted until a student has passed the Qualifying Exam. Student should consult with advisor for appropriate planning or to request an exception.
· Begin taking dissertation hours with his/her selected Major Professor after passing the Qualifying Exam; See Continuous Enrollment policy regarding dissertation hours in the UNT Graduate Catalog.
· Attend two proposal defenses in the department and submit a Certificate of Participation signed by the Chair of each attended proposal; Information on defenses are emailed to all students with the time/date.
· Under the supervision of his/her Major Professor, prepare a dissertation proposal and defend it. Dissertations consist of two manuscripts (one for proposal defense, and a second for the final defense) and additional sections, as advised by the Major Professor (please see the details attached).
· Attend two final dissertation defenses in the department and submit a Certificate of Participation signed by the Chair of each attended defense; Information on defenses are emailed to all students with the time/date.
· Under the supervision of his/her dissertation Chair, prepare the final version of the dissertation and defend it.
REQUIRED COMPREHENSIVE EXAM
Doctoral students in EPSY are required to take a 2-step comprehensive exam, at two pre-specified time periods:
(1) DEPARTMENTAL CORE EXAM is taken no later than the long semester after the student completes 24 hours of required coursework. This exam is in-house, conducted once per regular semester, and includes doctoral competencies in four broad areas described below;
(2) QUALIFYING EXAM is taken during the long semester that the student completes the last of his/her required courses. This will admit the student to Candidacy (ABD). This exam will start on a fixed date once each long semester, but its structure and format is determined and announced by each Concentration faculty (i.e., may be take-home or in-house, written and/or oral).
(1) DEPARTMENTAL CORE EXAM:
The EPSY CORE exam will include 100 multiple-choice or similar items (e.g., fill-in-the- blank or matching) in four categories of competencies (25 items per competency area) that have been covered in the departmental and/or degree core courses. Each competency area is covered in more than one of these courses (i.e., there is no one-to-one correspondence between each area and a single course). A list of general topic areas under each competency will be provided on the EPSY web site for the exam:
1. Educational Psychology (Foundations and Learning Theory)
2. Human Development/Life Span
3. Statistics/Quantitative Data Analysis, and
4. Research Methods
The following sections provide further information about the exam and its components:
(a) The Core Exam will be administered on a set date once each Fall and Spring semester. Each student must take the exam no later than the semester after finishing 24 required hours. Otherwise, a score of zero is assigned for that test administration (leaving one more opportunity for passing the exam in the following long semester, as in section d below).
(b) The test will take 4 hours, with questions randomly generated from item pools that have been constructed/approved by faculty. Two competency areas are included in the 2-hour morning session, and two in the 2-hour afternoon session.
(c) In 2014-2016, the dates for the EPSY CORE Exam are as follows:
October 16, 2014
March 12, 2015
October 15, 2015
March 10, 2016
(d) To pass the exam, students must score 80% overall AND 60% on each of the 4 competency areas. Students who do not meet the 80% threshold on the entire exam must retake the full exam again during the next long semester. Students who meet the 80% total threshold, but do not meet the 60% passing in any one competency area must retake the exam for that competency area during the following long semester. If the 80% overall (followed by the 60% on all competency areas) threshold is not achieved on the second attempt, the student will be given notice of discontinuation from the Ph.D. program.
(e) No specific feedback will be provided regarding students’ performance on items on the test.
(f) The exam is required for all students admitted in or after 2013. It is optional for all others, in lieu of taking it as a part of their regular (current) Comprehensive Exam. Each Concentration will independently plan and administer this process and will advise its students accordingly.
(g) No study aide or material (including the internet) will be permitted during the course of the exam. Students may use calculators and scrap paper for their work, but no other software programs (e.g., Excel or SPSS) are allowed.
Students who plan to take the core exam must register by emailing at least 4 weeks prior to the exam.
(2) QUALIFYING EXAM:
This exam is scheduled once per semester on pre-specified dates (see below). It is required of all students no later than the long semester during which they complete their last required doctoral class (es). This will admit the student to candidacy (ABD), allowing them to take dissertation hours. Student should work closely with advisor to plan for this, and request an exception if deemed necessary.
· The Qualifying Exam is scheduled on a fixed date once per semester, but its structure and format is determined and announced by each Concentration (i.e., may be take-home or in-house, written and/or oral).
· The Qualifying Exam includes core competencies in the student’s Concentration, including advanced research methods and statistics applications and any other areas deemed important by the Concentration.
· The structure and content of this exam is determined by Concentration faculty who may decide to make it an on-site or take-home exam (to be picked up on day 1, with a set period of days to return), over one or both of the scheduled days, with or without an oral exam component, or any combination of these options. Concentration faculty advise students about the structure, content, and format of this exam.
Dates for Qualifying Exam are as follows:
October 16-17, 2014
March 12-13, 2015
October 15-16, 2015
March 10-11, 2016
Structure of Dissertation Committees
· Membership: The dissertation committee shall consist of a minimum of four members with Graduate Faculty status--two from the concentration area, one from the other Ph. D. program in EPSY, and one open outside of the concentration. Associate Graduate Faculty (e.g., Lecturers, Senior Lecturers) may serve as a 5th member.
· Preferred/encouraged format:
►For proposal defenses: A quality review manuscript, plus a full proposal and any attachments/appendices required by the committee members or UNT.
►For final defenses: A full-length publishable manuscript reporting the entire project (in addition to the review manuscript above), plus any attachments/appendices required by the committee members or UNT. The role of committee includes feedback similar to a professional journal reviewer group.
►The traditional format for dissertations, although not preferred, is still acceptable.
Writing
It is expected that all graduate scholars are able to write clearly and adhere to the rules of standard English. Further, all graduate scholars in the Department of Educational Psychology are expected to become proficient in the use of the American Psychological Association Publications Manual (6th ed.) which is required in all EPSY courses and dissertations.
For scholars who need to enhance their writing skills, there are several on-campus resources which you may access.
· UNT Writing Center
· UNT Learning Center
· Graduate School resources
· Writing Resources: http://tsgs.unt.edu/graduatelife/writing
· Graduate Workshops: http://tsgs.unt.edu/graduatelife/workshops
Journal Article Format for Dissertations
EPSY Department
Journal Article FormatNew format, Preferred for all EPSY Dissertations / Traditional Format (old, not encouraged for EPSY)
Proposal
- Literature Review Manuscript: formatted as an article for submission to a journal and adheres to formatting and all submission guidelines of a specific journal. In the absence of a specific journal, APA format is preferred and length should be no more than 30 pages inclusive of references, figures, and tables.
- Proposed Project: Beginning of the empirical manuscript that will be required for the final defense. This document includes the Introduction and Methods sections. Methods section should restate the research questions (RQ)/objectives and/or hypothesized relationships (as applicable), data sources (or sample selection procedures/rationale), planned data collection procedures, and planned data analyses for each RQ in sufficient detail for committee members to determine the appropriateness of the methods proposed.
- Appendices: Any other elements the student and Major Professor (MP) determine to be relevant for committee review. For example, the appendices may include an extended literature review if the MP determines the Literature Review Manuscript referenced above is insufficient. However, such appendices are not necessary or required by the Department. / Proposal
- Chapter 1 – Introduction
- Chapter 2 – Literature Review
- Chapter 3 – Method
Final Dissertation
- A single empirical manuscript suitable/ready for submission to a quality professional journal in the student’s area of specialization. The journal should be identified, and the manuscript should adhere to the journal’s submission guidelines regarding formatting and length.
- If necessary (i.e., if the results are too lengthy for this manuscript), a second, or third formatted manuscript may be included to present the remaining results. Often, this added manuscript contains a highly similar literature review but with different methods, results, and discussion to address the additional research questions.
- At the final defense, the student will present/defend all research questions and/or hypotheses from the approved proposal, regardless of whether those RQs or hypotheses appear in the formatted manuscript for journal submission.
- Appendices: Any other elements the student, Major Professor, and the committee determine to be relevant for committee review. / Final Dissertation Document
- Chapter 1 – Introduction
- Chapter 2 – Literature Review
- Chapter 3 – Method
- Chapter 4 – Results
- Chapter 5 – Discussion
EXPECTATIONS OF DOCTORAL STUDENTS