Admissions & Application - Program Overview
Of pivotal concern for our public schools is leadership with the professional habits, dispositions and courage to redress injustice based on race, class and gender prejudices. The principal goal of the Educational Leadership for Social Justice Program (ELSJ) is to further develop and encourage bold, socially responsible leaders committed to create schools where students of color and poor children achieve at high levels of success.
Admissions Criteria
To be considered for admission to the ELSJ program, an applicant must be (1)experienced PK-12 administrator, in a position with significant leadership responsibilities, such as principal, director/coordinator, executive leadership at district/county/program levels, and (2) committed to continuing as a public school administrator who influences excellence and equity.
To be admitted to the ELSJ program, applicants must meet the academic requirements as well as demonstrate professional experiences and academic skills that suggest a strong potential for success as doctoral candidates and as bold, socially responsible educational leaders. Meeting the minimum requirements qualifies an individual for consideration, but does not guarantee admission to the ELSJ program. Admission will be granted on a competitive basis and limited to 20 candidates on an annual basis. The ELSJ program will not include a foreign language requirement.
The ELSJ program requires the following of all applicants for admission to the doctoral program:
- an earned baccalaureate degree and master's degree from accredited institutions of higher education with a GPA in graduate study of 3.0 or above;
- submission of Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores from within the last five years; GRE® General Test Overview
- demonstrated leadership skills and abilities in PK-12 schools or closely related fields (e.g., school reform networks, policy institutions);
- demonstrated and documented professional or personal commitment to equity and social justice;
- demonstrated academic excellence;
- professional experiences which demonstrate problem-solving ability and an interest in critically assessing current educational policies and practices;
- three confidential recommendation forms attesting to the leadership ability, equity commitment and capacity of the candidate to undertake doctoral-level work;
- professional resume;
- a written response to a writing prompt concerning issues of school effectiveness and the challenges facing leaders in bringing about sustained change that will result in equitable outcomes for all students in California;
- a portfolio of at least one, and no more than three, samples of work that demonstrate how the candidate’s leadership has made a difference in student learning outcomes – for each item, include a brief paragraph that identifies the issue represented by the item, the desired goal, and what the item illustrates about the candidate’s competencies;
- Employer/District Support Agreement stating support for the candidate’s doctoral studies from her/his employer or, in the cases where this is not provided, an individual plan for meeting the demands of the program and his/her professional responsibilities, including support systems that the individual expects to access.
