The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership may admit only candidates who meet the academic requirements for the Ed.D. degree program and who possess personal qualities and professional experiences that suggest a strong potential for success as doctoral candidates and as educational leaders. Meeting the minimum requirements qualifies an individual for consideration, but does not guarantee admission to the Program. Admission will be granted on a competitive basis.

The Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership 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 grade point average in upper division and graduate studies of 3.0 or above;
• Sufficient preparation and graduate training and experience pertinent to educational leadership to benefit from the Program;
• Demonstrated educational leadership potential and skills including successful experience in school, postsecondary, community, and/or policy leadership;
• Three letters of recommendation attesting to the leadership, ability, and scholarship of the candidate;
• A written statement of purpose and answer to three prompts reflecting an understanding of the challenges facing the public schools or community colleges/institutions of higher education in California;
  Professional resume,
• Examples of professional writings;
• Applicants will be invited for an interview with the Admissions Committee after a full review of the application.

Other university graduate admissions standards for graduate students also apply to all Ed.D. candidates.

How to Apply

Applicants must complete both the Cal State Apply and Supplemental Application to be considered for admission. Please note that this is subject to change for Fall 2024. 

 

1) Cal State Apply

Applicants can visit https://calstate.edu/apply and scroll down to a dropdown box. On October 1, ‘Fall 2024’ will be an available option. Select ‘Fall 2024’ and click 'Apply.’

 

You will then be able to either log in or create an account. Once you have an account, you can select our program - Educational Leadership (Ed.D.) at Fresno State. There will be four options - P-12 Online or Face-to-Face or CC/HE Online or Face-to-Face.

You will then need to complete the information in all four sections of the application: Personal Information, Academic History, Supporting Information, and Program Materials.

 

 

Program Materials - Recommendations

The last section contains the opportunity to add your three recommenders’ information. This will automatically send them an email request to complete their recommendation rubric and upload their letter. During the process, you will be able to track here if your recommendation is complete.

 

 
2) Supplemental Application

The Supplemental Application will be a form to fill out your information, submit your statement of purpose and answers to three essay prompts, and upload your CV/Resume and writing sample.
 
You will receive an email confirmation once we receive all of your application materials. We will also send reminders periodically if we are missing pieces of your application.

 

Application Tips

• Please be consistent with what modality and strand you select for both Cal State Apply and our Supplemental Application.
• Please send all official transcripts digitally directly from your institution to imaging@csufresno.edu. Staff cannot accept transcripts in our inboxes.
  
  • If digital is not an option, you can send the transcripts to: Graduate Admissions Office, 5150 North Maple, JA 57, Fresno, CA 93740-8026.
  • You may contact Graduate Admissions (graduateadmissions@mail.fresnostate.edu) to follow up on the receipt of your transcripts. If we do not receive your transcripts by the application deadline, do not fret. We will need them at the time of admission.
• You can access our PDF preview of the supplemental application at the button above this box. This can be useful to prepare your statement of purpose and answers to the three essay prompts. When you are ready to submit your application, you can copy and paste your answers from your document to the form.

No more than nine (9) units of transfer and/or California State University, Fresno Extension semester credits may be transferred into the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership at Fresno State pending review by the director. Courses cannot be counted towards an already completed degree.

Any units accepted by the program director may be counted toward the specialization courses and may not be counted towards completion of the core courses. Courses must be graduate-level courses with a grade of B or better. Course syllabi, catalog descriptions of the courses, and a copy of the transcript showing the posted grades for the courses must be submitted to the program director along with the request to accept the transfer credits.

The California State University has established the CSU Education Doctorate State University Fee for students enrolled in the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership. The CSU Education Doctorate State University Fee rate is linked to the University of California graduate fee rate and will be subject to the same fee increases assessed by the University of California.

The CSU Education Doctorate State University Fee rate is currently $6379.50 for the Fall 2022 term. Doctoral students will attend three semester terms per year (fall, spring, and summer) and eight semesters in total. Students in the online program are expected to pay $500 for each of the two Summer Residencies in which they participate. All fees are subject to change. Please refer to the following website for more up-to-date information: Fees

Official transcripts are to be sent digitally to imaging@csufresno.edu directly from the institution. If sending digitally is not an option, transcripts should be forwarded to: Graduate Admissions Office, 5150 North Maple, JA 57, Fresno, CA 93740-8026. You may contact Graduate Admissions (graduateadmissions@mail.fresnostate.edu) to follow up on the receipt of your transcripts.