Educational Specialist
Leadership

Total cost:

$12,184 View Tuition Details

Application due date for January 9, 2023 term: January 6

Estimated time to completion: 21 months

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Take your career further.

The Educational Specialist in Leadership degree is designed for leaders who wish to pursue advanced training at the post-master’s level without having to complete a dissertation. You will learn advanced leadership skills and competencies that will make you a more effective leader.
#4

in the nation for most master's degrees awarded in education*.

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Key Features of Our Educational Specialist Degree

  • Advanced Coursework You will learn the fundamentals of how to write and perform research at the doctoral level.
  • Transferable If you choose to continue your education, you can apply most of the credits earned in this specialist program toward our Ed.D. in Leadership and get your degree faster.
  • Flexible Study on your schedule. Our online format allows you to plan your coursework around your life.
  • Comprehensive Approach In order to advance your leadership skills and competencies, you will study leadership skills in diverse areas: strategic operations, human capital management, organizational behavior and culture, coaching, and leadership models.

A few of the classes you'll take.

  • RES6222 Crafting a Concept Paper 2 semester credits
  • LEAD6001 Introduction to Advanced Studies 1 semester credit
  • LEAD6163 Management of Human Capital 3 semester credits
  • LEAD6193 Capstone in Leadership 3 semester credits
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Keep exploring.

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Jason Cohen, Ed.D.

Department Chair

Jason Cohen, Ed.D.
Chair, Leadership and Administration,
Department of Leadership and Administration
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A degree you can count on.

American College of Education is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission— a federally-recognized accrediting agency. The College’s accreditation includes approval to offer degree programs, in education, healthcare, nursing and business and leadership through distance education via the Internet. Accreditation ensures that an institution’s academic program meets or exceeds acceptable levels of quality and is the most recognized accreditation status for higher education entities. To receive and maintain HLC accreditation and affiliation approval, we must continuously undergo routine peer review cycles and provide proof that our programs meet or exceed HLC accreditation criteria and expectations of quality.

*Source: https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/use-the-data

A Note About Licensure:

While this program provides a comprehensive understanding of the intended program outcomes, it does not lead to licensure, certification, or endorsement. ACE offers several programs that do provide a pathway to licensure, certification, or endorsement and they can be found here.

Disclaimer:

** The Ed.S. in Leadership is designed principally for educators and other leaders who already possess licensure or certification as a teacher or school administrator, and who wish to expand their understanding of evidence-based leadership. The degree does not lead to professional licensure, nor does it include an internship.

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Home / Programs / Ed.S. in Leadership

Tuition

Ed.S. in Leadership

Total Tuition

34 semester credits
x $306 per credit

$10,404

Fees

$100 Application Fee

$1,530 Technology & Library Fee
($45 per credit)

$150 Program Conferral Fee

$1,780

Total Program Cost*

$12,184

On average, see how ACE compares to other online universities.

How We Cut Costs

Let’s find a plan that fits your budget.

Even without federal loans, there are plenty of ways to finance your education at ACE. When you’re ready to invest in yourself, explore our flexible payment and financing options. Our Student Services reps are available to help you create a workable plan whatever your financial circumstances.

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1This is an estimated value of the cost for tuition and fees. Amounts may vary depending on number of transfer credits applied to the selected program hours or program pathway credit hours, the pace and satisfactory completion of the selected program or program pathway credit hours, receipt of, or eligibility for, institutional or non-institutional scholarship and/or grant amounts, and adjustments to tuition or fees as described in the Catalog Right to Modify Tuition section.

State of California Student Tuition Recovery Fund (STRF)

It is a state of California requirement that a student who pays his or her tuition is required to pay a state-imposed assessment two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50) per one thousand dollars ($1,000) of institutional charges, rounded to the nearest thousand dollars, for the California Student Tuition Recovery Fund. For more information and to see if you must pay the state-imposed assessment for Student Tuition Recovery Fund (STRF) click here.

Home / Programs / Ed.S. in Leadership

Admission Requirements

Ed.S. in Leadership

ACE General Admission Requirements

  • Complete and submit all application components including the admission application, the enrollment agreement, and the payment agreement.
  • Submit the nonrefundable application fee.*
  • Provide official transcripts from a regionally accredited institution indicating successful completion of the level of education required for entry to the program.**

*The application fee is valid for one year from date of submission.
**Additional evidence may be required to fulfill state requirements, including but not limited to verification of professional experience, test scores, or an interview.

Program Admission Requirements

Ed.S. in Leadership

  • ​Master's or doctoral level
  • Minimum grade point average 2.50 on a 4.00 scale for full admission
  • Minimum cumulative grade point average 2.0 on a 4.0 scale for provisional admission
  • Submit a current curriculum vitae (preferred) or resume
  • Submit a goal statement, in response to a department-specific prompts
  • Complete an interview
  • Applicants must achieve and maintain a 3.0 GPA throughout their program

International Transcript Requirements

All applicants must submit to the Admissions Office official, sealed college transcripts from each institution attended.

  • Transcripts that are international and/or not in English must be evaluated through an NACES-recommended agency.
  • Texas applicants may only submit evaluations from agencies approved by the Texas Education Agency.
  • International applicants must request the course-by-course evaluation. The evaluation report must show that the non-U.S. education is equivalent to the education/accreditation level required for the program.

English as a Second Language Applicants

All applicants whose first language is not English must demonstrate competence in the English language as demonstrated in one of three ways:

  1. Submission of an official transcript showing a degree from a United States secondary school or regionally accredited college/university.

  2. Submission of an official minimum score on the paper or internet-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exams.
    • The minimum TOEFL score required for the internet-based version is 80, and the paper-based version requires a minimum TOEFL score of 20 for each of the three skills: Reading, Listening, and, Writing.

    • The minimum IELTS score required is 6.5. Note: IELTS is not acceptable for Texas programs leading to certification.

    • The testing agency must send test scores directly to American College of Education.
  3. Applicants to the Texas Educational Leadership program whose first language is not English must submit a minimum scaled score of 24 for speaking, 22 for listening, 22 for reading, and 21 for writing from the Internet-Based TOEFL (IBT) or evidence of an undergraduate or graduate degree earned at an institution of higher education in a country outside of the United States listed in Figure: 19 TAC §230.11(b)(5)(C).

Home / Programs / Ed.S. in Leadership

Courses

Ed.S. in Leadership

Explore the classes you'll take to fulfill this program's 34 semester credit requirement. For more information, a complete list of requirements, and course options, see the College Catalog.

Leadership Courses

(25 semester credits)

Students will undertake an examination of the rigors of advanced graduate study and reflect on personal strengths and challenges at the start of their program. Topics include: identity as scholar-practitioner, models of inquiry, self-assessment, and professional goals.
Students will examine principles and concepts of finance at local, state, federal, and international levels; strategies for maximizing and obtaining financial resources and economic issues of the third sector.
Students will evaluate and compare different leadership and coaching models, analyze the relationship between leadership effectiveness and leadership coaching and determine appropriate-ness of each type of leadership and coaching for diverse settings.
Students will design, develop, and implement models of strategic planning that exhibit innovation.
The course emphasizes principles and practices of personnel administration, including recruitment, selection, evaluation, staff development, and employee relations. Students will evaluate best practices for working with volunteer boards, advisory councils, and external stakeholders.
The course focus is on theory, research, and practices related to ethical administration. Students will assess ethical decision making and implications for policy.
Students will model and promote responsible global citizenship. As reflective practitioners, students will examine and critique culturally relevant practices in a variety of contexts. 
This course examines how structure, values, and behavior impact an organization and its culture. Students analyze how leadership theories can be integrated and applied into advanced leadership roles.
The Capstone Experience is designed for candidates to demonstrate and document the impact their knowledge and competencies gained throughout and as a result of the Educational Specialist in Leadership program. Pre-requisite: Completion of 27 hours at the 6000 level.

Research Courses

(9 semester credits)

This course provides students the opportunity to complete an approved concept paper as the first step toward the Ed.S. original research project. Students will apply advanced research skills to address a real-world application of scholarly expertise as it relates to solving an existing problem. A description of the project will provide the rationale for the goals and objectives and includes a literature review, methodology, and the anticipated results of the research project.
This course provides learners with the foundation and practical application of research methods and designs. Emphasis will be placed on evaluating research literature and aligning the components of qualitative and quantitative methods and designs. Students will explore theoretical frameworks for research studies and dissertations. Ethical practices in research will also be explored.
This course examines basic principles in applied statistics. Topics include data types, organizing data, graphing techniques, probability concepts, measures of central tendency, measures of dispersion, normal and skewed distributions, and understanding the area that covers normal distributions. Understanding, applying, and interpreting the principles to of simple hypothesis testing methods through a seven-step process is are also covered. The course is designed to provide an introduction to statistical applications that can be applied in real-world settings. along with providing an excellent foundation for entering into the more advanced statistical applications and analyses using SPSS.
This course examines the importance of scholarly writing in your leadership practice, the foundation of how to write in a scholarly mode, and research strategies to support your doctoral writing. 
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