PhD in Higher Education Admission Criteria

Criteria for admission to the Higher Education Concentration in the PhD in Higher Education are as follows:

1.   A completed master's degree in an appropriate discipline from a regionally accredited university. Degrees that are equivalent to a masters degree such as L.L.B., J.D., and D.D.S. are also acceptable.

2.   A minimum GPA of 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale) overall for the masters degree and in the major area of study in the masters degree.

3.   Minimum of 1000 overall total score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and a minimum of 500 on both the verbal and quantitative sections of the GRE. Prospective students must score a minimum of 4.5 on the analytical writing portion of the GRE. GRE scores expire after five years; however, candidates who have completed the exam prior to five years before the application deadline may submit those scores for consideration if the scores meet the minimum expectations and they are provided from an official source such as a transcript or form provided by the Educational Testing Service. Old Dominion University reserves the right to determine what an "official" source is. While these scores are minimums, other portions of the total application package will be strongly considered to balance lower scores.

4.   Applicants whose native language is not English must submit a current score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOFEL) of at least 600.

5.   Applicants must submit a 1500 word statement of their academic and professional goals with an emphasis on how the Ph.D. degree in Higher Education will contribute to the achievement of the stated goals.

6.   Three letters of reference from sources capable of commenting on the applicants' readiness for advanced graduate study. At least one of these letters must be from a senior-level administrator in a college or university.

7.   An interview with the Higher Education Program Committee. This committee will also review applications for admission.

8.   Prior course work is assumed in statistics, student development, and leadership theory. If this assumption is not met, then additional course work will be added to the candidate's graduate program of study.

Program application deadlines: