5 Best Online Ed.D Programs in Educational Leadership of 2021

Ball State offers this online EdD in educational leadership in a blended format, with online classes and monthly Thursday afternoon meetings on-campus. The program meets the requirements for Indiana school superintendency, and so is particularly well suited to students living in that state. Students can tailor the program to meet their needs however, such as taking into consideration different licensing requirements for the state where they work. Applicants must hold a master's degree in order to enroll, and students must complete at least 48 of the 90 required credits through courses at Ball State, including 10 credits of dissertation research.

• Graduation rate: 58%
• School status: Public
• Number of programs offered: 120+ programs
• City location: Muncie, IN
• Admission requirements: Master’s degree
• Standardized test scores/requirements: GRE not required
• Contact: 800-382-8540
• Website

Central Michigan University offers an online EdD in Educational Leadership in a structured cohort model in which groups of students follow the same set schedule of classes through the entire program. Courses are mostly asynchronous, with a synchronous meeting every other Saturday. Students must also attend four face-to-face meetings with their cohort, one each summer of the program, though the details of each meeting are tailored to the cohort. Students must complete comprehensive exams as well as 15 credits of dissertation research followed by an oral defense of their research. Applicants must hold a master's degree and professional education experience.

• Graduation rate: 60%
• School status: Public
• Number of programs offered: 300+ programs
• City location: Mount Pleasant, MI
• Admission requirements: Master’s degree, three letters of recommendation, personal statement, written statement of experience, professional resume
• Standardized test scores/requirements: GRE not currently required; TOEFL required when English isn’t your native language
• Contact: 877-268-4636
• Website

Creighton University offers a Doctorate of Education in Interdisciplinary Leadership which can be completed almost entirely online. Students must attend on-campus orientation at the beginning of their program, and complete their dissertation defense there as well, but otherwise all coursework is delivered online. Courses are eight weeks long, and students take one at a time, completing the required 60 credits in 3 to 4 years. The dissertation is practice-focused, with the intention that research can impact coursework as well as prepare the student for their post-graduate career. Applicants to the program must hold a master's degree or equivalent professional degree.

• Graduation rate: 78%
• School status: Private
• Number of programs offered: 140+ programs
• City location: Omaha, NE
• Admission requirements: Master’s degree, three letters of recommendation, professional resume, personal statement
• Standardized test scores/requirements: GRE not required
• Contact: 402-280-2700
• Website

The University of Florida's Leadership in Educational Administration Doctorate program is blended, meaning that it contains both online and on-campus aspects. Most of the program an be completed online, but students are required to attend Saturday sessions on campus or at other locations as many as three times per semester. The program is offered in a cohort structure, where students follow a predetermined course load of two classes per term. This allows them to complete their coursework in three years, and complete their dissertations during the fourth year. Applicants to the program must already hold at least a master's degree.

• Graduation rate: 87%
• School status: Public
• Number of programs offered: 330+ programs
• City location: Gainesville, FL
• Admission requirements: Master’s degree, undergraduate GPA of 3.0
• Standardized test scores/requirements: GRE required
• Contact: 352-392-0726
• Website

This EdD in Educational Administration with a specialization in Educational Leadership and Higher Education is a practice oriented degree. Within this specialization, students also develop a concentration, based on a selection of courses covering topics such as finance, law, and planning in education. The program requires 96 credits to complete, though credits earned as part of a master's program may be counted among these. Students must complete at least 48 of their credits through the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, including 12 credits of dissertation research. Students in the EdD program must complete a dissertation which addresses some problem of educational practice.

• Graduation rate: 69%
• School status: Public
• Number of programs offered: 150+ programs
• City location: Lincoln, NE
• Admission requirements: Master’s degree, graduate GPA of 3.0, written personal statement, letters of recommendation, writing samples, professional resume
• Standardized test scores/requirements: GRE required, TOEFL required if English isn’t your native language
• Contact: 402-472-3726
• Website