Search

The Ph.D. Degree

 

The Ph.D. is a residential program offered on the University Park campus. Most Ph.D. graduates go on to take up jobs in the professoriate or director-level positions in academia, research labs, and corporate environments. The Ph.D. is an advanced research degree that entails 2-3 years of graduate coursework and culminates with the creation, implementation, and defense of a dissertation. As a doctoral student in LDT, you will engage in exploring, analyzing, and applying theories and frameworks related to learning, technology, and design to develop an area of research interest. You are expected to develop a broad understanding of foundations, theories and methods across the different areas that constitute the research landscape of learning, design, and technology. You will also learn to design, collect, and analyze data using qualitative, quantitative and/or mixed methods to understand, test and contribute to theory and knowledge in the field.

Doctoral Degree Objectives:

Upon completion of the doctoral degree, graduates should be able to:

  • Demonstrate advanced knowledge and understanding in the core knowledge areas of LDT (learning theories, design theories, technology and its applications in education and learning, learning sciences, etc.,).
  • Analyze literature and identify key areas of research and design in LDT.
  • Pose appropriate research questions and identify knowledge and methodologies needed to address them.
  • Apply knowledge and methodologies to create new knowledge in response to posed research questions.
  • Identify research and practical implications based on data analyses.
  • Develop professional positions and argue for those positions.
  • Demonstrate strong written and oral communication skills.
  • Communicate professionally to expert, practitioner, and lay audiences.
  • Provide leadership resulting in the extension of the professional and theoretical knowledge base.
  • Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of professional standards of ethics and conduct