This article summarises research into the effectiveness of a distance learning doctorate in education (EdD). Drawing on an emerging literature which attempts to conceptualise professional doctorates as distinctive from the PhD, we developed a case-study approach to investigate the EdD student experience. Four themes emerge which are developed into a model of professional outcomes: professionalisation; professional change; bridging the academic/professional divide; and professional self-esteem. We argue none of these outcomes would have been achieved so effectively for these distance students without a highly structured but flexible support system.
This article explores the motivations, experiences and perceived outcomes for Doctorate in Education (EdD) students in their journey through a relatively new form of doctoral education at a distance. The research draws on a range of individual EdD participant voices, both student and graduate, and is timely in focusing on an example of an under-researched but increasingly common phenomenon of part-time distance learning professional doctorates. The aims of the research were: to understand what motivated students to register for an EdD; to explore the factors which successfully sustained them on their journey; to identify common outcomes on completion. The researchers developed a case study of the student EdD journey in its distinctive professional context(s). Data was collected in a number of linked stages including postal surveys, semi-structured interviews, and students' reflective evaluations at different points. Key themes related to professional postgraduate learner transitions emerge from the data, which contrast with previous work on the traditional PhD and relate to: the deliberate choice by students of a part-time distance learning route; a broader and betterinformed understanding of professional outcomes on a professionally-oriented doctorate; the value of flexible support systems for EdD students working in demanding educational roles.
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