PhD in Engineering Education

Application Deadlines
  • December 1

Shape the future of engineering education. 

Our PhD program seeks to improve the education of engineers through research, project-based learning paradigms, and integrated design principles. Through our collaboration with the School of Education and other discipline-based education research groups at ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder, our flexible curriculum blends technical expertise with education outcomes. 

The program is designed for students with a background in engineering. As a candidate you can expect to: 

  • Conduct and direct research in engineering education. 
  • Develop, review and critique research designs that study engineering education. 
  • Learn to effectively teach engineering subjects.
  • Design and assess engineering courses. 
  • Address critical issues facing engineering education. 

Our Faculty Affiliates

Structure of the PhD Program

The 60-credit-hour program includes: 

Admissions Requirements

The application process runs through the ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Graduate School. It requires: 

  • Transcripts
    • Unofficial transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions attended can be provided in the application
    • If you receive and offer of admission and confirm your intent to enroll, you will be required to submit official transcripts
  • Three letters of reference
  • A personal statement of academic and research interests
    • Please limit to 1000 words; describe why you are choosing to pursue a research-focused doctoral program in engineering education and what has prepared you for this challenge. You should consider including the following information (you aren’t expected to address all bullets):
    • Your academic and research interests, including what motivated you to apply to the Engineering Education program at ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder
    • Your long-term scientific and professional goals and how a PhD in Engineering Education from ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder will help you meet your career goals
    • Your research experiences such as publications, theses, research in progress, and other scholarly activities
    • Relevant past experience, including industry work, teaching, challenging coursework, non-course educational experience, etc. How did the experience prepare or motivate you to do research?
    • Your personal experiences and contributions to support diversity in your education, service activities, or research experiences. (if not addressed in diversity statement)
    • Any relevant information that is not included in the other application components, such as leadership ability, perseverance, and commitment to justice.
  • Diversity statement (optional) that describes: how your educational, professional, and/or personal experiences have prepared you to mentor and/or educate students from diverse populations; experiences that have shaped your professional goals and/or vision for a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive community; etc. (see full prompt on the graduate school application website)
  • You will be asked to list up to 5 specific  who you would be interested in working with.
  • GRE scores are optional
  • You need at least a 3.00 undergraduate grade point average or a 3.25 grade point average in graduate coursework
  • For international PhD applicants the English proficiency requirements have been established by the ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Graduate School

 

Now Recruiting for Fall 2024

To learn more about the program, please contact Angela Bielefeldt, director of the Integrated Design Engineering Program and professor in civil, environmental and architectural engineering, or our general program email.

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