Located within the Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Studies (ELPS), the ESM program integrates evaluation, statistics, and measurement theory, content knowledge, technical skills, and highly relevant and meaningful field experiences to enable graduates to function as esteemed professionals, productive scholars, and leaders in their sub-fields of interest.

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About the PhD Program

Intended Audience

The ESM program is intended for students with education, social science, psychology, economics, applied statistics, and/or related academic backgrounds seeking employment within the growing fields of applied evaluation, assessment, and statistics. These fields have grown substantially in response to the needs of the federal and state governments, non-profit organizations and foundations, and private sector entities to demonstrate and continually improve the effectiveness of their programs and services. The ESM doctoral program is based squarely upon the needs of students seeking to enter ESM fields, expand opportunities within their current professional situation, or prepare for an academic career and engage in research.

Program Features

There are several unique features of the ESM program:

• Focused Competency Development:  All students are exposed to a solid academic core of specific knowledge, skills and professional dispositions in the form of foundational ESM theory, concepts, and applied competencies.
• Theory to Practice Course-Based Field Experiences: Each student is required to engage in multiple hands-on fields experiences linked to specific ESM course content, enabling students to personally experience the application of theory to real-world practical problems.
• Theory to Practice Internships Targeted to Student Interests: Students are required to fulfill two evaluation internships in organizations settings (university,  community-based, or other settings) in an area of professional or career interests.
• Highly Experienced & Engaged Faculty: The ESM faculty are highly experienced and productive scholars with a mix of expertise and experience in research, evaluation, assessment, and applied statistics. The current three faculty members have many decades of combined experience directly relevant to the ESM program. All ESM faculty are also actively engaged in major professional associations (e.g., American Evaluation Association, Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association).
• Regular Access to One-on-One Faculty Support & Guidance: Advanced ESM courses, focusing on the application of knowledge and skills, have a small class size which provide students with ideal learning opportunities for targeted group and one-on-one instruction.

Meet Our Faculty

Application Requirements

December 1 is the priority deadline for Fall. Applicants may still apply through April 1 with the understanding that funding will be highly unlikely and space may be limited.

Applicants are required to have earned at least a bachelor’s degree.

Prospective applicants must submit an online application to the Office of Graduate Admissions.

International applicants should follow instructions in the Admissions Guide for Graduate International Students.

The following materials are required for admission to this program and will be requested by Graduate Admissions when you begin your application:

• Resumé or CV
• Letter of Introduction – Goal Statement
• Transcript(s)
  • An up-to-date electronic version of your original transcript must be uploaded with your online application. This is to expedite your admissions process. If you are admitted into the program, you must have an official copy of your transcripts mailed from your previous/current university directly to UT Graduate Admissions. For help with this process check out the Graduate School page on Transcripts or call Graduate Admissions at 865-974-3251.
• Writing Sample
  • This may be a copy of a thesis written for a graduate degree, a published article, a research report or course paper, or another form of writing that you feel represents your professional writing skills and style.
• Three Completed Rating Forms
  • Choose raters who can assess your academic background and likely success in a rigorous program. If you are a recent graduate, you should include one or more faculty members who can attest to your work as a student. Other appropriate raters include work supervisors. Family members and personal friends are not appropriate raters. You need to prompt your raters to submit their forms to the Graduate Admissions. At least two of your rating forms must be submitted before your application will be considered complete. It is to your advantage, however, to make sure that all three rating forms are submitted on time.
• GRE Revised General Test Scores (Optional)
  • We recommend completing the GRE at least four weeks before the application deadline.
  • The GRE code for the University of Tennessee, Knoxville is 1843.

Questions regarding the Graduate School application process? Contact Graduate Admissions.

To check on the status of your application to the UT Graduate School, please see information on the Graduate Admissions Application Status page, or call (865) 974-3251.

All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment and admission without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, and parental status, or any other characteristic protected by federal or state law. In accordance with the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the University of Tennessee affirmatively states that it does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or disability in its education programs and activities, and this policy extends to employment by the university. Inquiries and charges of violation of Title VI (race, color, and national origin), Title IX (sex), Section 504 (disability), the ADA (disability), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (age), sexual orientation, or veteran status should be directed to the Office of Equity and Diversity, 1840 Melrose Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, telephone 865-974-2498. Requests for accommodation of a disability should be directed to the ADA Coordinator at the Office of Equity and Diversity.

Curriculum Requirements

Campus Code

Knoxville Campus

Admissions Standards/Procedures

• Students must submit an online graduate application to the Office of Graduate Admissions. Following a review of applications, an interview with the faculty is required. Admissions decisions are made on a holistic basis to discern the candidate’s promise for doctoral study and to ascertain the match of the candidate’s educational goals with the resources and goals of the program/department.
• A Master’s degree is not required for students who apply for admission to the major. For students who are admitted to the major, prior graduate coursework will be examined on a case-by-case basis as it might be used to satisfy the overall course requirements.

Credit Hours Required

90 graduate credit hours

Required Courses

ESM Core Courses (15 credit hours)

• ESM 533 – Program Evaluation I
• ESM 534 – Program Evaluation II
• ESM 577 – Statistics in Applied Fields I
• ESM 677 – Statistics in Applied Fields I
• ESM 581 – Educational Assessment

Advanced ESM Core (12 credit hours)

• ESM 651 – Advanced Seminar in Evaluation
• ESM 678 – Statistics in Applied Fields III
• ESM 680 – Advanced Educational Measurement and Psychometrics
• ESM 667 – Advanced Topics

Research Core (15 credit hours)

• ESM 583 – Survey Research
• ESM 559 – Introduction to Qualitative Research in Education
• ESM 659 – Advanced Qualitative Research in Education
• ESM 682 – Educational Research Methods
• 3 credit hours of approved graduate research electives selected in consultation with the major advisor

Applied Professional Experience (15 credit hours)

• ESM 660 (9 credit hours) – Research Seminar
• ESM 670 (6 credit hours) – Internship

Electives (9 credit hours) selected in consultation with the major advisor

Dissertation/Research (24 credit hours)

• ESM 600 – Doctoral Research & Dissertation
• Students will enroll in a minimum total of 24 credit hours of dissertation at the conclusion of their coursework.

Non-Course Requirements

Doctoral candidates work closely with their advisor to complete a dissertation proposal. A candidate will present the proposal to the dissertation committee, and once approved by all committee members, will begin work on the dissertation research. With the advisor’s approval, the candidate will schedule an oral defense for the dissertation. During the dissertation defense, the candidate will present the work completed for the dissertation, which will be reviewed by the dissertation committee.

Student Goals & Career Opportunities

Program Goals for Students

Upon completion of the ESM doctoral program, students will have gained: a) knowledge of foundational evaluation, applied research methodology, and measurement concepts, theories, and applications; b) competency with research designs that include and integrate experimental, quasi-experimental, qualitative, and mixed-method approaches; c) extensive hands-on field experience in the application of evaluation, research, and methodologies to contemporary educational and social problems; and d) experiences in applying evaluation, quantitative and qualitative methodology, and measurement skills and competencies in diverse social and organizational settings. Check out some of our ESM Alumni below!

Career Opportunities

Recent program graduates have found various professional opportunities upon graduation. Currently, alumni of the program are employed as higher education faculty members, senior administrators in a variety of organizational settings, and program evaluators. Some have even continued on to postdoctoral program evaluator opportunities.

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