Advanced Standing
Advanced Standing Overview
The Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction offers Charlotte graduate students and alumni of UNC Charlotte the opportunity to apply for Advanced Standing. Advanced Standing recognizes relevant coursework from approved Charlotte master’s degrees. Doctoral students accepted with Advanced Standing into the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction complete a minimum of 48 credit hours of coursework, including the dissertation. No transfer credits are allowed for Advanced Standing students. Advanced Standing students must select a concentration in the application process.
Advanced Standing Admission Requirements
To be admitted to Advanced Standing for the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction program, students must meet the admission requirements of the Ph.D. and must have earned a master’s degree from UNC Charlotte in a field related to one of the degree concentrations:
- Curriculum and Educator Development (CED) (including Elementary Education),
- Learning, Design, and Technology (LDT),
- Literacy Education (oriented toward Reading Education, English Education, or Teaching English as a Second Language),
- Mathematics Education
- Urban Education
- Literacy Research, Policy, and Practice (Beginning Fall 2025)
Only students who have earned a master’s degree within the last ten years in one of the approved UNC Charlotte graduate programs will be considered. All other students should apply to the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction program (without the Advanced Standing option).
Approved UNC Charlotte master’s degree programs for Advanced Standing in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction include:
- M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction
- M.Ed. in Elementary Education
- M.Ed. in Learning, Design, and Technology
- M.Ed. in Instructional Systems Technology
- M.Ed. in Middle and Secondary Grades
- M.Ed. in Reading Education
- M.Ed. in Teaching English as a Second Language
- M.Ed. in Urban Education
- M.A. in English
- M.A. in Mathematics
- M.S. in Mathematics
Advanced standing students must have a minimum grade of B in master’s degree coursework pertinent to the Ph.D. in Curriculum of Instruction. Additionally, students with a cumulative GPA less than 3.5 in their master’s degree or 2 or more grades of C are not eligible for Advanced Standing. In this case, students have the option of requesting transfer of credit hours for individual courses with grades of B or above after acceptance into the 60 credit hour Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction degree program.
Students who have successfully completed an approved master’s degree at Charlotte and meet GPA and grade requirements are eligible to apply for Advanced Standing in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction.
How to Apply for Advanced Standing
Applications for advanced standing are submitted in the first semester in which a student enrolls in the program. Recommendations for admission to advanced standing are made by the Concentration Coordinator with approval of the Program Director within the first semester enrolled in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction degree. Candidates eligible for Advanced Standing must meet at a minimum, established criteria in the Charlotte Graduate Catalog.
An academic petition should be submitted by either the Concentration Coordinator on behalf of the doctoral student or the doctoral student seeking recognition as Advanced Standing. A formal letter of support from the Concentration Coordinator must be included within the academic petition as documentation.
Advanced Standing Degree Requirements
The Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction requires a minimum of 60 credit hours of coursework, including the dissertation. The degree requirements for the Advanced Standing are similar to the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction except students complete a minimum of 48 credit hours. No transfer credits are allowed for Advanced Standing students. All Advanced Standing students select a concentration which determines the Advanced Standing program requirements and specialization. All Advanced Standing students must complete the foundations course (EDCI 8620) in the first year of their program.
Advanced Standing students must maintain a cumulative average of 3.0 in all coursework taken. An accumulation of more than two C grades will result in termination of enrollment in the graduate program. If students make a grade of U in any course, enrollment in the program will be terminated. For Advanced Standing, courses taken at the master’s 5000- or 6000-level cannot be repeated at the doctoral 8000-level. In this case, Advanced Standing students should work with concentration advisors to determine appropriate program electives or course substitutions if necessary. All course substitutions require submission of an academic petition and Graduate Program Director approval.
Advanced Standing students must successfully complete requirements for the Qualifying Comprehensive Examination and dissertation. All Advanced Standing students must complete a residency requirement of at least 18 credit hours over three successive terms of enrollment. Advanced Standing students must complete their degree, including dissertation, within nine years. The Ph.D. website contains additional information, including updated planning sheets for each Advanced Standing concentration.
Required Coursework
Advanced Standing Foundation Course (3 credit hours)
Advanced Standing students in each concentration complete in the first year a pro-seminar in curriculum, instruction, and urban education leadership.
Advanced Standing Urban Core Courses (9-15 credit hours)
Like all Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction students, Advanced Standing students complete core coursework in Urban Foundations. For Advanced Standing students, the Urban Education concentration requires 15 credit hours. All other concentrations [Curriculum and Educator Development (CED); Learning, Design, and Technology (LDT); Literacy Education; and Mathematics Education] require 9 credit hours in urban core coursework.
Students who enter the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction as Advanced Standing must take the Qualifying Comprehensive Examination before the end of their fourth semester in the doctoral program. The Curriculum and Instruction Qualifying Comprehensive Examination includes three parts: Urban Core, Research, and Specialization. The first part of the examination, the Urban Core, covers substantive course content and additional readings, research, and research methodologies from the required urban core courses. While not required for all concentrations in Advanced Standing degree, the program recommends students complete EDCI 8186 or an equivalent course at the Master’s level to be prepared for the urban core comprehensive examination. Like all Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction students, Advanced Standing students are expected to complete additional readings in urban education to prepare for the Qualifying Comprehensive Examination.
- EDCI 8180 – Critical Issues and Perspectives in Urban Education (3)
- EDCI 8182 – Power, Privilege, and Education (3)
- EDCI 8184 – Social Theory and Education (3)
- EDCI 8186 – Globalization, Urbanization, and Urban Schools (3) (required only for Urban concentration; recommended for other concentrations)
- EDCI 8314 – Urban Educational Reform (3) (required only for Urban concentration)
Advanced Standing Research Methodology and Dissertation Courses (18-21 credit hours)
Advanced Standing students must complete at least 9-12 credit hours of research methodology coursework and a minimum of 9 credit hours of dissertation preparation. For Advanced Standing in the Mathematics Concentration, students are required to complete 9 credit hours of research methodology coursework. All other concentrations [Curriculum and Educator Development (CED); Learning, Design, and Technology (LDT); Literacy Education; and Urban Education] require 12 credit hours in research methodology coursework.
Similar to all students in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction program, Advanced Standing students have two required research methodology courses. With approval of the Concentration Coordinator and Program Advisor, Advanced Standing students select one or two courses from the research methodology elective courses listed for the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. Research courses should be specific to either quantitative or qualitative research methods, depending on dissertation plans. Please note that three to four research methodology courses are required but may not be sufficient. The Program Advisor may recommend additional research courses in preparation for the dissertation. Research courses not listed within program electives require submission of an academic petition and Graduate Program Director approval.
All Advanced Standing students must complete 9 credit hours of dissertation coursework including a 3-credit hour dissertation proposal seminar and a minimum of 6 credit hours of dissertation research. The dissertation proposal seminar should be taken after successful completion of all parts of the Qualifying Comprehensive Examination (Urban Core, Research, and Specialization), appointment of the dissertation committee, and pre-proposal meeting with dissertation committee members.
- RSCH 8110 – Descriptive and Inferential Statistics (3)
- RSCH 8210 – Applied Research Methods (3)
- EDCI 8699 – Dissertation Proposal Seminar (3) (taken after successful completion of the comprehensive examinations, appointment of the dissertation committee, and pre-proposal meeting with dissertation committee members)
- EDCI 8999 – Dissertation Research (3) (minimum of 6 credit hours; taken after the appointment of the dissertation committee and successful completion of the dissertation proposal defense)
Advanced Standing Concentration Courses (9-18 credit hours)
Advanced Standing students must complete specialization coursework specific to their concentration. Each concentration offers a variety of concentration-specific course offerings at the doctoral level which are listed under the concentration requirements and electives for all students in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction program.
All Advanced Standing students are required to meet with the Concentration Coordinator and Program Advisor for identification of specialization courses. For Advanced Standing, courses taken at the master’s 5000 or 6000-level cannot be repeated at the doctoral 8000-level to meet concentration requirements.
The number of required credit hours varies by concentration. For Advanced Standing, the Mathematics Education concentration requires 18 credit hours in specialization coursework. The Curriculum and Educator Development (CED); Learning, Design, and Technology (LDT); and Literacy Education concentrations require 15 credit hours in specialization coursework for Advanced Standing students. The Urban Education concentration requires Advanced Standing students complete 9 credit hours in their specialization.
Advanced Standing students in the Curriculum and Educator Development (CED); Learning, Design, and Technology (LDT); or Mathematics Education concentrations are expected to complete concentration required courses first, and then select from concentration electives listed in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction information for the remaining concentration credit hours if applicable. All decisions regarding concentration courses require Concentration Coordinator and Program Advisor approval.
The Advanced Standing Literacy Education concentration and Urban Education concentration require students, with approval of the Program Advisor, to select courses from the concentration electives to meet specialization requirements in the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction.
Advanced Standing Concentration Planning Sheets
Advanced Standing students should schedule an advising meeting in the first semester to map out a program of study. Advanced Standing Planning Sheets are linked below by concentration.
| Advanced Standing Concentration (Beginning Fall 2025) | Link |
| Curriculum & Educator Development | |
| Learning, Design, and Technology | |
| Literacy Education | |
| *NEW* Literacy Research, Policy, and Practice | |
| Mathematics Education | |
| Urban Education |
| Advanced Standing Concentration (Academic Years 2021-2024) | Link |
| Curriculum & Educator Development *Includes Elementary Education* | |
| Learning, Design, and Technology | |
| Literacy Education | |
| Mathematics Education | |
| Urban Education |
A minimum of 48 credit hours are required to complete the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction degree under the Advanced Standing option. Once the minimums are satisfied, the remaining hours, if any, can be satisfied via elective coursework within the concentration area of study pending Concentration Coordinator and Program Advisor approval. Courses outside the program of study and concentration require submission of an academic petition and Graduate Program Director approval.