Dean's Executive Fellowship Cohort Program (Currently Closed)

Texas Tech University's Department of Curriculum and Instruction is pleased to announce the Dean's Executive Fellowship Cohort Program as part of TTU's ongoing efforts to promote the internationalization of the TTU community and increase the representation of historically underrepresented students. By recruiting and retaining students within these areas, we seek to enhance the quality of education and research for all students and faculty while making a meaningful contribution to society and the world. 

The Dean's Executive Fellowship Cohort Program (herein program) is undergirded by the belief that our scholarly community is enriched by individuals who, through their varied backgrounds and life experiences, contribute to an intellectually challenging and inclusive educational environment. The cohort nature of this program affords fellows a transnational, transformative, and transdisciplinary academic and scholarly environment in which they collectively and collaboratively learn theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches in education research and scholarship through face-to-face faculty mentorship. Program priorities are to maximize opportunities for international students as well as domestic students who identify with historically underrepresented groups, including first-generation students. Through this prioritization, the program aims to provide these students with opportunities to learn in and from an environment that reflects the rich global and demographic variance of our campus and society. To that end, the Department of Curriculum and Instruction encourages applications from individuals both domestic and international, whose sociodemographic backgrounds and/or scholarly activities will contribute significantly to the program's mission of academic excellence.

The Mission of the Dean's Executive Fellowship Cohort Program is to: 

• Prepare students to become emerging scholars who focus on education and educational research that is interdisciplinary, comparative, convergent, transdisciplinary, transnational, and transformative;
• Prepare students to become critical scholars who can theorize and analyze current educational issues that affect the well-being of all learners, which include but are not limited to immigrants, migrants, refugees, minoritized and marginalized population, and LGBTQI community;
• Prepare students to become community engaged scholars who promote social change in local, regional, state, national, and international communities.

In support of this mission, the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, in collaboration with the College of Education and the Graduate School, will provide up to four years of funding, subject to annual reviews, through a limited number of fellowships, research assistantships, graduate teaching assistantships, and endowed scholarships. Funding is competitive to talented students who demonstrate a commitment to integrity and academic excellence that helps achieve the mission of the Cohort program.   

Program participants will apply and be accepted to the Department of Curriculum and Instruction within a cohort of full-time, international and/or domestic students who are willing to accomplish the mission of the Cohort program, which was inaugurated in Fall 2023.

ELIGIBILITY:

• Must be a full-time and on-campus student
• Must have a master's degree in education or in a related field from an accredited college or university
• Prior teaching experience is preferred
• Interested in interdisciplinary, comparative, convergent, transdisciplinary, transnational, transformative education

APPLICATION PROCESS:

To apply for the Cohort program, you will be asked to submit the following:

1. Personal Statement. The purpose of the Personal Statement is to get to know you as an individual and as a prospective graduate student, and to understand how your background and/or academic pursuits could contribute to the department and program. You may consider discussing any of the following questions:
   • How has your personal background motivated you to pursue a doctoral degree in Curriculum and Instruction? For example, how have educational; familial; cultural; socioeconomic; first-generation college status; racial, ethnic, gender, or other identity; or other personal experiences or challenges affected your decision to pursue graduate education? 
   • Have you worked in community services or other outreach services that affected your decision to pursue graduate education?
   • Do you plan on doing research or working in areas that will serve under-privileged populations, under-represented minorities, or other populations?
   • Will your planned studies broaden ways to promote academic access and/or widen our view of scholarship?
   • What are your research interests and why do you want to pursue them?
   • Which track are you applying for and why?
   • What is your goal after graduation?
2. Academic Writing Sample 
3. Two Letters of Recommendation from individuals in academic or academic adjacent fields
4. Unofficial Transcripts of Undergraduate and Master's Degrees

AREAS OF STUDY:

Students may select one of the following areas of study. 

 

• General Studies in C&I Ph.D. 
  • Graduates in this option will work toward becoming an education generalist, a research methodologist, and/or an education specialist in the area of their choice. Students will acquire a wide range of knowledge and skills in different theories, educational foundations, research methodologies, blended and personalized learning, educational technology, or a specific content area of interest. Students will work with their advisor to personalize the degree plan that meets the needs of the student.
• Curriculum Studies and Teacher Education (CSTE) Track 
  • Graduate students in the track of Curriculum Studies and Teacher Education (CSTE) will explore and critique theories and practices of curriculum studies and teacher education. CSTE students will develop inquiries into the nature of teacher learning, the nature of schooling, and the nature of knowledge creation.  
• Language, Diversity, & Literacy Studies (LDLS) Track
  • The Language, Diversity & Literacy Studies track is designed to create scholars who are critically committed to empowering and advocating for linguistically and culturally diverse individuals and communities. Graduates of this program will experience collaborative, participative, and innovative research that leads to knowledge and understanding of language and literacy studies from multiple perspectives (cultural, historical, linguistical, and literary).
• Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education Track
  • The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education track is designed to immerse student scholars in STEM education research by exploring and critically evaluating foundational and current issues in STEM education, examining methodological approaches, analyzing and interpreting research data and information, and applying research competences to produce scholarly work. STEM education graduates' research conducted in this program may transform formal and informal P-20 STEM education communities.