Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education

San Francisco State University
(College Of Education)
and
University Of California, Berkeley
(Graduate School Of Education)

• Admission Requirements
• Course Load
• Emphasis and Specialization
• Normative Timeline

The Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education is a program within the Colleges of Education of two campuses, San Francisco State University and the University of California, Berkeley. The program Executive Committee is composed of faculty members from both campuses. The committee is co-chaired by coordinators from each campus. Student performance and competencies are required to meet the scholarly requirements of the Graduate Divisions of both institutions.

Members of the faculty from SFSU are primarily from the Department of Special Education, which represents multiple areas of study relating to people with disabilities, and from Communicative Disorders. Faculty from departments such as Psychology, Sociology, Social Work, Ethnic Studies, and English are also available to work with doctoral students. The majority of the Berkeley faculty come from the Graduate School of Education and includes faculty from each of the major divisions (Social and Cultural Studies; Educational Administration; Educational Psychology; Language and Literacy; Mathematics, Science, and Technology).

In addition, faculty from several associated fields such as psychology, linguistics, public health, optometry, anthropology, public policy, social welfare, and social and behavioral sciences also participate in the program.

Mission Statement

The Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education integrates the resources of two major universities (The University of California, Berkeley and San Francisco State University) in the San Francisco Bay Area, and leads to the award of a Ph.D.

The program provides advanced academic training and research experiences for a variety of professionals working with children, youth, and adults with special educational needs, and prepares individuals to assume leadership roles in the field of Special Education and related fields (e.g., health sciences, social sciences).

Areas of focus include research, teaching, administration, clinical and educational reform, planning and the evaluation of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. The program offers an opportunity for students to combine theoretical interests with applied practices in a board spectrum of specializations within and related to the field of Special Education.