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Washington State University
College of Education

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Educational Leadership

One degree across all four campuses.

The Master of Arts Degree (M.A.) in Educational Leadership can be completed on all four campuses.

The M.A. is recommended for students who plan to subsequently pursue a doctoral program.

The program of study for the M.A. requires:

  • Thirty semester hours.
  • At least 21 semester hours of graded course work.
  • At least four semester hours of EdAd 700 for completion.
  • Defense of the master’s thesis.

Students who are interested in the M.A. may personalize their program by choosing an emphasis in K-12 educational leadership.

This degree is offered at Pullman campus.

Ed leadership master’s degree handbook


As described in the handbook, applicants must complete the departmental application form as part of the application packet.

FROM SPOKANE PAGE

Master’s in Educational Leadership

Master’s degree options in educational leadership include the Master in Education (Ed.M.), a non-thesis degree designed for professional educators preparing for leadership positions in K-12 schools, and the Master of Arts in Education (M.A.), a thesis degree designed for professional educators who plan to subsequently pursue a research-based doctoral program.

WSU’s master’s degree programs in Educational Leadership have several unique features:

Statewide program delivery

Master’s degree students can access courses and work with advisers through all of WSU’s campuses (Pullman, Spokane, Tri-Cities, Vancouver).

A practitioner-scholar approach

Program content combines the best of both worlds—issues important to professional educators who are preparing for leadership positions in K-12 schools and the scholarship that can help to analyze and address these issues. The program faculty blends the strengths of academic scholars and experienced practitioners; while several faculty members are highly successful, experienced administrators, others are highly regarded academic scholars. Both contribute to the central purpose of the program, to prepare practitioner-scholars for leadership for school improvement.

Alignment with Certification Programs

WSU’s Educational Leadership master’s degree programs are closely aligned with the Principal and Program Administrator certification programs. All required graded courses for these certification programs can be applied to the master’s degree program of study. Course sequences are designed to permit students at any of WSU’s campuses to complete both the master’s degree and the principal or program administrator certification program within two or three years.

Master of Education degree (Ed.M.)

The Master of Education Degree in Educational Leadership is a non-thesis degree program designed for professional educators preparing for leadership positions in K-12 schools. For the Ed.M. degree, the Program of Study requires a minimum of 35 semester hours, including at least 33 hours of graded coursework and 2 hours of EdAd 702 for completion of a master’s comprehensive examination.

Master of Arts degree (M.A.)

The Master of Arts Degree in Education is a thesis degree program designed for professional educators who plan to subsequently pursue a research-based doctoral program (Ph.D.). For the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree, the Program of Study requires a minimum of 30 semester hours, including at least 20 hours of graded coursework and 4 hours of EdAd 700 for completion and defense of the master’s thesis. The application process for the MA degree requires an interview to explore research interests with program faculty.

Application Process

Please note that application is a multi-step process and often takes four to six weeks to complete. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Steps to application:

  • Apply online to the WSU Graduate School for acceptance to the university.
  • Submit supplemental materials to the department for acceptance into the degree program.

Application deadlines:

  • June 30, last day to apply for fall semester (August start)

For application instructions, please refer to the Checklist and Instructions for Admission Requirements provided with the application packet.

Important note. Programs in Educational Leadership (EdM, MA, principal certification, superintendent certification, EdD and PHD) do not accept state tuition waivers.