Skip to main content Skip to navigation
Washington State University
College of Education

Master of Education (Ed.M.) in Educational Leadership

The Ed.M. is a non-thesis program designed for those preparing for K-12 leadership positions.

The program requires:

  • A total of 35 semester hours.
  • At least 32 semester hours of graded course work.
  • At least two semester hours of EdAd 702 for completion of a comprehensive written examination.
Locations

While we are one college across multiple campuses, each campus may have slight variances in the delivery of the program. Please visit the page of the campus closest to where you live and work.

WSU Pullman
WSU Spokane
WSU Tri-Cities
WSU Vancouver

Application, admissions, and other questions

Applications for the Ed.M. program as well as the combined Ed.M. plus Administrator Certificate are revised and available in January of each year. For more information, or to request an application, please contact the appropriate academic coordinator.

Pullman: Kelly McGovern, gradstudies@wsu.edu, 509-335-9195
Spokane: Jennifer Gallagher, j.gallagher@wsu.edu, 360-546-9075
Tri-Cities:  Jennifer Gallagher, j.gallagher@wsu.edu, 360-546-9075
Vancouver:  Jennifer Gallagher, j.gallagher@wsu.edu, 360-546-9075

Both the Ed.M. program and the Ed.M. plus Administrator Certificate programs admit students to begin in either summer (May) or fall (August).

  • Summer applicants: submit applications by March 1, but no later than April 1. Late applications will be accepted on a space available basis through April 15.
  • Fall applicants: submit applications by June 1, but no later than July 1. Late applications will be accepted on a space available basis through August 1

NOTE: Degree and certification programs in Educational Leadership do not accept State of Washington tuition waivers. This includes the following graduate programs: Ed.M., M.A., Ed.D., and Ph.D., as well as these certification programs: principal, program administrator, and superintendent.

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.