RALEIGH, N.C., Sept. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — NonProfitCollegesOnline.com, a website promoting non-profit colleges and universities offering online degree programs, has published a ranking of the top 40 colleges and universities offering fully online or online/on-campus hybrid doctoral level programs in Education. The ranking can be viewed at http://www.nonprofitcollegesonline.com/rankings/best-online-doctorate-in-education-programs/.
The ranking highlights both programs leading to an Ed.D. and programs leading to a Ph.D., though both terminal doctoral level degrees are slightly different in their focus. The Ed.D. typically focuses in on local and regional policies and practices and puts existing research under analysis to work on specific problems within these particular educational settings. Ph.D. programs are suited for individuals who are interested in developing new research, often at the national and/or international levels. Both programs, however will prepare students for top tier jobs in academia, research, or administration positions in a variety of educational settings.
The ranking is part of the "Students Before Profits" award series, which aims to highlight programs of study that put "Students before profits and education before the bottom line." The award was created, in part, to counteract the bad publicity around online education that has been created by the exploitative practices of for-profit online education companies.
This ranking was limited to schools regionally accredited by one of the six regional accrediting bodies for colleges and schools, and which have lower than average tuition rates.
Coming in 1st in the ranking is the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, followed by The University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, KY and The University of Colorado-Denver, respectively.
Other colleges and universities that made the ranking are listed below in alphabetical order:
Arizona State University–Phoenix, Arizona
Benedictine University–Chicago, Illinois
Boise State University–Boise, Idaho
Boston University–Boston, Massachusetts
City University of Seattle–Seattle, Washington
Creighton University–Omaha, Nebraska
Concordia University Chicago–River Forest, Illinois
Concordia University Portland–Portland, Oregon
Drexel University–Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
East Tennessee State University–Johnson City, Tennessee
George Fox University–Newberg, Oregon
Gwynedd Mercy University–Gwynedd, Pennsylvania
Indiana State University–Terre Haute, Indiana
Indiana University–Bloomington, Indiana
Lamar University–Beaumont, Texas
Liberty University–Lynchburg, Virginia
Lipscomb University–Nashville, Tennessee
New Mexico State University–Las Cruces, New Mexico
Michigan State University–East Lansing, Michigan
Northeastern University–Boston, Massachusetts
Northwest Nazarene University–Nampa, Idaho
Regent University–Virginia Beach, Virginia
Sam Houston State University–Huntsville, Texas
Southeastern University–New Brockton, Alabama
Texas A&M University–College Station, Texas
Texas Tech University–Lubbock, Texas
Union Institute & University–Cincinnati, Ohio
University of Alabama–Tuscaloosa, Alabama
University of Florida–Gainsville, Florida
University of Minnesota–Minneapolis, Minnesota
University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Nebraska
University of New England–Biddeford, Maine
University of Northern Colorado–Greeley, Colorado
University of South Carolina–Columbia, South Carolina
University of South Florida–Tampa, Florida
University of Southern California–Los Angeles, California
University of West Georgia–Carrollton, Georgia
"The decision to pursue a doctorate can be an extremely difficult one to make," said Brett Gershon, lead editor of the ranking. "Depending on when students are entering the job market, top level research positions can often be scarce and holders of doctoral level degrees may not immediately see their salary increase after graduation." Gershon goes on to state that many students may still be paying off student debt from their undergraduate and graduate programs, and the idea of amassing even more debt by attending expensive doctoral programs can feel like an unwise decision. "Nonetheless," says Gershon, "there can be many benefits to achieving a terminal degree and we hope to make the decision a little easier by highlighting a selection of quality programs, with tuition rates that are manageable on teacher's salary."
Nonprofit Colleges Online (http://www.nonprofitcollegesonline.com) is an online resource devoted to promoting online colleges and universities that put students before profits and education before the bottom line. The site publishes rankings reviews and other resources to help prospective students learn about and connect with schools where they can get a quality online education that puts their needs and success first, not corporate shareholders.
Contact:
Brett Gershon
Editor, Nonprofit Colleges Online
http://nonprofitcollegesonline.com
763.503.0162
Email