Boston University's Human Development and Education program offers you the opportunity to develop specialized knowledge in one area while achieving an understanding of related disciplines. Our Ed.D. degree program includes a wide range of disciplines that are defined by:
- Discipline: psychology, philosophy, history, or literacy studies
- Population: age or stage
- Setting: clinic, social agency, home, school, or workplace
- Domain: cognitive, sociomoral, psychological, etc.
Doctoral students who graduate from our program with a degree in developmental studies fill a variety of professional roles, including university teaching and research in schools of education and other professional schools, and in hospital and clinical settings. Our students go on to assume positions in schools, universities, and government agencies and pursue careers in curriculum development, teacher education, and international development.
If you are seeking a doctoral degree in developmental studies, you will choose to focus on one of three specializations: Human Development and Education, Literacy and Language, or Reading Education. Beyond the program's course requirements, you will develop personal programs of study that are consistent with your personal and professional career interests. Our program's specializations draw on courses from the entire department, and you may earn elective credits in approved courses throughout the University. The program makes it possible for you to personalize your study and take advantage of the many opportunities at Boston University.
The Human Development and Education specialization highlights the developmental foundations of education and attracts students interested in a particular developmental domain, age group, or setting. Your program may emphasize the interrelationship of developmental domains, or focus on a specific domain.
The promotion of human development and competence is a mission of educators, and Boston University's Human Development and Education program orientation is pragmatic as well as conceptual. You develop a strong understanding of the basic dimensions of human development:
- A life-span perspective
- The convergent impact of constancy and change
- Life stages
- Traditional and changing life responsibilities/opportunities
- The impact of gender
- Culture, ethnicity, and socioeconomics
- Cognitive, psychomotor, and psychosocial development and
- The meaning-making processes of ego and self
Master of Education (Ed.M) and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS)
Our program offers you the opportunity to learn diverse theories of human development and examine the distinctive issues involved in developmental research. You are also encouraged to arrange field experiences under faculty supervision that apply developmental theory. Other course offerings at SED and the University may enrich or support your specialized study. You are required to earn a total of 32 credits for the Master of Education (Ed.M.) degree, and 32 credits for the Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS).
Required Courses
| SED CE 841 |
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Theories of Human Development (Prenatal, Infancy, Childhood, and Early Adolescence) |
| SED CE 842 |
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Theories of Human Development (Adolescence and Adulthood) |
| SED LS 750 |
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Cognitive Development and Language |
| SED RS 600 |
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Perspectives on Inquiry |
Course descriptions
Doctor of Education in Developmental Studies Requirements
Doctoral students in developmental studies engage in research and other academic and professional activities related to the area of specialization. Our students are also expected to assess and critique standard research approaches in the discipline. The doctoral program consists of core requirements, six courses in the field of study and related disciplines, and four courses in the guided inquiry (Independent Study, Dissertation Advisement, Field Research Apprenticeship), or electives.
Our doctoral students are required to complete successfully at least two of three comprehensive tasks prior to the problem hearing for the dissertation proposal. These tasks are designed to give students experiences that will be critical to their future academic and professional activities.
 Download a description of this program
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