Educational Specialist in Administration Online
Gain strategic insights and learn emerging best practices to become a transformative leader in education. This online program will help you develop the perspective and competencies to drive innovation.
Apply by:
8/8/25
Program Overview
Rise to the top of education with an Ed.S. – Administration degree
With an emphasis on critical thinking, evidence-based solutions, and ethical leadership strategies, the Educational Specialist in Administration online program prepares you to shape the future of education. Benefit from 100% online coursework and finish in as few as 20 months.
The versatile Ed.S. in Administration program empowers students to analyze and implement effective leadership strategies and evidence-based solutions to organizational challenges, making it ideal for those working in public or private school systems, or as managers of learning initiatives at corporations, nonprofits, specialty schools, and training companies. Gain many of the same competencies as an Ed.D. program without a dissertation. If you wish to pursue an Ed.D., all credit hours are transferable into STU’s Ed.D in Educational Leadership – Administration online program.
Program Focus
- Assess and apply effective, innovative leadership theories, strategies, skills, and change initiatives to drive desired performance outcomes within an organization
- Understand the effects of changing needs in global and diverse organizational settings
- Evaluate empirical research and evidence-based solutions that address emerging issues in organizational and educational practice
- Apply qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to improve educational practices
- Analyze educational data to inform policy and practice, applying a multi-perspective approach to advocate for equity and systemic improvement in diverse and inclusive environments
- Demonstrate strong communication skills, enabling clear articulation of vision, goals, and strategies to diverse stakeholders
- Encourage collaboration to promote teamwork and shared leadership
- Emphasize ethical leadership and academic honesty, including understanding the difference between plagiarism and the acceptable use of AI
- Mentor and develop future leaders in education, encouraging professional growth among staff
- Assess and apply effective, innovative leadership theories, strategies, skills, and change initiatives to drive desired performance outcomes within an organization
- Understand the effects of changing needs in global and diverse organizational settings
- Evaluate empirical research and evidence-based solutions that address emerging issues in organizational and educational practice
- Apply qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to improve educational practices
- Analyze educational data to inform policy and practice, applying a multi-perspective approach to advocate for equity and systemic improvement in diverse and inclusive environments
- Demonstrate strong communication skills, enabling clear articulation of vision, goals, and strategies to diverse stakeholders
- Encourage collaboration to promote teamwork and shared leadership
- Emphasize ethical leadership and academic honesty, including understanding the difference between plagiarism and the acceptable use of AI
- Mentor and develop future leaders in education, encouraging professional growth among staff
Education Administration Career Opportunities
- School Principal
- Assistant Principal
- District Administrator
- Director of Curriculum and Instruction
- Special Education Director
- Director of Corporate Training
- School Principal
- Assistant Principal
- District Administrator
- Director of Curriculum and Instruction
- Special Education Director
- Director of Corporate Training
Total Tuition
$25,000
Duration
As few as 20 months
Credit Hours
30
Tuition
Benefit from pay-by-the-course tuition
Tuition for the Ed.S. in Administration online degree program is the same for in-state and out-of-state students and can be paid by the course. The total tuition is inclusive of all fees, including a technology fee for each course.
| Program | Per Credit Hour | Per Course | Per Program |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ed.S. in Administration | $800 | $2,500 | $25,000 |
Tuition breakdown:
Total Tuition
$25,000
Per Credit Hour
$800
Calendar
Check the calendar to see how quickly you can begin
The Ed.S. in Administration program is delivered in an online format ideal for working professionals, conveniently featuring multiple start dates each year. Choose the start date that is best for you.
| Term | Start Date | App Deadline | Document Deadline | Registration Deadline | Tuition Deadline | Class End Date | Term Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 1 | 8/23/25 | 8/8/25 | 8/13/25 | 8/18/25 | 8/27/25 | 10/17/25 | 7 weeks |
| Fall 2 | 10/18/25 | 10/3/25 | 10/8/25 | 10/13/25 | 10/22/25 | 12/12/25 | 7 weeks |
Now enrolling:
Apply Date
8/8/25
Class Starts
8/23/25
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Admissions
We’ve simplified the application process for the Ed.S. in Administration
The School of Leadership, Education & Communication admission process has specific requirements that students must meet to enroll in the Ed.S. in Administration online program. The following are the admission requirements, including information on required materials and where to send them.
Admission Requirements:
- No application fee
- 3.0 GPA or higher
- Master’s degree
Ed.S. in Administration Online Admission Requirements
The following are required for admission to the Ed.S. in Administration online program:
- Completed free application
- Master's degree
- Transcripts from all post-secondary institutions (unofficial transcripts are accepted)
- 3.0 GPA or higher
Official transcripts can be sent to St. Thomas University through Parchment and National Student Clearinghouse. Unofficial transcripts and other documents can be uploaded via your Admissions Portal or emailed to [email protected].
Courses
Check out the topics in the educational administration coursework
To complete the Ed.S. in Administration online program, students must complete the following 10 courses for a total of 30 credit hours.
Courses in this program are seven weeks long. Courses during the two summer terms, however, are six weeks long.
Students will take the following courses.
ELI 801: Theory and Practice of Leadership
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
In this course, students will analyze the theory and practice of leadership and address motivation, sources of power, change processes and group dynamics. The characteristics and abilities associated with effective leadership will also be examined. Students will also explore the diversity of leadership theory and the impact of diversity on leadership.
Learning Outcomes
- Assess prevalent leadership theories and evaluate the importance of different leadership approaches.
- Evaluate the impact of various leadership styles in change management situations.
- Analyze the role of leadership in organizations with diverse environments.
- Address leadership-related questions by combining multiple peer-reviewed sources that follow scholarly guidelines.
ELI 820: Issues in Ed Leadership
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines current and emerging issues and trends impacting education. Topics may include socially and culturally responsive teaching, teacher resiliency, trauma responsive classrooms, differentiation, student stress and mental health, grit, emerging technologies, flexible classrooms, and cultivating creativity. Topics will be dependent upon student interests and current national trends. Emphasis will be on developing, analyzing, and clarifying beliefs and practices as they relate to education.
Learning Outcomes
- Research and analyze current and emerging issues and trends in education to develop an innovative practice that addresses them.
- Reflect on personal beliefs and professional practice regarding select issues and trends.
ELI 802: Ethics and Accountability
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course is an analysis of issues of ownership, control, ethics and accountability. It employs a stakeholder framework, emphasizing an educational institution’s social and ethical responsibilities to both external and internal stakeholder groups. The course further establishes how ethical or moral considerations are included in the public issues facing educational organizations and the decision-making process of leaders.
Learning Outcomes
- Assess the role of ethics and governance in education organizations.
- Articulate the importance of accountability in leadership when addressing organization governance in educational organizations.
- Improve the workplace for leaders and followers using critical analysis to describe the values and ethics of leaders and educational organizations.
- Demonstrate the mechanisms of governance within education organizations and understand the key roles and relationships among stakeholders.
ELI 804: Leadership for Crisis and Change
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Drawing on the five-phase model of the change process, this course uses real-world examples to examine the design, development, implementation and maintenance of educational innovations and improvements.
Learning Outcomes
- Identify areas of organizational crisis and develop skills for managing them.
- Understand and articulate the importance of management crisis and change in organizations.
- Define and evaluate the role of ethics in crisis management.
- Author scholarly papers following the APA format.
ELI 805: Strategic Leadership and Global Change
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course will prepare students to restructure and create empowering environments in their organizations. A body of research will be reviewed to provide an empirical framework that can be used to draw conclusions about strategic management and leadership in organizations striving to provide an empowering environment in the 21st Century.
Learning Outcomes
- Review strategic leadership and change in both a domestic and international environment.
- Assess the complexity of global strategic management systems and address the needs of diverse stakeholders in domestic and international settings.
ELI 814: Cross-Cultural Relations
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course presents an analysis of major contemporary social problems with attention given to controversial issues common in the workplace. Included in this course is an emphasis on theory, structure, and the effective practice of diversity as they relate to directors, managers, employees, students and faculty of academic organizations who are involved in a diversified workforce.
Learning Outcomes
- Manage and communicate essential information and engage employees and clients in areas of mutual interest through cross cultural relations.
- Evaluate guidelines within organizations that promote, and hire based on gender, ethnicity, and religion.
- Assess the potential impact of social platforms and sites, social networking, content sharing and web presence on managing an organization invested in maintaining a diversified workforce.
- Analyze the effects of cross-cultural relations within professional organizations and develop best practices on how to navigate them.
- Demonstrate how to choose and implement the optimal "Cross Cultural or Diversity" program when managing a diverse workforce.
- Demonstrate knowledge of cross-cultural relations in verbal and written formats at an advanced college-level.
ELI 815: Public Policy Leadership
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines various approaches to developing and managing public policy. It is intended primarily for leaders who are department heads, policy developers, managers and executive officers in organizations, higher education, schools, school boards, governments and statutory agencies responsible for formulating or managing policies.
Learning Outcomes
- Describe the policy making process and its role in the policy cycle.
- Review the methods for identifying, creating, and managing policy.
- Analyze key tools that policy makers use to engage the public and resolve public problems and issues.
- Develop research questions with a purpose statement and problem statement in a research project.
ELI 818: Doctoral Inquiry
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course will explain the components of scholarly writing as students prepare to identify problems of practice for a future dissertation topic. The course will include the process of a quality literature review using scholarly sources and peer reviewed articles. Students will identify problems of practice and conduct a literature review following a scholarly writing format.
RES 819: Research Methods
Duration: 6 or 7 weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course focuses on applying the principles, practices, and strategies for conducting research in the social sciences, particularly dealing with the interface of the human dimension in the social and behavioral sciences.
Learning Outcomes
- Create an appropriate researchable problem for a dissertation.
- Assess academic literature to support researchable problems.
- Distinguish characteristics of qualitative and quantitative research approaches.
- Employ research approaches to study an appropriate problem of practice.
- Conduct research following the guidelines of ethical, legal, and professional requirements.
ELI 813: Leading a Learning Organization
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Organizations are systems within which humans are continually developing structures that influence their action. This course helps students become designers and members of organizations which engage in practices that encourage organizational learning. Students will examine ways that organizations create learning cultures as well as leadership strategies that foster growth, creativity and risk-taking while managing innovation, change and future planning.
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