Ph.D. Concentration
Faces, Spaces and Places
Faces
Advanced Graduate Program Coordinator
The Advanced Graduate Program Coordinator serves as the initial advisor to doctoral students. The coordinator is a research faculty member who assists students as they enter the program. The coordinator guides students in their initial selection of courses, advises students as they select committee members, and supports students in their teaching and research endeavors.
The coordinator also directs many aspects of the doctoral program. The coordinator reviews applications and interviews applicants, secures funding and assistantships for students, monitors policy changes from the College of Education and USF, guides the development of courses, and monitors the residency experiences of students.
Throughout the program, doctoral students may seek advice and support from the Advanced Graduate Program Coordinator and any member of the faculty.
Doctoral Committee Membership
Within the first year of the program, students select doctoral committee members who challenge and guide their course selection and research opportunities. The committee includes a major professor from early childhood, a faculty member who represents the cognate field, and at least two other faculty members. Students select the committee members. As needed, students may change their committee membership based on changing interests, the need for faculty with different areas of expertise, or faculty availability.
For further details on committee membership and the accompanying forms, please read the USF Graduate Catalog.
Cohorts and Colleagues
Doctoral students are only admitted in the Fall semester of each year. As a result, informal cohorts begin to form among the newly admitted students. Similarly, collegial relationships form among students from earlier cohorts. Students tend to position themselves in relation to their admission in the program and their progress in the program of study. New students are brought together with existing students through informal monthly meetings, faculty meetings, and office assignments.
Spaces
Doctoral Student Meetings
The Advanced Graduate Program Coordinator meets regularly with all doctoral students to provide opportunities for networking, socializing, professional development, and policy discussions.
Program Meetings
Doctoral students are often invited to participate in program meetings. We encourage doctoral students to engage in program discussions to understand the roles of faculty in program administration and the College governance process.
Office Assignments
Graduate assistants share offices. When possible, experienced students are placed with new students to provide mentorship, guidance, and friendship.
Places
Academic Communities
As scholars in the field of early childhood education, program faculty conduct rigorous research that addresses important questions in the field. Our next responsibility is to disseminate this research so that the findings may be shared with other scholars, practitioners, and policy makers. Membership in various early childhood education associations gives doctoral students the opportunity to read research journals and to engage in professional conversations with scholars.
Professional Conferences
Doctoral students are expected to begin their own focused lines of research and to publish original research in scholarly journals. Doctoral students must also attend national conferences to learn from other scholars. There are several funding sources available to support doctoral student conference travel. Please see our Cost page and also visit the USF Graduate and Professional Student Council Website.
There are many forums for research publication and presentation. Below is a selection of several major associations and journals.