Graduate Certificate

Choosing between a Ph.D. and an Ed.D. in Education requires careful consideration of academic interests and career goals. While both are doctoral degrees, they differ in emphasis. 

Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy):

• Ideal for those aspiring to pursue careers in academia, research, or leadership positions in technology-driven educational institutions.
• Emphasizes advanced research, theory development, and scholarly contributions in educational technology.
• Focuses on advancing knowledge and understanding of educational technology through rigorous academic inquiry and publishing scholarly work in peer-reviewed journals.

Ed.D. (Doctor of Education):

• • Ideal for in-service educators and professionals seeking leadership roles that involve implementing and managing technology integration in educational settings.
  • Offers a practice-oriented approach, focusing on applying research to real-world challenges in educational technology.
  • Prepares graduates to address practical issues, drive innovation, and lead educational technology initiatives within schools, districts, or educational organizations.

Still have questions? Contact us!

GRE scores are no longer required for any of our Educational Technology graduate or certificate programs.

Last updated Spring 2024

It can take six to eight weeks for a completed and submitted application packet to move through the stages of the application process. You can also monitor your application status through the graduate application portal. If you still have additional questions, don't hesitate to contact the program coordinator.

No, while some of our students and graduates are teachers, others work in post-secondary, business, industry, military or not-for-profit sectors. We offer a range of courses to meet the needs of students with different goals. For your convenience, we have more information about careers in ed tech, and we are happy to speak with you about ideas and options. 

No, our ed tech program students have varied educational backgrounds, including Education, Computer Science, Psychology, Business, and more. Regardless of your undergraduate major, what matters most is crafting a compelling purpose statement (a must for your application) explaining how a degree in Educational Technology aligns with your career aspirations.

For more information on admission deadlines, please visit the admissions page on the UF School of Teaching and Learning site. Please note the different timelines and application deadlines for domestic and international students. 

Our graduate certificates offer opportunities to develop expertise in specific areas within educational technology by non-degree-seeking students. Anyone interested in completing a certificate must fill out the University of Florida’s application for admissions before enrolling in courses. To locate the correct portal, scroll to the “graduate certificate” section of the admissions website. 

Upon completing our certificate programs, you can transfer 12 credit hours to the online M.Ed. program if your grades are Bs or better. 

The TOEFL (English proficiency) is required by UF for international applicants unless: 

They have successfully completed one academic year in a degree-seeking program at a recognized/regionally accredited university or college in the United States or a country where English is the official language.

OR

They hold an earned equivalent of associate's, bachelor's, master's, or Ph.D. degree from a recognized/regionally accredited college or university in the United States or country where English is the official language.

The admission requirements for our department state that letters of recommendation must come from university faculty. However, our program acknowledges that applicants may have been away from university studies for many years. Because of this, we prefer to see letters of recommendation from people who can speak to your current work and your likelihood of success in graduate school. These may or may not come from university professors.
These could be written by others who have known you in a professional or academic capacity. Recommendation letters should not be written by your spouse or family.

Ed Tech faculty may write letters of recommendation for students in BAES, certificate programs or undergraduate minor who wish to advance to a M.Ed., MAE or Ed.S. degree program.

Current UF M.Ed., MAE or Ed.S. students or graduates who wish to apply to a UF Ed Tech doctoral program must secure letters from outside the program. However, these students are encouraged to talk with faculty about their plans to apply for doctoral studies.

If you notice multiple sections of a course labeled for "Open" audiences, choose one. You'll then be assigned to the suitable section. These sections usually form a single course. UF uses them to organize classifications of students, such as online, on-campus, or EEP students

Our online courses are time-limited. Most involve eight-week semesters, except the final courses for the M.Ed. & Ed.S. degrees, which last an entire 16-week semester. Some classes require synchronous sessions (usually no more than three). Faculty decide whether synchronous sessions are advantageous based on the content of their courses. These sessions are announced at the beginning of the semester and held during evening hours. Most courses are completely asynchronous.

Transfer credits are approved at the university level. Because of this, we are unable to make guarantees about credit transfers at the college level. After acceptance to a program, you will work with your advisor on the transfer credit process.

Grades in courses must be a B or better to be eligible for transfer. Transfer credits are more likely accepted when they have been earned recently, are from an accredited institution and are clearly related to your current program.

Graduate credits earned at other institutions must be approved by your program and then by the Graduate School after admission. Students can only apply up to nine credits toward their master's degree and up to 30 credits toward their doctorate. You will be asked to provide the course name and number, course description and proof of your grade. In some cases, advisors may also ask to see syllabi.

Up to 15 credits of graduate-level coursework earned at UF with a B or better letter grade may be applied toward a graduate degree at UF. This is only possible if credit for the course has not contributed to an undergraduate degree and if the academic unit and the Graduate School approve the transfer. This process starts once a student is admitted.

Per credit hour estimates for Florida and non-Florida residents are available on our Tuition and Fees page. Distance learning fee obligations are included on the page. 

Financial assistance and scholarships are available to campus-based and online degree-seeking students. Funding information is available from our student services office, EduGator Central.

Students must be enrolled as full-time students at the beginning of each semester to qualify for federal loans. Make sure you enroll in 8W1 AND 8W2 courses at the start of the semester to ensure your federal aid is not canceled.

This waiver, which applies to online students enrolled in our M.Ed., Ed.S Ed.D. or certificate programs, is applied after the end of the drop/add period for each semester. It is only applied once per semester, so you must be registered for all courses, even if they are 8W2 courses, by the end of drop/add. You can not receive the flat rate waiver if you enroll in a course after the drop/add period. Please note this waiver is not necessary for Florida Residents or EEP students.

The AY flat rate waiver is college-specific. At the end of drop/add, when we are certain that everyone has registered, a staff member sends a list of all those students who qualify to the Bursar’s Office, and then the waiver is applied. Be assured that if you are in a completely online program (M.Ed., Ed.S., Ed.D. or certificate programs), then the tuition rate will eventually reflect our tuition page.

Since this waiver is college-specific, meaning the College of Education bears the financial costs of these waivers, the Bursar’s Office cannot give you accurate information since they typically quote from standard tuition rates, which are higher than the waiver. We know this can be frustrating, but this is the only way we can apply the waiver.

Yes! Many of our students are part of the Employee Education Program at UF, and most of our courses are eligible for the program.

Our Educational Technology programs are not eligible for STEM-OPT extensions.

No, students may start the program during the Fall, Spring or Summer semesters. For more information on admission deadlines, please visit the Admissions page for the School of Teaching and Learning. 

You can easily adjust your formal, signed program of study with your advisor's approval. Speak with your advisor or the program coordinator for a Change of Program form.

If you are accepted into a program but do not enroll in classes for two consecutive semesters, you must complete a readmission form to continue in the program. Please note that there is a fee associated with this form.

Gatorlink accounts are handled at the university level. Neither the College of Education nor our Ed Tech program can help with this issue. UFIT provides resources related to Gatorlink accounts.

Online students are not required to have the same immunization documentation as campus-based students. However, students are sometimes incorrectly coded when admitted. If this happens to you, please email Tom McMorrow, Ph.D., at mcmorrow@coe.ufl.edu and copy Kara Dawson, Ph.D., at dawson@coe.ufl.edu. Dr. McMorrow will be able to fix the error.

Everyone in the UF community is required to complete certain online training. All students will receive emails about completing these trainings at the beginning of their degree programs.