USC Rossier School of Education's Inaugural Online EdD in Organizational Change and Leadership Enrolls Education and Business Leaders

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 12, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- This week marks the start of classes for the first students in the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education's online Doctorate of Education (EdD) in Organizational Change and Leadership. USC Rossier welcomes 60 doctoral students from around the United States and five different countries to the Trojan Family.  

The new online EdD is uniquely designed for current and emerging leaders who are looking to drive systemic change in their organizations. The program is designed for full-time working professionals within K–12 and higher education systems, private firms, and nonprofit and government organizations.

The inaugural class is comprised of a wide range of education, private sector and non-profit professionals many of whom already have an advanced or master's degree. While professionals from the education sector comprise the majority of the class, many new students come from sectors including healthcare, aerospace, technology and government.  Additional details of the inaugural class include:

• Nearly one-third of the inaugural class is from the private sector. 
• Ninety-four percent of students have an advanced degree; most of those advanced degrees are in education or business.
• The female-to-male ratio is nearly even.

As part of USC Rossier's commitment to blend intensive online programs with immersive in-person components, EdD students will attend annual immersion weekends held on the USC campus. The first immersion is being held January 15-18, allowing students to kick-off the program and coursework alongside professors and international classmates.

"We're so pleased to welcome this impressive and diverse group of professionals to the Trojan Family," said Dean Karen Symms Gallagher. "USC Rossier has built an international reputation for the highest quality online Masters programs, so we are uniquely positioned to do the same at the doctoral level.  The new EdD will prepare organizational leaders who can focus on how well an organization learns, how to better motivate and supervise an organization, and how to create systems that produce more effective and adaptable organizations."

USC Rossier is a pioneer in delivering its academically rigorous graduate programs online to students from around the world. Rossier's online programs feature a unique blend of live class sessions, online self-paced coursework and hands-on field-based experiences. Through its online programs, USC Rossier has graduated more than 2,000 students in 47 states and 16 countries.

In addition to the EdD, USC Rossier offers online programs including the Master of Arts in Teaching, Master of Arts in Teaching-TESOL and Master of Education in Learning Design and Technology.  The new EdD and MAT programs are delivered in partnership with 2U Inc., (NASDAQ: TWOU) which partners with leading colleges and universities to deliver the world's best online degree programs so students everywhere can reach their full potential.

The online EdD program enrolls new students throughout the year. The application deadline for the next class starting in May is March 2, 2015. For more information about the program, please visit http://rossieronline.usc.edu/academics/edd/ or follow USC Rossier Online on Twitter at @USCTeacher.

Media contacts:
Barbara Goen, USC Rossier
[email protected]
213-740-2362

Shirley Chow, 2U Inc.
[email protected]
858-336-0358

SOURCE University of Southern California Rossier School of Education