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If you have program-specific questions, please contact Assistant Director for Education Policy and Analysis Sarah Haas.
If you have admissions-related questions, please email gseadmissions@harvard.edu.
The Education Policy and Analysis (EPA) Program will prepare you to lead and engage in education policy development, analysis, and change in organizations and settings throughout the United States and internationally. You also will learn how to scale effective education practices and how to leverage policy in order to expand their reach. The program will provide you with the theoretical frameworks and analytic methods that will enable you to design, implement, and evaluate policies at the global, national, state, institutional, program, and project levels. Our program prepares you to work in local, state, national, and international sectors, as well as research and consulting organizations, think tanks, institutions of higher education, and policy advocacy organizations.
"Crafting and evaluating education policy remains a critical part of ensuring better outcomes for all students, and our program leads the way in cultivating the next generation of education policy professionals. From integrating research and practice to improve public policy to identifying the best method of communicating research finding to policymakers, our program will provide you with the real-world tools you need to make a difference." Carrie ConawayFaculty Co-Chair
"Crafting and evaluating education policy remains a critical part of ensuring better outcomes for all students, and our program leads the way in cultivating the next generation of education policy professionals. From integrating research and practice to improve public policy to identifying the best method of communicating research finding to policymakers, our program will provide you with the real-world tools you need to make a difference."
Carrie ConawayFaculty Co-Chair
After completing the Education Policy and Analysis Program, you will have a deeper understanding of the following competencies that explore how to:
The EPA Program is designed to help you gain the knowledge and practice the skills essential to developing, implementing, and analyzing education policy in a wide variety of professional contexts. A minimum of 42 credits are required to graduate with an Ed.M. degree from HGSE.
The main elements of this academic year curriculum are:
To fulfill the program requirement, students must take a minimum of 12 credits specific to EPA, including the following:
Explore our course catalog.Note, all information and courses are subject to change.
Students will work closely with faculty associated with their area of study, but students can also work with and take courses with faculty throughout HGSE and Harvard. View our faculty directory for a full list of HGSE faculty.
Carrie Conaway is an expert on strategic planning in education, data and resource use, evidence-based decision making, and connections between research and practice.
Andrew Ho is a psychometrician whose research aims to improve the design, use, and interpretation of test scores in educational policy and practice.
The EPA Program prepares you for a variety of career pathways, including:
As an EPA student, you will be joining a community bound by a shared passion for improving education outcomes, opportunities, and systems through policy. The EPA cohort is comprised of learners from diverse professional backgrounds and levels of experience; from P–16 educators and leaders to policymakers and business executives; from the U.S. and diverse countries abroad; and from early childhood through postsecondary and adult education. Our community engages in shared learning inside and outside the classroom, including informal policy debates with faculty during brown bag lunches, panels with senior policy analysts who share advice on career pathways, and cohort-wide opportunities to learn about and from your peers.
The deadline to apply is January 5, 2025.
Explore examples of the Education Policy and Analysis experience and the impact its community is making on the field:
Anthony Otadoy Garciano and Srishti Gulati will be honored with the Intellectual Contribution Award for the Education Policy and Analysis Program