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Degrees & Programs
If you have program-specific questions, please contact OEL Associate Director Nicole Barone.
Today’s education landscape needs leaders like you — dynamic educators and innovators committed to making sustainable and scalable change for all students by building on your professional experience in PreK–12 classrooms and districts; on college and university campuses; or in philanthropies, nonprofits, policy organizations, and ed-tech initiatives.
That’s why the Harvard Graduate School of Education launched an online Master's in Education Leadership, a two-year, part-time Ed.M. program with Higher Education and PreK-12 pathways specifically designed for mid-career working education professionals. The program will strengthen the invaluable skills you’ve already developed and give you the tools to propel yourself to new leadership opportunities and to even greater impact.
The online Master's in Education Leadership from HGSE consists of a diverse cohort of professionals like you — leaders who are advancing in their careers, and who bring important perspectives grounded in real-world challenges. Our program is conducted almost exclusively online — except for one short on-campus experience, where you'll meet your cohort in person and build community prior to the start of the first fall semester.
The program offers a distinctive Harvard experience — including deep engagement and interaction with Harvard faculty and talented peers, as well as a lifelong professional network — within an intentionally designed curriculum and robust opportunities for mentorship and coaching. The program is career-embedded — so you can immediately apply what you are learning, in real time, to the work you are doing on the ground.
In the online Master’s in Education Leadership, you will choose between two Professional Pathways — Higher Education or PreK–12 — that align with the area of practice or the student community in which your work will make an impact. Students interested in advancing into senior leadership roles in colleges and universities, or in organizations that impact higher education, should study in the Higher Education Pathway. Students who want to do change-making work within the education ecosystem on behalf of students from early childhood to secondary education levels should select the PreK–12 Pathway.
For educators looking to make global impact, please explore our International Education Policy Pathway.
Our prescribed curriculum is intentionally designed to meet your professional needs. It is anchored in both foundational knowledge and core competencies in education leadership related to the U.S. education system. You will also complete pathway-specific courses to advance your leadership in higher education or preK–12 education, as well as the Foundations courses. You will also have the opportunity to select courses from a small subset of electives. 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:
Throughout the two-year program, you will participate in Foundations courses in up to four areas: How People Learn, Leading Change, Evidence, and Equity and Opportunity. Through the Foundations, you’ll build core skills central to the profession of education.
All students will choose between the Higher Education and PreK–12 Pathways. Throughout the program, you will take both cross-pathway courses and pathway-specific courses. Cross-pathway courses will allow you to develop leadership skills that are important across sectors, as well as have discussions about how higher education and preK–12 can work more effectively together. Cross-pathway courses include:
Pathway-specific courses are directed to the knowledge and skills important for leadership in the Pathway professional setting.
Students will have the opportunity to choose from a curated list of electives during the optional January terms, and during the fall and spring of their second year. Sample elective courses:
Note: Though some courses may include comparative and international examples, applicants should expect a focus on leadership within U.S. domestic educational institutions and systems.
To help you manage, lead, and implement change in complex organizations, our curriculum explores the core leadership competencies that you'll need to elevate your skills, knowledge, and expertise, wherever you are in your career. Throughout your coursework, you will strengthen your ability to:
All students will choose between the Higher Education and PreK–12 Pathways. The Higher Education Pathway is designed for education professionals who bring at least five years of relevant or transferrable work experience. It prepares you to be a dynamic leader in a diverse range of postsecondary education contexts and will increase your knowledge of the practices, policies, processes, challenges, and opportunities in American postsecondary education. You will enhance your repertoire of strategies and management skills for tackling critical issues and introducing change — while preparing you to advance in your current career or move into other important leadership roles in higher education.
Sample courses for the Higher Education Pathway:
You will also have the opportunity to engage with accomplished leaders through HGSE’s unique President-in-Residence program.
Students interested in the Higher Education Pathway currently hold administrative and mid-level leadership roles:
All students will choose between the Higher Education and PreK–12 Pathways. The PreK–12 Pathway is designed for education professionals who bring at least seven years of relevant or transferrable work experience. It equips you to advance your leadership across the preK–12 landscape, including in such positions as teacher leader, principal, afterschool director, education agency representative, education nonprofit/philanthropic leader, or education entrepreneur.
Sample courses for the PreK–12 Pathway:
Students interested in the PreK-12 Pathway currently hold administrative and mid-level leadership roles in:
Courses combine synchronous meetings and asynchronous work and assignments. Live or synchronous aspects of required courses will occur on weekdays (Monday–Friday) between 6 and 9 p.m. ET. Some elective courses, outside the required curriculum, may be offered at alternative times. On average, this degree requires 14 to 20 hours of work per week, though the weekly commitment will vary by term, courses taken, and students' own work styles. Students can expect to spend approximately five to seven hours per week in synchronous online class sessions with faculty members and classmates. The remaining hours will be spent working independently on asynchronous class preparation, in self-scheduled small-group work with other students or working on assignments.
To complete the online Ed.M. in Education Leadership, students must complete 42 total credit hours of coursework over the two-year program. While the weekly time commitment varies, the graphic below provides a snapshot of the estimated weekly time commitment students may experience during the fall and spring semesters, when they will typically take 8 credits, the equivalent of two courses.
Includes live, scheduled sessions with faculty members and other students.
Self-paced activities, discussion posts, and other course-related work.
Readings, projects, papers, research, etc.
Hours reflect estimates and vary by term, course, and student work style.
Occurs between Monday-Friday, according to a specific schedule.
Asynchronous work and assignments will have clear deadlines or milestones, but students can set their own schedules to complete this work. Note that there may be days or weeks during the semester that are busier than average, requiring more than the estimated time shown.
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.
Francesca Purcell is a specialist in higher education policy and practice, with expertise on topics including college completion, student transfer, and developmental education.
A former teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, chief academic officer, and foundation leader, Irvin Scott's focus is on education leadership and faith-based education.
Prior to kicking off your first fall semester, you will participate in the On-Campus Institute, an immersive experience on the HGSE campus in Cambridge. This will provide the opportunity to not only form deep relationships with your cohort, but also learn together with the faculty and advisers with whom you will spend two years. The immersive residential experience is a core component to the two-year degree program that is required of all students in the program.
Over several days in late July and/or early August, you and your fellow peers will discuss your professional experiences and examine some of the persistent challenges in your organizations. You will immerse yourself in rich exercises and community building, set expectations of what it means to be in a rigorous HGSE degree program, and set intentions for yourself, your cohort, and your course of study.
The Master's in Education Leadership Program prepares you to advance to a senior leadership role in a variety of career pathways, including:
Higher Education Pathway
PreK-12 Pathway
Overall Program
*Note: This program is not able to provide principal certification at this time.
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Explore examples of the Online Master's in Education experience and the impact its community is making on the field:
Students and alumni of the Online Master's in Education Leadership have built a global network of education change-makers
HGSE student Nancy Yee was selected as fellow and will work at the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance