PhD in Learning Sciences
Start researching and designing the future of education now with a PhD in Learning Sciences from Adelphi.
Why Study the Learning Sciences?
- Become an expert in learning theory and design cutting-edge learning environments in order to shape your community and the world.
- Develop skills for investigating pressing social, cultural and economic concerns that influence education experiences.
- Work with artificial intelligence, XR technology and other innovations that will challenge you to consider learning with fresh eyes.
Why Get a Learning Sciences Degree at Adelphi University in New York?
Our research-oriented Learning Sciences doctoral program offers more than just a degree—it’s an intellectual community and learning laboratory. Classroom and out-of-class experiences mix experimentation, play, fantasy and design so that together we can imagine new ways of thinking and learning. At Adelphi, you will forge strong collaborative relationships with classmates, mentors, community leaders and our many industry partners. You will undertake exciting research projects as you explore the embodied, place-based and equity-oriented dimensions of why, how and when learning happens. You will work in close collaboration with our internationally recognized faculty through an apprenticeship model in the vibrant environment of New York City.
What Makes Our Learning Sciences PhD Program Distinctive?
- Hands-on research alongside distinguished faculty who have earned grants from the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, the Mozilla Foundation and other top research organizations
- New York City is our classroom, with plenty of opportunities for formal and informal learning in both the city and suburbs.
- A vibrant intellectual community at MIXI Institute for STEM and the Imagination
- Hybrid and part-time study options
- Interdisciplinary projects that merge arts, humanities, and the social and physical sciences
- Our Adelphi New York City–Brooklyn Center
- An expansive approach to learning in diverse settings, including museums, schools, communities, digital spaces and international sites
- Outstanding applicants will be eligible for full tuition scholarships as well as financial support through fellowships, assistantships, and university teaching. All applicants for full-time study will automatically be considered for funding.
Adelphi’s Learning Sciences program will help you understand, critique and construct educational experiences in our contemporary communities. Using cutting-edge theories and careful, rigorous studies, our program will help students design modern, effective and equitable learning environments.
Suraj Uttamchandani, PhD
Assistant Professor and Learning Sciences Program Director
Learning Scientists Work Everywhere
Career opportunities in this rapidly growing field are abundant. As a graduate of our doctoral learning sciences program, you can pursue research and design positions in settings such as:
- Universities or colleges
- Instructional design (in person and online)
- School districts
- Technology companies (particularly in the AI industry)
- Curriculum and assessment groups
- Educational publishing companies
- Government agencies
- Nonprofits
- Community organizations
- Museums and libraries
- Toy companies
Program Info
Application Requirements
We accept applications on a rolling basis throughout the year. Students begin the PhD in Learning Sciences program in the Fall semester.
Applicants should complete a master’s degree before matriculation, although exceptional students without one may be provisionally admitted. Our students come from a wide range of backgrounds, including academic work in psychology, education, social sciences and STEM; career work in museums, community programs, libraries and government agencies; and experience with UX design, software engineering or other technology and design fields.
Note that students who do not enter with a master’s degree are required to complete an additional 15 credits of coursework (for a total of 60 credits). In consultation with an adviser, these students may strategically choose these courses in order to meet the requirements for an MA in Educational Technology (which will require 68 total credits), or may choose elective courses from across the University.
The PhD in Learning Sciences is a residential program that requires in-person attendance at some classes and meetings. We have designed the course schedule to accommodate short terms of residency. Classes are often scheduled in the evenings to accommodate students who work full-time; please consult with the program director if you have any questions.
Applicants should submit the following materials:
- Online graduate application and $60 application fee
- A current résumé or CV
- Final transcript stating bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year institution*
- Final or in-progress transcript stating master’s degree from an accredited institution*
- Personal statement
- Scholarly writing sample
- Letters of recommendation
- In addition to the requirements above, non-native-speaking international students must submit results from their TOEFL exam.
Your current résumé or CV should include your scholarly background, including any relevant educational experiences, publications, projects, advanced coursework, honors and awards, and/or work or volunteer experience.
The admissions committee will accept unofficial transcripts for admission reviews. Any admission made with these documents would be conditioned on receipt of official documents, which should be provided as soon as possible following conditional admittance. Transcripts should list the name of the university, a list of courses you have taken or are taking at the university, and the grades you received in these courses. You should send a transcript for any university from which you have earned college credit, including both undergraduate and graduate degrees.
Please submit a scholarly writing sample of work you have previously written. This could be a master’s thesis or final course paper. The sample should demonstrate your ability to read and write academically at the pre-doctoral level. Your sample should be between 10 and 20 double-spaced pages. Extracts from longer works are accepted.
Please submit a personal statement describing your relevant past experiences and goals for pursuing doctoral study in the learning sciences, in a focused essay (no more than 800 words).
For a doctoral program, your personal statement serves to describe the research you hope to do and explain why you think the Adelphi University program is a good place for you to do it. Of course, any ideas you discuss here will likely change as you progress through the program; however, stating your ideas here helps us see what kinds of projects interest you and how they fit with the work we do here.
In your statement, you may choose to reflect on some of these questions:
- What are some meaningful experiences with learning and learning design from your past, and how have they shaped your current thinking about learning and design?
- What specific expertise do you bring to the program?
- How have your prior experiences prepared you to succeed in doctoral study?
- What are your overall research interests, and why?
Sociologist Eve Ewing, EdD, provides a guide to writing such statements that may be helpful for you, although we by no means require this format
Submit two letters of references. Letters of reference should come from professors with whom you have worked closely who can speak to your scholarly potential. These are often advisers, professors you have conducted research or independent study alongside, or professors in whose courses you have done work you are very proud of. At least one of your letters should be an academic reference (i.e., from a professor). If you think it is useful, one of your two letters can come from someone who has supervised you in another capacity, such as a principal or director; but we suggest you only do this if the work they are speaking to is relevant to the learning sciences.
Letters will be submitted confidentially; submit writers’ contact information in the application.
We suggest you provide your letter writers with all the information you are including in this application. It is usually good to give professors about one month’s notice to submit. It is generally appropriate to send reminders to letter writers shortly before letters are due.
The admissions committee will accept self-reported TOEFL test scores for admission reviews. Any admission made with these documents would be conditioned on receipt of official documents, which should be provided as soon as possible following conditional admittance.
You may optionally choose to include with your application any other material that you think the admissions committee should review, though it is not disadvantageous to not include optional materials. Optional materials may include a design portfolio, a second writing sample or anything else you think will help us better understand your background as it relates to the doctoral degree.
If you are admitted, you will receive a provisional adviser. You will form a program of studies committee after your first semester, then a dissertation committee once you complete the qualifying process.
Awards & Recognition
