Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Programs in the Education Sciences

Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Programs in the Education Sciences is sponsored by U.S. Department of Education. Supports predoctoral training programs in education research.

Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Programs in the Education Sciences | IES Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Programs in the Education Sciences The Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Program in the Education Sciences (Predoctoral Training Program) was established by IES to increase the number of well-trained PhD students who are prepared to conduct rigorous and relevant education research.

Predoctoral Training Program grants are awarded to institutions of higher education that create cohesive graduate training programs in which fellows receive training in conducting education research while earning their doctorates within a traditional academic discipline.

Fellows are trained to develop education interventions (e.g., curricula, professional development) that are grounded in a science of learning; to evaluate education programs, practices, and policies using rigorous and well-implemented experimental and quasi-experimental designs; and/or to employ sophisticated statistical methods to examine large state and local datasets to identify potential solutions to education problems.

While the formats and foci of IES-funded predoctoral training programs vary, required common elements include: 2 to 5 years of financial support for fellows (stipends, tuition, health insurance, normal fees, and research/travel funds), a coordinated curriculum, an ongoing lecture series or proseminar, opportunities for fellows to conduct research and to collaborate with education practitioners and researchers, and an Education Sciences certificate that signifies that fellows have completed the training program's requirements.

Between 2004 and 2020, IES established interdisciplinary predoctoral training programs at 21 universities for a total investment of almost $209 million in predoctoral training. Grounding education policy and practice in the United States on evidence requires transformation of both the research and practice fields.

Practitioners have to turn routinely to education research when making important decisions, and education researchers have to produce research that is relevant to those decisions. To achieve this ambitious agenda, there is a need for a cadre of well-trained scientists capable of conducting high quality research that is relevant to practitioners and policy makers.

In 2004, IES created the predoctoral training program to address this need. Between 2004 and 2020, IES has held seven competitions and made 47 training grant awards. Twenty-one of the awards were to establish new training programs and the other 26 were to continue existing programs.

The longest running programs (with 4 awards) are located at Northwestern University, University of Virginia, University of Chicago, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Since 2004, over 1000 fellows have received training through an IES-funded predoctoral training program.

In June 2022, to document the background and rationale for these training programs and help articulate the theoretical models for each of the programs, including assumptions, inputs, activities, and outputs. WestEd will work with IES to identify metrics and potential data sources to better understand the successes and impacts of the current and possible future programs.

Outstanding Predoctoral Fellows Each year, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) recognizes an outstanding fellow from its Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Programs in the Education Sciences for academic accomplishments and contributions to education research.

Here are the awardees: IES Outstanding Predoctoral Award Winners Award Year Winner Predoctoral Training Program 2008 Shayne Piasta Florida State University 2009 Anita McGinty University of Virginia 2010 Vivian Wong Northwestern University 2011 David Purpura Florida State University 2012 Elizabeth Gunderson University of Chicago 2013 Gerardo Ramirez University of Chicago 2014 Nathan VanHoudnos Carnegie Mellon University 2015 Meghan McCormick and Eric S.

Taylor New York University and Stanford University 2016 Rachel Baker Stanford University 2017 Rachel Abenavoli and Callie Little ( ORCID ) Pennsylvania State University and Florida State University 2018 Dominic Gibson ( ORCID ) University of Chicago 2019 Sade Bonilla Stanford University 2020 Kenneth Holstein ( ORCID ) Carnegie Mellon University 2021 Marissa Thompson Stanford University 2022 Mark Chin ( ORCID ) Harvard University 2023 KC Deane and Christopher Cleveland ( ORCID ) University of Michigan and Harvard University Applying to an IES Predoctoral Training Program Students interested in becoming predoctoral training fellows must apply for admission to a training program, not to IES.

Each training program has its own admission process and selection criteria. Potential fellows can receive information about applying for a fellowship by contacting the training program directly. Not all programs are accepting applications at this time.

Increasing the Effectiveness and Coherence of Interventions to Reduce Educational Ine... NYU Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Research Training Program The Virginia Education Sciences Predoctoral Training Program Multidisciplinary Program in Educational Sciences