EIU Department of Educational Leadership

Admissions Requirements

Admission to Eastern's Graduate School

To be granted admission to a graduate program in Educational Leadership, the student must first be admitted to the Graduate School at Eastern Illinois University. Thus, a student seeking admission should complete a graduate application online (via the "myeiu" link) and send official transcripts directly to the Graduate School at 600 Lincoln Avenue, Charleston, IL 61920.

Questions in reference to the application may be directed to the Graduate School at (217) 581-2220 or graduate@eiu.edu. 

The Graduate School requires all possible students to have ...

• A bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited four-year college or university;
• Achieved a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.75, on a 4.0 scale, for that degree;
• Must complete other requirements as specified by the department.

A student achieving a 3.00 GPA on the last 60 hours of graded academic work may substitute that criterion for the requirement of achieving an overall 3.00 GPA. Course work taken as a post-baccalaureate student may be considered in the computation of the GPA.

Students who do not meet the requirement for full admission may be granted provisional admission upon recommendation by the department.

International students must, in addition, score at least 550 on the Paper-Based TOEFL and at least score a 79 on the Internet-Based TOEFL. Students who do not meet the minimum TOEFL scores cannot be admitted into the Graduate School.

Once the student is admitted to The Graduate School, the student's records are forwarded to the Department of Educational Leadership for final processing and admissions.

Admission into the Department of Educational Leadership

Master of Science in Education (MSED): To be granted admission into this program candidates must complete all of the following requirements:

• Evidence of a cumulative undergraduate GPA from a regionally accredited four-year college or university of at least 2.75 on a 4.0 scale or 3.00 on the last 60 hours of coursework, confirmed via submitted transcripts;
• Evidence of a valid and current Illinois Professional Educators License (PEL), which will be confirmed through the Educator Licensure Information System - ELIS;
• Evidence of two years of full-time teaching experience or two years experience in another licensure area. Full-time is defined by the Illinois School Code 105 ILCS 5/24-11, again, this information will be confirmed via ELIS;

Principal Endorsement Program (PEP): To be granted admission into this program candidates must complete all components of the Tier II application process. The Tier II application process, via an official PEP Admissions Day event, requires the following  ...

• Successful completion of a minimum of 18 semester hours in the Master of Science in Education in Educational Leadership Program;
• Evidence of a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in the Master of Science in Education in Educational Leadership Program;
• Evidence of a valid and current Illinois Professional Educators License (PEL);
• Evidence of a passing score on the test of basic skills or the test of academic proficiency (TAP), as applicable;
• Submit evidence showing four (4) years full-time teaching experience will be completed by the end of the Principal Endorsement Program. Full-time is defined by the Illinois School Code 105 ILCS 5/24-11;
• Letter of support from an immediate supervisor indicating the candidate’s viability to pursue the program as well as an assessment of the candidate's leadership potential;
• Also part of the admissions event, each candidate will be evaluated on the results of a leadership scenario;
• All candidate requirements will ultimately be reviewed by EDL faculty members for official admission into the PEP program;

Specialist Degree in Education Program (EDS): To be granted admission into this program candidates must apply to the EIU Graduate School and meet the following requirements ...

• Hold a Master's degree from a regionally accepted institution;
• Evidence of a cumulative graduate GPA from a regionally accredited four-year college or university of 2.75 on a 4.0 scale or 3.00 on the last 60 hours of coursework, with documentation coming via submitted transcripts;
• Evidence of a valid and current Illinois Professional Educators License (PEL); 
• Evidence of a minimum of two (2) years of full-time administrative experience for admission into Superintendents Endorsement Program (SEP) . Full-time is defined by the Illinois School Code 105 ILCS 5/24-11;

Application Process

After the candidate is admitted to the Graduate School, the candidate's records are forwarded to the Educational Leadership Department for consideration.

Faculty review the candidate's application and make an admission decision. Upon admission, the candidate is assigned an advisor and a study plan is developed. The Welcome Letter and Study Plan will be emailed to the candidate at the address listed on their application.

If a student has been previously admitted to the program and has had a break in semester enrollment, a student must complete a Re-admission Form.

If a student is already enrolled at Eastern and wishes to change programs (i.e., Master's in Educational Leadership to Educational Specialist in Educational Administration, or another department to Educational Leadership), the student must complete a Change of Status Form. Once a student completes a Change of Status form, the application process for departmental admission will begin as outlined in each program above.