Dissertation in Practice of the Year Award 

Call for Submissions - 2025 Dissertation in Practice of the Year Award 

The Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) is now accepting submissions from member institutions for the 2025 Dissertation in Practice (DiP) Award. This prestigious award is given to EdD graduate(s) whose DiP shows evidence of scholarly endeavors in impacting a complex problem of practice and aligns with the CPED Framework. 

SUBMIT 

Eligibility 

Submitting nominees will be from an implementing or experienced program CPED member (definition of these phases may be found here). The Dissertation in Practice must have been successfully defended prior to the submission deadline and must have been defended between June 1, 2024, and May 31, 2025. 

Nominees are encouraged to review the CPED Framework © for guidance in submission preparation. Submissions should include: 

  1. Letter of certification to be completed by the graduate’s DiP Chair, authenticating that the application is the student’s own work, represents their dissertation accurately, and that the dissertation has been successfully defended. 

  1. Full DiP title 

  1. A blind, 14-16-page double-spaced synopsis of the DiP submitted by the graduate. (The student’s name, university, and other identifying information should NOT be included in the synopsis.) 

Synopsis 

The synopsis should be formatted to include the following sections (headings) and their related content:  

  1. Introduction: Overall Alignment between the DiP and the CPED Framework (1-2 paragraphs) 

Evaluation Criteria for explanation of alignment:  

Alignment with CPED Framework: The DiP aligns with CPED’s Framework by demonstrating how the scholarly practitioner “integrates practical wisdom, professional skills, and knowledge to identify and address a complex issue” and how the practitioner has adopted a “critical stance grounded in ethical and moral commitments to equity and social justice.” 

  1. Problem of Practice (PoP) (2 pages) 

 Evaluation Criteria for the explanation of the PoP include:  

  • Situating the PoP in Context: The PoP is situated within the practitioner’s professional context and is based on direct, lived experiences. It is framed as a persistent challenge deeply embedded in the specific setting. 

  • Reciprocity with Field/Community: The PoP reflects a reciprocal relationship with the field and community that the student seeks to serve, showing mutual engagement and shared benefit.  

  • Use of Evidence to Define the PoP: The applicant clearly explains how the PoP is supported by local and larger contextual evidence, such as assessment data, interviews, or systems tools (e.g., maps or diagrams) that define and inform the inquiry. 

  • Connection to Broader Context: The applicant connects the local PoP to broader contexts, such as historical, social, economic, or theoretical frameworks, demonstrating how larger systems influence the specific PoP. 

  1. Guiding Questions and/or Rationale (2 pages) 

Evaluation Criteria for explaining the significance of the guiding questions/rationale include:  

  • Grounded in Practitioner Experience: The inquiry questions or rationale are grounded in the practitioner’s professional experience and practical knowledge. 

  • Focus on Equity, Ethics, and Social Justice: The inquiry questions or rationale address equity, ethics, and social justice issues. 

  1. Knowledge that Frames the PoP (2-3 pages) 

Evaluation Criteria for the explanation of the knowledge that frames the PoP include: 

  • Use of Knowledge to Frame the PoP: Explains how scholarly, theoretical, or experiential knowledge helped define and shape the understanding of the Problem of Practice. 

  • Knowledge-Informed Actions: Describes how this knowledge informed key decisions, strategies, or actions in the DiP. 

  1. Applied Research and Inquiry Methods (3 pages) 

Evaluation Criteria for the explanation of the research/inquiry methods used to address the PoP include: 

  • Action: Clearly describes the endeavor to address the problem of practice. 

  • Methods Address Complexity of the PoP: Clearly describes research or inquiry methods that directly address the complexity of the PoP. 

  • Contextual Alignment: Demonstrates that the selected endeavor and methods are well-suited to the practitioner’s professional setting and responsive to local needs and conditions. 

  1. Impact of the Applied Research (2-3 pages) 

Evaluation Criteria for the explanation of the impact of the applied research on the PoP include: 

  • Contribution to Practice or Field: Clearly describes the meaningful contribution to professional practice at the local or broader field of education (e.g. innovation, professional product, policy)  

  • Advancing Equity, Ethics, or Social Justice: Describes how the research led to changes that advance equity, ethics, or social justice. 

  • Communication to Community Members: Explains how the applicant communicated findings, processes, or progress to relevant members within the professional context. 

  • Sustainability and Next Steps: Outlines practical next steps for sustaining or expanding current work within the professional context.  

  • Long-term Recommendations for Impact: Provides thoughtful, forward-looking recommendations to foster long-term, systemic improvement in educational leadership, practice, and/ or research. 

References  

  • APA 6th or 7th ed. format 

  • Must be submitted separately  

  • Not included in the 16-page limit 

Deadline 

The completed submission must be uploaded to the CPED website by 11:59 PM EST on June 16, 2025. Finalists will be notified in late July; winner(s) will be notified in early September. 

Remove all names of authors and institutions from the submission. The submitting author/university's identifying information will be known only to the DiP Co-Chairs for the initial submission until finalists are identified to maintain anonymity and objective evaluation by committee members. 

Evaluation 

The 2025 CPED DiP Award Committee will evaluate the submitted DiP synopses based on the above mentioned components. Submissions not including a nomination letter, the full DiP title, a blind, 14-16-page double-spaced synopsis, and a reference list will not be considered for the award. 

Finalists 

Finalists will be notified in mid-to-late July and asked to submit their full DiP for review. 

Award Committee members will review full DiPs using the above criteria, recognizing that submissions may vary widely and achieve distinction in many ways. 

The author(s) of the winning DiP will be invited to attend the October 2025 CPED convening, where they will be recognized. The recipient (s) will be awarded a plaque and a check for $500. The recipient(s) will be encouraged to submit an article for publication based on their DiP to the CPED journal, Impacting Education: Journal on Transforming Professional Practice (http://impactinged.pitt.edu). 

SUBMIT