Eligible applications must meet the basic requirements specified for graduate students at Mississippi State University. Additionally, applications will be evaluated holistically at the program level across the following benchmarks: Official transcripts from all previous institutions attended demonstrating: an earned graduate degree (e.g., master’s, professional); or progress toward an earned graduate degree with an anticipated completion date that precedes the intended enrollment term; applicants without an advanced graduate/professional degree may be considered on a case-by-case basis with an earned bachelor’s degree in combination with an established, long-term career in higher education leadership and/or advanced research experience in the field of higher education inquiry. Minimum grade point average (GPA) of: 3.00 on a 4.00 scale on previous graduate/professional degree(s) if applying with a master’s/professional degreed; or 3.00 on a 4.00 scale for the last half of the bachelor’s degree if applying without a master’s/professional degree. Statement of purpose summarizing: past experience in higher education leadership, current knowledge of the field’s key issues, and/or future aspirations related to executive level leadership in a particular subfield of higher education, how the candidate envisions an advanced research-based degree furthering their leadership aspirations in the field of higher education practice/scholarship, 1-3 potential research topics that represent the candidate’s scholarly interests for future dissertation research. Current résumé or CV demonstrating at least three years professional work, instruction, or leadership experience in a higher education setting. Three letters of recommendation from professional colleagues, faculty from past academic experiences, or other stakeholders related to higher education leadership who can provide insight on one or more of the following: the applicant’s evolving higher education leadership profile, professional skills, competencies, or knowledge that position the applicant for executive level leadership or instruction in the field of higher education, academic skills related to doctoral level inquiry (e.g., identifying key issues for the advancement of contemporary higher education, scholarly and empirical research, scholarly writing, critical thinking, applications of knowledge to the improvement of higher education practice), research topics the applicant has deliberated and the relevance of these topics to the applicant’s chosen higher education sub-specialty. The admissions committee may require an interview to further evaluate academic and/or career interests aligned with the program’s offerings