Advanced Studies

A group of graduates in line facing away from the camera. They are wearing black robes and black motarboards with gold tassels.  The center motarboard has "Early Childhood Policy" written in gold text.

Opportunity for Advanced Studies in Early Childhood Policy

Looking to advance your career in early childhood policy? Here is a list of institutions of higher education offering certificates and degrees related to ECP.

ECPIHE Related Programs

 

Boston College: Certificate in Early Childhood Policy Leadership through The Institute of Early Childhood Policy

The Institute of Early Childhood Policy at Boston College is a cross-disciplinary effort between the Lynch School of Education and Human Development and the School of Social Work. Led by Professor Rebekah Levine Coley and faculty in the two schools, the IECP expands interdisciplinary research, training, and collaborative partnerships in the field of early childhood policy. The IECP offers a Certificate in Early Childhood Policy Leadership.

 

Columbia University: Masters in Education Policy

The 33-credit M.A. degree aims to build a cadre of education policy experts whose deep grounding in a range of educational policy issues is matched by their understanding of the policy process and the tools of policy analysis. The degree is focused on the preparation of policy analysts, policy advocates, and education researchers. The program develops students’ knowledge and skills by drawing on interdisciplinary policy studies, the social science disciplines of economics, law, politics, and sociology, and substantive content on policies and practice in early childhood education, K-12 education, higher education, law and education, and data analysis, and research methods.

 

IDEA Alliance: Graduate Certificate in Early Childhood and Family Policy

The online early childhood & family policy graduate certificate empowers those who are committed to working on behalf of young children and their families domestically and internationally. This innovative curriculum provides optimum flexibility through online courses offered in 8-week sessions so you only have to focus on one course at a time.

In just four courses, students develop essential policy skills and understand the interrelationship of early childhood and family policies from a range of systems such as health care, education, family leave, mental health, child abuse and neglect, incarceration of parents, and minimum wage.

Society and its policymakers are becoming more and more focused on the importance of the early years and the need for quality services that are distributed equitably and sustainably over time. This graduate certificate places individuals at the helm of framing a new era for early childhood policy.

The ECFP Graduate Certificate is a joint effort among Iowa State University, Michigan State University, Texas Tech University, University of Mississippi, University of Missouri, and University of Nebraska – Lincoln. To enroll in the 12-credit graduate certificate at any of these institutions, go to IDEA Alliance and scroll down to find contacts at each of the six IHEs.

 

University of California Berkeley: UC Berkeley's Transdisciplinary Early Learning Science & Child Policy Program

Berkeley is launching a new graduate program in Transdisciplinary Early Learning Science & Child Policy. It brings developmental science to public policy, building on the relevance and impact of community-engaged research, that comprises innovative academic training at Berkeley. We leverage Berkeley’s expertise in Public Policy, Psychology, Public Health, Education, Social Welfare, and Journalism—integrated through the Institute of Human Development (IHD)—to deepen graduate training for students. They will work in interdisciplinary teams, using an actionable science approach, on real-world child-policy cases and complete early childhood policy internships.

 

University of Colorado Denver: School of Education and Human Development

The School of Education & Human Development (SEHD) offers a PhD in Early Childhood Policy, bridging developmental science, child and family studies, and early childhood policy and systems research. The program prepares candidates to be leaders, policymakers, policy advisors and analysts, faculty members, and researchers who successfully shape, direct, implement, and evaluate early childhood services, infrastructure, and policy and contribute to the scholarly knowledge that undergirds the discipline. Students gain applied research and policy experiences through faculty-led projects. In the future, as SEHD nurtures an Early Childhood Policy Research Institute (ECPRI), a master’s degree in early childhood policy and leadership, as well as a self-contained certificate in early childhood policy, will also be developed.

 

University of Florida: Early Childhood Policy Centers Collaborative

The University of Florida’s Early Childhood Policy Centers Collaborative (ECP-CC) is a hub for training the next generation of leaders in early childhood policy, producing actionable early childhood research, furthering the development of early childhood policy as a field, and, ultimately, improving the lives of children and families.

Emerging leaders and early childhood practitioners can advance their studies and credentials through the Collaborative’s newly launched graduate certificate in early childhood policy and a forthcoming master’s in early childhood policy. Researchers and policymakers can find insights to improve policy and practice through the Collaborative’s ongoing research and policy analysis. And, those interested in the field, can engage in the Collaborative’s ongoing campus and public events.

The Early Childhood Policy Centers Collaborative leverages existing expertise while creating new synergies between UF centers and academic departments engaged in early childhood policy research and practice. With faculty from the Education Policy Research Center, Anita Zucker Center for Excellence in Early Childhood Studies, the Collaboration for Effective Educator Development, and the Law School’s Center on Children and Families, the Early Childhood Policy Centers Collaborative houses national leaders in the policy conversation around young children.

 

University of Washington: Center for Early Childhood Policy and Equity

The Center for Early Childhood Policy and Equity (CECPE) at the University of Washington aims to cultivate future generations of early childhood policy leaders positioned to engage in equity-oriented, evidence-based policymaking that promotes intersectional justice in early childhood.

The center has recently launched a new Early Childhood Policy Specialization for the M.Ed. in Educational Policy, Organizations, and Leadership. Designed to build a newly established and growing field, the specialization has an interdisciplinary approach to early childhood policy with foundational coursework in policy design, advocacy, implementation, and evaluation, aimed at preparing policy leaders to take on critical work and chart new pathways toward a more equitable and inclusive early childhood education system.

 

University of Kentucky: Graduate Certificate in Leadership for Early Childhood and Family Policy

The Early Childhood & Family Policy Graduate Certificate is a 12-hour graduate certificate that builds essential policy development and analysis skills. An interdisciplinary lens facilitates an understanding of the impact of early childhood and family policies within a range of systems such as health care, education, family leave, mental health, child abuse and neglect, incarceration of parents, and minimum wage. Through this program, students will be connected with a national network of individuals as part of an emerging field centered on the creation and implementation of coordinated, effective, and equitable policies, practices, and infrastructure that support children birth-through-8-years-old.”

Other Early Childhood Policy Programs

Brandeis University: Master and PhD of Public Policy – Child, Youth and Family (CYF) Policy Concentration

Case Western Reserve University: Childhood Studies Minor

Duke University: Child Policy Research Certificate – Undergraduate

Harvard Graduate School of Education: Certificate in Early Education Leadership (CEEL)

Harvard Law School: Child Advocacy Program

Loyola University Chicago: MJ in Children's Law and Policy

Loyola University Chicago: MSW/MJ Child and Family Law

Montclair State University: Certificate, Undergraduate, and Graduate Programs in Child Advocacy and Policy Certification

Northern Arizona University: Early Childhood Education, Master of Education - Early Childhood Leadership Emphasis

Northwestern University: PhD in Human Development and Social Policy Social Policymaking and Policy Implementation Curriculum

Oakland University: Doctor of Philosophy in Early Childhood Education

Stanford University: Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies

Stanford University: Stanford Center for Education Policy Analysis (CEPA)

Syracuse University: Child and Family Policy Studies Minor

Tufts University: M.A. in Child Study and Human Development with a Concentration in Child and Family Policy and Programs

University of Dayton: Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy (BSE)

University of Dayton: Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy (MSE)

University of Minnesota: Certificate in Early Childhood Policy

University of Massachusetts at Boston: Graduate Certificate Program in Early Education Research, Policy, and Practice

University of Massachusetts at Boston: Institute for Early Education Leadership and Innovation

University of North Carolina Wilmington: Leadership, Policy, and Advocacy in Early Childhood

University of Oregon: Master's in Education Policy and Leadership

University of Virginia: Department of Education Leadership, Foundations, and Policy

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater: Master of Science in Education in Early Childhood Education Policy

Walden University: Post-Master's Certificate in Educational Policy, Leadership, and Management

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