The Education Policy Specialization is designed to provide students with the background, concepts, and tools necessary to understand and address policy problems in education. The specialization’s curriculum will afford students opportunities to expose themselves to the multiple disciplines and fields that speak to global and domestic education challenges, such as labor economics, public economics, development economics, development psychology, behavioral science, mechanism design, sociology, and education and child studies.

In addition to the course requirements, students electing the specialization will be encouraged to participate in Committee on Education (COE)-sponsored events, as well as events sponsored by student organizations such as EPSA (Education Policy Students Association). 

Application Process

The specialization is open to any University of Chicago graduate student. Harris students please indicate your intent to pursue this specialization using the Harris Specialization Declaration Form.

University of Chicago students from outside Harris can pursue this specialization so long as they will complete it by spring 2025. Please reach out to harrisregistration@uchicago.edu to indicate you are pursuing this specialization.

For specialization registration questions, please reach out to harrisregistration@uchicago.edu.

Planning for the Specialization

For information on which quarter(s) each course will be offered, see the Harris Courses page and filter by specialization. 

Specialization Requirements

The specialization requires completion of two of three required courses, along with one additional course from the elective or required course list. Students must achieve at least a B- grade in each course, and there is no pass/fail option. The courses do not need to be taken in a particular order. Note that not all of these courses will be offered each year. 

For course descriptions, please visit our courses webpage.

Required Courses (at least two)

  • PPHA 35240: Education, Inequality and Economic Development
  • PPHA 35720: Higher Education Policy
  • PPHA 40700: Early Childhood: Human Capital Development and Public Policy

Elective Courses

  • PPHA 41740: Gender and Policy
  • EDSO 33002: Schooling and Identity
  • EDSO 33011: Beyond the Culture Wars: Social Movements and the Politics of Education
  • EDSO 40315: Inequality in Urban Spaces
  • SOCI 30112 / PPHA 44650: Applications of Hierarchical Models in Longitudinal and Multilevel Research
  • SOCI 30192: The Effects of Schooling

Specialization Contact

Anjali Adukia, Specialization Director

Anjali Adukia

Assistant Professor

Anjali Adukia

Anjali Adukia’s research is focused on understanding factors that influence educational decisions and the potential role for institutions, such as government agencies and nonprofit organizations, to improve child outcomes, particularly at the intersection of education and health.