Given continued confusion about the Ed.D.degree, universities affiliated with the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) have re-envisioned it using a set of guiding principles and design features. In this study, we investigated why students and graduates chose to pursue the Ed.D., what and how they learned, how they viewed themselves, and whether they perceived their programs to be aligned with CPED's principles. Data were collected from 296 participants at 14 CPED institutions using an online survey. Results indicated respondents agreed that their programs were aligned with CPED principles, helped them meet their professional and personal goals, and developed them as scholarly practitioners.