Quickly, I am interested in studying the role, history, and philosophy of formal education in society. Particularly, I'm interested in the history and politics of education, philosophy of education, sociology of education, and civic education, with an emphasis on U.S. higher education.
My search for graduate programs which specialize in this area has rendered few results; Penn's M.S.Ed. program in Education, Culture, and Society (ECS) is the only program I've found thus far that speaks directly to my interest. I've encountered mildly similar programs, usually sociology of education programs, but the one's I've seen do not cover all the elements I am looking for.
The problem is, given my subpar undergraduate performance (3.3, state school) and average GRE potential (I haven't taken the test yet), Penn is likely out of my league.
Are any of you aware of comparable programs at lower tier schools? I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket, but I've not found anything else like Penn's ECS program.