Social Welfare (PHD)
Description
The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree program in social welfare is designed to train and mentor students to become competent scholars and advanced applied practitioners that advance knowledge and provide leadership in addressing issues pertinent to at-risk and vulnerable populations. The program consists of 54 post-master’s level credit hours. The requirements for the Ph.D. degree will be as follows: 21 hours in a substantive core area of social work, 15 hours of research methods and statistics, and 18 hours of dissertation. Six hours of substantive core credit may be taken in other related departments upon the approval of the dissertation chair in consultation with graduate program coordinator.
Minimum Total Credit Hours: 54
Course Requirements
All students are required to complete the following:
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Substantive Core Area of Social Work | ||
| SCWK 7010 | Colloquium I | 3 |
| SCWK 7030 | Topics with At-Risk Populations | 3 |
| SCWK 7040 | Theories & Research in Neuro & Behaviora | 3 |
| SCWK 7060 | History of Social Welfare | 3 |
| SCWK 7012 | Colloquium II | 3 |
| SCWK 7090 | Social Policy Analysis | 3 |
| SCWK 7130 | Special Topics (or substantive elective) | 3 |
| Research Methods and Statistics | ||
| SCWK 7020 | Research Design in Social Work | 3 |
| SCWK 7050 | Applied and Inferential Statistics | 3 |
| SCWK 7100 | Issues & Research Problems in SW Interve (or research or statistics elective) | 3 |
| SCWK 7110 | Qualitative Methods in Social Work Resea | 3 |
| SCWK 7120 | Advanced Statistics in Social Work | 3 |
Other Academic Requirements
Upon completion of the coursework, the Comprehensive Exam (CE) takes place. The exam tests knowledge of the field based on coursework and assesses competency to advance through the dissertation. The successful completion of the CE prior to candidacy is an important milestone for students before moving on to the next phase of the doctoral program.
Students who have passed the comprehensive exam can take SCWK 7998A Dissertation (dissertation) without a cap. If students have not passed the comprehensive exam after completion of the coursework, they can take SCWK 7998A Dissertation in every semester until they pass comprehensive exam.