Social Work (PhD)

PhD Program

Program Overview

The mission of the School of Social Work’s Doctor of Philosophy program is to prepare graduates to conduct interdisciplinary research and become exemplary social work scholars and educators. Approximately two-thirds of our graduates obtain academic positions and one-third obtains research and administrative positions.

Degree Requirements

Pre-requisites:

MSW degree required for admission

The 53-credit curriculum begins with 23 credits of core courses:

Additional required courses include:

research seminar (2 credits);
quantitative and qualitative research design and methods (9 credits);
data analysis and statistics (6 credits); and
research practicum (6 credits)

intervention research (3 credits),
an integrative seminar (3 credits),

teaching methods (3 credits),
advanced research or data analysis in the student’s area of interest (3 credits), and
theory in the student’s area of interest (3 credits)
Students also take another 3-credit elective.

After completing the integrative seminar, students take a comprehensive examination. The final phase of the program is the completion of 12 hours of doctoral dissertation credits.

Contact Us

Office of Admissions

General inquiries:
phd@ssw.umaryland.edu

View program website

Dates and Deadlines

January 5 for fall (no spring admission)

Funding Information

All of our full-time students are supported with graduate research assistantships that provide a stipend, tuition remission, and health insurance. We also support students who wish to apply for external funding: our students have received funding from the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Minority Fellows Program, the National Institute of Justice, the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the Children’s Bureau, as well as other grant and scholarship organizations.

At A Glance:	What We Offer:
36 current students 9 Graduates 2023 9 PhD Candidates	A highly-competitive, nationally renowned program Small class sizes Individualized one-on-one advising from Dissertation Chairs An educational environment conducive to academic success An integrative approach to research applications Numerous campus resources and amenities

How to Apply

To apply, submit the online application and all required documents to the Graduate School along with the required nonrefundable application fee.

Learn more about the PhD Program

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