(PSW)
The PhD in social work is aimed at providing an advanced interdisciplinary degree that will equip graduates for important roles in policy analysis and development, research, and teaching. The period of study for the doctoral degree in social work is typically three to five years, but is not to exceed seven years.
The departmental-level academic course plan for each student will be developed in consultation with and approved by the student’s graduate advisory committee. The committee will include the student’s major advisor and at least two additional members of the graduate faculty such that the LSU Graduate School’s requirements for graduate committees are satisfied.
The degree requires students to:
- Successfully complete 54 semester hours of study, including 15 hours of dissertation, which must be completed within seven years from being classified as a doctoral student.
- Maintain an overall grade point average of 3.00, with no grade less than “C” in any course offered for the degree.
- Demonstrate mastery of a broad major field (i.e. social work) as evidenced by passing the general examination.
- Satisfactorily complete the exit requirement: the dissertation and the dissertation defense.
- The student must defend successfully a dissertation, which is an integrative process that includes a written document and oral/visual presentation and question and answer session for examination defense.
The curricular requirements include:
- Successfully complete at least 54 hours of graduate level work maintaining an overall grade point average of 3.00, with no grade less than “C” in any course offered for the degree. No more than six hours of credit received with a grade of “C” can be counted toward the PhD degree.
- a minimum core requirement of 15 credit hours in social work foundation courses, 12 credit hours in research and statistics, 12 hours of interdisciplinary course work and at least 15 hours of dissertation credit
- The student must pass a general exam consisting of a written exam and oral exam.
Concentration in Child & Family Studies
The Ph.D in Child and Family Studies (CFS) concentration is a minimum of 15 hours of designated CFS research and elective courses, in lieu of 12 hours of research cognate and interdisciplinary electives currently required of the Ph.D in Social Work degree. The CFS concentration courses include: Theories of Child Development, Theories in Family Science, Contemporary Families, and Research Methodology in Child and Family Studies among others. Successful completion of the CFS concentration requires fulfillment of all requirements of doctoral students in Social Work.