The University of Michigan School of Social Work offers two distinct doctoral program options to meet the educational and training needs of emerging social work scholars.
The School of Social Work is thrilled to announce a new addition to our doctoral program. The PhD in Social Work and Social Welfare is designed for students who already have their Master of Social Work (MSW) degree and are looking for a career focused on social justice, equity, and rigorous research. The PhD in Social Work and Social Welfare provides a transdisciplinary approach to identifying and studying societal problems for the purpose of proposing and developing solutions. The focus on societal interventions and solving problems is core to the new PhD in Social Work and Social Welfare at the University of Michigan.
The School of Social Work offers the only Joint PhD program in Social Work and Social Science in the United States. The Joint PhD program in Social Work and Social Science has a long and illustrious history of trailblazing and producing extraordinary scholars. The Joint PhD program pairs education and training in social work with disciplinary training in anthropology, psychology, or sociology. Joint PhD students become deep disciplinary experts who use the knowledge and skills of both their fields to examine societal problems through transdisciplinary research.
Students in both the PhD in Social Work and the Joint Program will take some core coursework together, further increasing the diversity of knowledge and perspectives of our PhD students.
Faculty with rigorous, diverse research areas that span key domains of social work practice and policy including children and families, health and mental health, educational, economic, and racial, and health disparities, and power, privilege, and oppression.
Top-ranked faculty in social work, anthropology, psychology, and sociology who carry out research across a wide array of domains to create a robust transdisciplinary culture for understanding and addressing serious worldwide problems.
Curriculum includes social work theory, methods, and statistical analysis courses, as well as specialized electives focused on services, intervention, and social change.
Curriculum includes theory, methods, and statistical analysis courses in one of three social sciences (anthropology, psychology or sociology).
The PhD Program in Social Work and Social Welfare provides all incoming doctoral students with a multi-year funding package that includes tuition, stipends, and health care during the school year and summers.
The Joint Program in Social Work and Social Science provides all incoming doctoral students with a multi-year funding package that includes tuition, stipends, and health care during the school year and summers.
Two semesters of teaching in the school of social work.
Two semesters in social work and four semesters in the selected social science.
Approximately 4 to 5 years.
Approximately 6 to 7 years.
Develop social work scholars and educators who are prepared for careers in academic, research, and policy settings.
Develop scholars and educators who are prepared for careers in academic, research, and policy settings in either social work or in their social science of choice.
Contact our PhD office to learn more about our PhD program and application process.
University of Michigan
School of Social Work
1080 South University Avenue
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106