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Academics

About the Program

The PhD Program in Social Welfare, which began in autumn 1975, awards the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. The program prepares students to become leaders in the advancement of knowledge in the profession and relevant interdisciplinary domains. Students acquire both the substantive and methodological competence to contribute theoretical formulations and empirical research that inform effective social work practice and advance scholarship in social welfare for the promotion of social justice. Our graduates primarily work in academic and research positions.

Bringing a social justice lens to translational and cross-disciplinary research is at the core of our educational mission. Our School is leading research responses to several of the Grand Challenges in Social Work, a groundbreaking national effort to use science to create social progress in strategically determined areas.  Faculty at the School are part of the research leadership for the following Grand Challenges: Reducing Extreme Economic Inequality, Ensuring Health Development for All Youth, Closing the Health Gap, Advancing Long and Productive Lives and Creating Social Responses to a Changing Environment.  By addressing these core social problems, social work students and scholars are at the front lines of developing practice and policy changes to improve the lives of communities experiencing systemic oppression.

We invite you to learn more about our doctoral program and the future scholars who are at the heart of our program!

Message from E. Roberto Orelanna

I am delighted to welcome you to the PhD Program at the UW School of Social Work. Based in one of the leading Schools of Social Work in the world, our doctoral program attracts a cadre of students committed to research and teaching that makes a difference in the world. With over a dozen thriving research centers and faculty who are at the cutting edge of research in a variety of fields, students in the UW doctoral program have the opportunity to work with leading scholars in social welfare.

Meet the director

E. Roberto Orelanna