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The goal of the Department of Child and Family Development’s doctoral program is to promote the integration of knowledge and professional practice in child development and family studies. The Ph.D. program in Child and Family Development is designed to enable each student to gain and to demonstrate competence in acquiring, integrating, and applying:
- substantive and theoretical knowledge of both child and family development;
- knowledge of and skills for conducting research on individual and family development and behavior; and
- skills for engaging with individuals, families and other professionals in processes that prevent or solve problems and promote competence and well-being.
To accomplish these goals, both formal course work and practicum experiences in research, teaching, and service are required. Both are described below.
Curriculum: Doctor of Philosophy Degree Substantive/Theoretical Concentration in Child and Family Development
Credit Hours: 24+
This area must include all core courses plus additional work in theoretical, substantive, and applied areas of child and family development.
Research Design and Development
Credit Hours: 30+
This includes research methodology, statistics, research, and dissertation hours. Hours in statistics must include advanced work in analysis of variance and correlational methods.
Area of Specialization
Credit Hours: 15
This concentration may be in a basic substantive/theoretical, professional, or methodological area. Hours in this area may duplicate courses taken to meet requirements in Sections A and/or B so long as they are not required courses. Some hours in this section must be exclusive to this area. (MFT students usually consider marriage and family therapy their area of specialization; however, because comprehensive examinations include a section on the area of specialization, MFTstudents are encouraged to define their area of specialization slightly more narrowly than general MFT. This is an important subject to discuss with the major professor and advisory committee.)
It is possible that coursework from a Master's degree can be counted for some of the hours in each of these areas. It is emphasized that the hours shown are considered minimum. The major professor and advisory committee will work with the student to design a program of study that meets the goals of the student and the department.
Practicum Requirements: Doctor of Philosophy Degree
Practicum Description Research Students are expected to supplement their formal coursework with research experience. Some experience may be gained prior to admission to the program, some will be gained through assistantships and volunteer work with faculty, and some will be gained through independent research and/or the dissertation. Students present to their major professor and advisory committee a summary of their research experience so that the committee and student may plan together to insure that upon graduation qualifications for research are excellent.
Teaching
We are committed to assist students in the development of competence to teach in higher education. Students may request the opportunity to be supervised while teaching a course for which they have complete responsibility. Also, students may request the opportunity to lecture in large classes. Decisions about teaching are made in consultation with the major professor and advisory committee and the Department Head.
Service Students who have not had an experience working with individuals and/or families in the delivery of some kind of service (e.g., education, social service, mental health, etc.) should expect to obtain such an experience either through paid employment or volunteer work while a student. This exposure to issues and problems faced by persons outside of textbooks and our own families is considered essential to a full understanding of the issues studied in the department. Students present a summary of their experience to the major professor and advisory committee.
These experiences are reviewed as a part of the program of study. Advisory committees will sign the program of study after agreeing that all necessary courses and practica are accounted for.
Marriage and Family Therapy
The Department of Child and Family Development has an accredited Marriage and Family Therapy program. This program is only available at the doctoral level. Students interested in marriage and family therapy apply for admission to the PhD program in Child and Family Development; upon meeting admission requirements for the department, their credentials are considered for the MFT program. In this program, students meet the coursework requirements for clinical membership in the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists and begin work toward certification as an approved supervisor. This is a very competitive program in which students are expected to be at an advanced level and prepared to refine their MFT skills along with developing outstanding research credentials.
For students who do not wish to be admitted to the MFT program, but desire some work in marriage and family therapy, the department is part of an interdisciplinary Pre-Professional Certificate Program in Marriage and Family Counseling. Other departments involved in the certificate program are Counseling and Human Development Services in the College of Education and the School of Social Work. Both Masters and Doctoral students may earn the certificate in marriage and family therapy.
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Ph.D in Child & Family Development 
