SSW PhD Program Requirements

Progression through the SSW PhD Program requires completion of coursework and exams. It's important that procedures are followed correctly to ensure timely graduation.

Step 1: Required Coursework

School of Social Work Coursework
Statistics Coursework
Supporting Program Coursework

Step 2: Preliminary Exams

Generalized Written Preliminary Exam
Specialized Written Preliminary Exam
Oral Preliminary Exam

Step 3: Candidacy

Dissertation Proposal and Approval
24 Doctoral Thesis Credits

Stage 4: Complete and Submit Dissertation

Stage 5: Final Oral Examination and Dissertation Defense

SSW PhD Required Coursework

The PhD program curriculum includes required classes and supporting coursework. The courses required as part of doctoral studies in Social Work are composed of SSW Coursework (22 credits), Statistics Courses (approximately 6-8 credits), and Supporting Program Coursework (12 credits). Supporting program courses must be selected in consultation with your advisor; these courses may be a minor from another department or a coherent set of courses from more than one discipline related to social work.

SSW Coursework

Research Methods

SW 8871 Social Work Research Seminar I, 3 credits

SW 8872 Social Work Research Seminar II, 3 credits

SW 8875 Social Work Research Practicum, 4 credits

Theory

SW 8861 Theory and Model Development in Social Work, 3 credits

History

SW 8851 History of Social Work and Historical Research Methods, 3 credits

Policy

SW 8855 Social Policy Formulation and Analysis, 3 credits

Courses outside the School of Social Work

GRAD 8101 Teaching in Higher Education, 3 credits

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Please communicate with your Academic Advisor, the Graduate Program Coordinator, and/or the PhD Program Director if you have any questions about your required coursework.

Statistics Coursework (optional sequences)

Educational Psychology (EPSY)

EPSY 8251 Statistical Methods in Education I, 3 credits

EPSY 8252 Statistical Methods in Education II, 3 credits

*Both ESPY 8251 and 8252 are required to fulfill the SSW Statistics requirement

Public Affairs (PA)

PA 5031 Statistics for Public Affairs, 4 credits

PA 5032 Regression Analysis, 2 credits

PA 5033 Multivariate Techniques, 2 credits

*PA 5031, 5032 and 5033 are all required to fulfill the SSW Statistics requirement

Public Health (PUBH)

PUBH 6450 Biostatistics I, 4 credits

PUBH 6451 Biostatistics II, 4 credits

*Both PUBH 6450 and 6451 are required to fulfill the SSW Statistics requirement

Sociology (SOC)

SOC 5811 Social Statistics for Graduate Students, 4 credits

SOC 8811 Advanced Social Statistics, 4 credits

*Both SOC 5811 and 8811 are required to fulfill the SSW Statistics requirement

Other Courses

The courses listed above are options to complete the SSW Statistics requirement. Students interested in another sequence should consult with their faculty advisor and seek approval from the PhD Committee.

SSW PhD Degree Progress Sample

(1) Attend PhD Colloquia and Professional Development Seminars

Students are required to attend the PhD Professional Development Colloquia and the Research Colloquia for the duration of their participation in the participation in the program. Students who have a scheduling conflict with the Colloquia during a semester must make prior arrangements with the Director of the PhD Program and advisor to attend the Colloquia a different semester. All students must attend the majority of colloquia during their time in the program.

(2) Annual Review

The University of Minnesota and the School of Social Work require that the progress of each doctoral student be reviewed annually. The review is done to ensure that the student makes adequate progress toward the degree, to document outstanding achievements by the students, and to identify any potential problems for the student related to their performance. The reviews are meant to be an opportunity for the student and the advisor to talk about the student’s experiences to facilitate the successful completion of degree requirements. The annual review is based on course grades and completions, seminar evaluations, advisor feedback, and the student’s overall progress toward the degree. The annual review becomes part of the student’s permanent file.

There are several purposes for the annual review:

Identify both strengths and areas in which the student should improve. When necessary, a strategy for improvement in certain areas may be suggested by the student's individual annual review committee;
Provide a systematic mechanism through which concerns about a student's progress can be discussed;
Provide an opportunity for students to discuss their areas of interest and goals, present a plan for coursework, and present a time frame for completing the various components and requirements of the program. The interests of the students will become better known to faculty, and students may benefit from the input of faculty, other than their advisor, in their program planning;
Provide information that will assist the PhD Committee and the Director of the School of Social Work in program planning and resource allocation; and,
Keep students connected to the Doctoral Program (and vice versa) and to encourage timely progress.

The Annual Progress Review will be structured as follows:

All students will be formally reviewed during each spring semester;
Each annual review committee will be composed of the student's advisor and the Director of the PhD Program;
Students will complete an Annual Review Form which provides a detailed overview of their progress in the program. Students will submit a copy of this form, along with an unofficial copy of their transcript, to their advisor, the Director of the PhD Program, and the Graduate Program Coordinator at least three days prior to the Annual Review meeting; and,
The Director of the PhD Program shall establish procedures for the review which assure that the content and format of reviews are standardized.

Please note: If a student does not complete an annual review a hold will be placed on their record that prevents future registration.

(3) Submit Graduate Planning Audit System (GPAS)

GPAS is an online degree audit report that lists courses to be completed to fulfill requirements of the doctoral program.

When to Submit a GPAS

GPAS allows PhD students to plan future coursework and view student degree progress.
All students must submit a GPAS online in the term prior to taking the Oral Preliminary Exam.
In order to schedule the Oral Preliminary Exam, students must have an approved GPAS, a report indicating that they passed the Generalized Written Preliminary Exam, and a report indicated that they passed the Specialized Preliminary Exam on file.

Accessing GPAS (take a look at this step-by-step guide to accessing GPAS)

Navigate to MyU.umn.edu.
Select the "Degree Progress" tab at the top of the page.
Click the "GPAS" link at the bottom of the page.
Students will be taken to a page called "Grad Planning & Audit System" that explains GPAS and provides instructions for use.

Adding Courses in GPAS (take a look at this step-by-step guide to add courses in GPAS)

Click "Plan by Requirements."
View the requirements for the MSW Program.
Locate a course in the requirements that a student has not yet completed or enrolled in.
Select a course to view the details.
If a student wants to take the selected course, click "Add to Planner."
All courses in GPAS must be planned for a specific term. Students should check the box next to one or more courses, select the term they would like to plan them for, then click "Move." Note: All planned courses must be planned by term and year. Take a look at this step-by-step guide to plan courses for a specific term.

Submitting GPAS for Approval (take a look at this step-by-step guide to submit a GPAS)

Guiding a Student to Submit their GPAS for Approval:
After all requirements have been planned and assigned a term, students should click the "Return to Graduate Planning and Audit Systems" link at the bottom of the page.
Students can scroll to the bottom of the page and click "Submit."

(4) Generalized Written Preliminary Exam

Preparing for the Generalized Written Preliminary Exam

The written preliminary examination is a comprehensive examination covering knowledge in core areas of social welfare and social work and the supporting program. A student must be currently registered in the doctoral program and must have completed and received credit for all required courses in the social work curriculum of the doctoral program before taking the exam, with the exception of GRAD 8101, Teaching Methods and Educational Issues.
Students are strongly encouraged to complete not only the required social work courses but also their supporting program coursework prior to sitting for the Written Exam.
A student with an incomplete grade in a required social work course or a course being used to fulfill the statistics requirement must complete and submit all outstanding work to the instructor of that course no later than the first day of instruction of the semester in which the student wishes to take the exam.

Generalized Written Preliminary Exam Administration

The general knowledge written preliminary exam will be administered in a take-home format over a two week period twice per academic year: once in the Fall semester and once in the Spring semester.
Students who wish to take the examination must notify the Director of the Doctoral program in writing at least one month in advance of the scheduled exam dates.
Questions will be distributed at 9:00 a.m. on Monday of the first week and returned by Friday 4:00 p.m. of the second week.
Prior to receiving the questions, students will be required to sign a statement that they will not consult with or collaborate with others in answering the exam questions.
Students may refer to books, articles, and chapters from the bibliographies as they write their answers. They may not consult (by phone, in person, by email, or by any other means) with anyone regarding their examination questions and answers during the exam period.

Generalized Written Preliminary Exam Content

Students will receive three questions, and must select two of the three to answer during the two week period.
The questions will focus on research, theory, policy, and history.
Students are expected to respond to the general knowledge exam questions by: 1) demonstrating command of the major issues, themes, and works in the core areas; 2) critically assessing the knowledge in the core content areas; 3) demonstrating the ability to use and integrate concepts in a scholarly manner; and 4) using the literature on the preliminary examination bibliographies to articulate and defend a position that represents the student’s scholarly thinking. Faculty will evaluate students' responses according to these four expectations.

Submitting the Generalized Written Preliminary Exam

By 4:00 p.m. on Friday of the second week of the exam period, students will submit to the Director of the Doctoral Program, a typed, fully edited manuscript including citations and references.
The number of pages for each answer, excluding references, shall be in the range of 10 to 15 pages. Students should place only their assigned identification number on their exam answers.
The ID number should be placed on the top right corner of each page. Students should not write their names on the exam answers.
Students will submit a signed statement that they did not consult with or collaborate with others in answering the exam questions at the time of submitting their exam.

Grading the Generalized Written Preliminary Exam

Faculty will have two weeks to grade the exams.
During initial grading, students can either pass the exam, fail the exam, or have their exam referred for committee grading.
Each essay will be graded separately by two members of the SSW doctoral faculty (individuals with Graduate Faculty status and eligible to serve on PhD Committees). Those grading examinations will fill out a grading form and provide written feedback that will be given to the test-taker and designate if the response passes, passes with reservations or fails.
If a student fails an exam, the student may also meet with the grading committee for further feedback. If a student fails the exam, it can be retaken during the next regular administration of the exam.
The general knowledge exam may be taken a total of 3 times. If a student fails the exam twice, there will be an official review of the student’s progress by a committee of graduate faculty appointed by the Director of the PhD program.
This meeting must be called by the student and the student’s advisor, and the student must not register for the exam again until such a meeting has been held. The student’s advisor will be a member of the committee.
If the general knowledge exam is failed three times, the student has failed to qualify to continue in the doctoral program.

Reporting the Generalized Written Preliminary Exam Outcome

Students will be notified in writing whether or not they have passed the written examination requirement(s).
Programs must record whether the student has met the written examination requirement(s) in the central system of record. Students who are reported to have failed to meet the written examination requirement(s) will be terminated from the doctoral program.

(5) Specialized Written Preliminary Exam

After passing the general knowledge written preliminary exam, students will complete their specialized written exam. The goal of the specialized exam is for the student to demonstrate their mastery of the theoretical and research literature related to their dissertation topic. The specialized preliminary written exam, also known as the specialized exam, should be completed no later than the semester following the general knowledge written exam. The Specialized Written Preliminary Exam is preparation for the Oral Preliminary Exam.

(6) Select Oral Exam Committee

You will find additional information about Oral Preliminary Exam Committee policies here. On this page, you will also find the form to elect you Oral Preliminary Exam Committee.

Preliminary Oral Examining Committee

The examining committee will include a minimum of four members, three faculty members from the School of Social Work and one from another department at the University of Minnesota in their supporting area. Students should consult closely with their advisor(s) when determining committee make-up and size. See section on advisors and committees for more details.

Changes in the Preliminary Oral Examining Committee

Substitutions on the examining committee, which may be necessitated, for example, by the departure or absence on leave of a faculty member, must be requested by the advisor or the Director of Graduate Studies through the Graduate School office well in advance of the examination.

(7) Complete Oral Preliminary Exam

Scheduling the Preliminary Oral Examination

It is the responsibility of the student to schedule the preliminary oral with the examiners and with the Graduate School office at least one week in advance of the exam. The Graduate School must have an approved GPAS and a report that the student passed the preliminary written examination before the oral examination can be scheduled.

The Graduate School issues the report form for the preliminary oral examination to the student's advisor, and informs both the student and the advisor if coursework on the official program has not yet been completed. The preliminary oral exam will be authorized in spite of such deficiencies, but deficiencies must be completed before the final oral exam may be scheduled.

Preliminary oral examinations should not be scheduled during the summer unless the members of the assigned committee can be assembled without substitution.

Preliminary Oral Examination Content and Outcome

In addition to the goals described in the Preliminary Written Exam policy, the purpose of the Preliminary Oral Examination is to evaluate the student’s ability to integrate, critically assess, and orally communicate to other scholars knowledge from the social work field and from the student’s supporting program. The Preliminary Oral Examination “covers the major field, the minor field, or supporting program, and any work fundamental thereto, including possible plans for thesis research.” In the School of Social Work PhD Program the student’s answer to the Preliminary Written Examinations (generalized and specialized) serves as a centerpiece for addressing the content in the four core areas. Upon approval and prior agreement with the chair of the Preliminary Oral Examination Committee, the student may furnish the Committee with additional material for discussion, such as a review of the literature in preparation for a dissertation proposal.

Immediately prior to the preliminary oral examination, the committee chair will clearly stipulate the objectives of the examination and, in consultation with other members of the examining committee, determine how the examination is to be conducted. Immediately after the preliminary oral examination, the candidate will be excused from the room and a written vote will be taken before discussion of the examination. Following discussion, a second and final vote will be taken, and the committee chair will submit the electronic form to the Graduate School.

The preliminary oral examination outcome is recorded in one of three ways: pass, pass with reservations, or fail. The voting proportions necessary for these decisions are as follows: if the committee consists of four members, a favorable verdict for passing consists of either unanimous vote or a vote of 3-1; if the committee consists of five members, a unanimous vote or a vote of 4-1. If, to achieve the minimum number of votes to reach a verdict of pass, any vote of pass with reservations is included, then the outcome will be recorded as a pass with reservations. A vote to pass the student with reservations still constitutes a passing vote.

After passing the Oral Preliminary Examination, a student has achieved Candidacy and becomes a Doctoral Candidate

Reporting the Preliminary Oral Exam Results

The examining committee will report the results of the Preliminary Oral Examination to the Graduate School office. If the committee decides that a student passed the examination with reservations, it must inform the student immediately. The committee has one week, however, to send the student a letter that clearly stipulates the reservations and the steps required to remove them. A copy of this letter must be forwarded to the Graduate School along with the Preliminary Oral Examination Form. A second letter informing the student and the Graduate School that the reservations have been removed and that the student may proceed toward the degree is also required. The chair of the preliminary oral examination committee should write both letters on the committee's behalf. The final oral examination may not be scheduled until the Graduate School receives a copy of the second letter indicating that the reservations have been removed.

Failure of the Preliminary Oral Examination

Students failing the preliminary oral exam (a) may be allowed, on unanimous recommendation of the examining committee, to retake the examination or (b) may be excluded from candidacy for the degree. In no case may the reexamination take place before 10 weeks have passed. No more than one re-examination is allowed.

(8) Submit Dissertation Proposal

The oral preliminary examination does not include a formal defense of the student's dissertation proposal. A student may develop a dissertation proposal at any time but may defend their proposal to the committee only after successfully reaching candidacy. The dissertation proposal is presented and defended in a meeting separate from the oral preliminary examination. Students must share their dissertation proposal with their committee at least 4 weeks prior to their dissertation proposal meeting. Formal work on the student's dissertation will only proceed upon approval of the dissertation proposal by a majority of the committee.

Once approved, students are responsible for submitting the Dissertation Proposal Approval Form for processing. A dissertation proposal must be reviewed and approved by all members of their dissertation committee before the student may submit to the IRB and before any data are collected or experimentation begun. Every student in the PhD program is required to comply with these requirements.

(9) Select Final Oral Examination Committee

You will find additional information about Oral Preliminary Exam Committee policies here. On this page, you will also find the form to elect you Oral Preliminary Exam Committee.

Students form a Final Examination Committee consisting of at least three School of Social Work faculty members and one faculty member from a University of Minnesota department outside of the School of Social Work. Other committee members from outside the University of Minnesota may be considered for addition to the Committee as non-voting members. The thesis advisor cannot be the chair of the committee. The role of the chair is to run the Final Examination meeting. The chair must be another committee member with full graduate faculty membership, either inside or outside of the School of Social Work. See section on advisors and committees for more details.

(10) Submit Dissertation

You will find more information related to formatting and submitting your dissertation here. Please review these policies carefully.

(11) Apply to Graduate

Please review the Defense Planning and Graduation page on the PhD Hub for guidance on applying to graduate.

(12) Defend Dissertation (Final Oral Exam)

The Graduate School refers to the defense of the dissertation as the final oral examination. Students are required to follow the steps to schedule the final oral examination in accordance with GSSP policies and procedures. The PhD program requires students to provide a complete final draft of the dissertation to their final examination committee at least 30 days prior to the planned oral examination date.

Students must submit a dissertation defense announcement to the Director of the PhD Program and the Graduate Program Coordinator at least two weeks before the defense date. The final oral examination involves a public presentation to the School of Social Work and a closed final examination with the Final Examination Committee. Results are to be reported to the graduate school on “Final Oral Report Form.”

The School of Social Work follows the University policy for the doctoral defense and final oral exam. This policy sets the standards for the doctoral final oral examination and the submission of the final copy of the doctoral dissertation for the completion of the doctoral degree.

Graduate Minors

Students have the option to complete a graduate minor with their supporting coursework. Graduate minors are categorized as either: (1) related to a graduate major or (2) free standing. Minors related to a graduate program are simply minors in which a student could also obtain a graduate degree. Free standing minors don't have an associated PhD program because they are a bit unique and they enhance that department's degree offerings.

You can search for available minors and post-baccalaureate certificates here.

Special Registration Options

The University has special registration categories that can be used at certain points in the PhD program to maintain continuous enrollment and full-time registration for financial aid or visa requirements. General information about these course options is available on the One Stop website and program specific policies are below.

Since these courses have limitations for registration, approval is required before registering. Please see the Forms page (see Independent or Directed Study form) for more information. Please note the courses are in chronological order of when students typically register for them during the SSW PhD program.

SW 8666 Pre-Thesis - students register for 8666 during the semester of their qualifying exams. Most students take 6 credits to maintain full-time enrollment.
SW 8888 Doctoral thesis - University policy requires students to register for 24 credits of thesis (aka dissertation) for a PhD program. Our program allows registration in 8888 after passing the written preliminary exam.
SW 8444 Doctoral FTE - students who have completed all coursework and 8888 credits may register for SW 8444, if they've been advanced to candidacy. One credit of 8444 is equivalent to full-time registration and it is mainly used when students have a GA position and must maintain full-time enrollment. Registration for SW 8444 requires completion of the application form on One Stop's website.
GRAD 999 - this is a non-credit course that is only used to maintain active status and CEHD prohibits more than two terms of registration in GRAD 999. Registration in GRAD 999 might be appropriate for students defending their dissertation in the first month of a semester or for students who need additional time to finish revisions to their dissertation after their oral defense.
- Since GRAD 999 is a non-credit course, it is not appropriate for students who have financial aid obligations or GA positions. International students may not register for GRAD 999. Students are encouraged to read the information on One Stop's site about GRAD 999 before registering.

Independent or Directed Study (8693) and Directed Research (8694)

The PhD program allows students to count up to 4 credits of 8693 or 8694 (SW or YOST) towards their supporting program coursework. Students must submit a proposal (approved by the faculty mentor) to the Graduate Program Coordinator prior to the start of the term of registration. If the course proposal is approved by the PhD Program Director, the student will be registered by the Graduate Program Coordinator for the appropriate course and credits. Please see the Forms page for more information.

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