About WISR

What is WISR?

The Western Institute for Social Research (WISR) is a non-profit graduate degree-granting institution, providing distance education, and with its home office in Berkeley, California. WISR was founded/incorporated on May 1, 1975, and received approval from the State of California for its degree-granting programs in April 1977.  In February 2024, WISR was accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (www.deac.org).

WISR offers the following academic degrees:

• MS in Education and Community Leadership

• MS in Psychology/MFT (which meets the State of California’s academic requirements toward the Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) license, and with extra practicum hour and three additional courses, the State’s Licensed Professional Clinical Counseling (LPCC) license. 

• EdD in Higher Education and Social Change

Students are able to study at a distance and complete courses at their own pace, and can enroll any month of the year, and graduate in any month as soon as they complete their studies. WISR’s has a self-paced curriculum, with continuing, personalized support and guidance from faculty. It is ideal for people who are working and/or who have major family commitments, and for those with special many types of special learning needs. Our faculty meet twice a month (by zoom or phone) with each student in one-on-one sessions. Faculty are selected for their academic and professional experience, their commitment to key WISR values such as action-oriented inquiry, social justice, multiculturalism and diversity/inclusiveness, and their passion for working with students individually.  Faculty are skilled at helping students integrate their personal interests in their coursework at WISR. 

WISR tuition is very affordable at $700/month, with a modest $250 enrollment fee, a $75 graduation fee, and typically less than a total of $1,000 spent during their entire degree program for books and access to learning resources.

Annual surveys of WISR students and recent alumni provide evidence that students and alumni are very satisfied with their WISR experience and the contributions to their learning. Further, surveys of the coworkers/supervisors of recent alumni and of students advanced in their studies indicate that others are very impressed with the quality of the performance and work of our students and alumni. [ see for example: https://wisr.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/WISR-2022-Annual-Outcomes-Assessment-Report.pdf ]

To learn more, go to www.wisr.edu 

WISR's Mission Statement

WISR provides community-involved adults with high-quality, affordable, personalized, learner-centered online graduate education and degrees in a collaborative, multicultural learning community with a commitment to community education and to being a model for improvements in higher education. WISR has an emphasis on action-oriented inquiry that combines theory and practice to achieve community improvement, educational innovation and social justice. 

Prospective Students

Prospective Students may contact WISR at mail@wisr.edu to request an initial conversation to learn more by talking with WISR's President, Dr. John Bilorusky (or they may contact him directly at johnb@wisr.edu ).  Following the initial conversation, he will assist prospective students in learning more about whether or not a WISR program is likely to meet their needs by putting them in touch with recent graduates, other faculty, and facilitating their participation in one or more seminars. 

People at WISR Today

About the Faculty, Staff, Board, and Advisory Committee Members at WISR today.