Department of Social Work and Social Ecology

Social Policy and Social Research

Admission to the program is governed by the policies and procedures established by the School of Behavioral Health. Admission requirements to the doctoral program include:

1. Master's degree from an accredited institution of higher education. Examples would include such disciplines as social work (MSW), nursing (MS), business (MBA), public health (MPH), education (MEd), and the ministry (MDiv.);
2. Evidence of adequate academic preparation in graduate education. This includes a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 (4.0 scale) for graduate/postgraduate work;
3. Strong intellectual abilities, including background in social science and statistics;
4. Evidence of research and policy interests that are compatible with the specialized emphases supported by the program faculty;
5. Professional experience and achievement that demonstrates the competence, motivation, organization, and leadership to complete doctoral education in a timely manner;
6. Personal interview;
7. Sample of writing in the form of a published article, academic or professional paper prepared for a research purpose, or an essay prepared for admission to the program;
8. Satisfactory performance on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE); and
9. Curriculum vitae or other description of education and employment history.

In addition to the above criteria, the application process for the PhD degree in social policy and social research utilizes a pooled application process by which the top candidates meeting the admissions criteria are selected. The number of new candidates admitted each year is also reviewed in light of the total number of students completing the program.

Notification of acceptance

The social policy and social research program admissions committee forwards a recommendation of regular, provisional, deferred, or denied status to the dean of the School of Behavioral Health and to the dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies for confirmation. Reasons for designation are given to applicants who receive other than regular acceptance. All applicants are first notified by the dean's office of their admissions status. Accepted students must then acknowledge in writing their intentions to reserve their place in the program.

School of Behavioral Health Admissions

(909) 558-1900 or 1-800-422-4558

admissions.sbh@llu.edu

Department of Social Work and Social Ecology

Admissions Coordinator

Judy Rynearson

jrynearson@llu.edu

(909) 379-7575