Ph.D. in Social Work

The Columbia School of Social Work’s Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) program has produced many of the world’s most influential leaders in social work and social welfare scholarship since its inception in 1950. The program is offered by Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) and administered by the School of Social Work.

It prepares candidates for careers as researchers, scholars and educators. Doctoral students can choose from three concentrations:

• Advanced Practice
• Social Policy and Policy Analysis
• Social Policy and Administration (currently not accepting new applications)

Candidates will also take advanced social work courses and a wide range of courses offered in other Columbia professional schools. A PhD in Social Work candidate will complete approximately two years of full-time coursework, master content in a social work method, a related behavioral or social science, and a substantive field of practice, and prepare and defend a dissertation. To learn more about the concentrations, coursework, registration, and dissertation stages at Columbia School of Social Work, check out to the Doctoral Program Resource Guide.

Columbia University’s School of Social Work is a top ranked school and the first social work school established in the U.S.

Since 1898, Columbia faculty and alumni have played a leading role in advancing the field of social work through scholarly and professional contributions. What began as an intervention in the conditions of urban industrial life at the end of the 19th century has evolved into a global field that impacts nearly every area of social and political life. Our students graduate prepared to face 21st-century challenges.

The mission of the Columbia School of Social Work is to develop leaders in social work practice and research whose work advances professional values, knowledge, and skills through programs and policies that enhance well-being and promote human rights and social justice at the local, national, and global level. We derive this mission from Columbia University’s goal to advance knowledge and learning at the highest level and to use that knowledge for human betterment and societal advancement. Recognizing the importance of New York as a global city, the School seeks academic relationships with many countries and regions.