The College Student Personnel program is hosting a recruitment event the weekend of December 7-8. Attendees will be interacting with program faculty and students as well as learning about the College Student Personnel program.
The Doctor of Philosophy program in College Student Personnel requires a minimum of 93 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree and is organized in four areas: professional specialty, research and statistics, counseling and foundations, core and internship.
Each student's program is specifically designed to include previous graduate coursework and research interests. Credit hours from an approved CSP or related program may be used to fulfill a portion of the 93 hours. Students with master's degrees in an unrelated field must complete the prerequisite coursework in the CSP program while enrolled as doctoral students.
Doctoral students are required to be in residence for 18 credit hours (i.e. complete 18 hours of coursework) within a given period of twelve months. The residency requirement can be completed any time during the degree program prior to the dissertation. Residency provides students the opportunity to use educational facilities and to participate more fully in the intellectual life and research atmosphere of the University.
As part of the program coursework, the student must register for ECPY 782, Doctoral Internship, which features a complete field experience of no less than 300 hours in a selected site which will offer the student a practical, comprehensive opportunity to engage in professional student personnel activities related to the student's personal interest area.
After most of the coursework is completed, doctoral students must take written comprehensive exams to demonstrate their knowledge of college student development theory and application, statistics/research methods, assessment in higher education, and the student's cognate area. Generally, the exam is taken on a computer and includes 3 to 4 questions. The exams are usually offered once in the fall, spring and summer terms. Students must pass all questions before they can move on to the dissertation stage.
A dissertation is required of all candidates for the degree of Ph.D. It is to be a scholarly achievement in basic or applied research in education and/or college student personnel administration that demonstrates a thorough understanding of research techniques in education and the ability to conduct independent research.
After completing the dissertation, the student is required to pass a final oral examination before completing the doctoral degree. The oral examination is a defense of the dissertation and a demonstration of the candidate's master of a specific field of study.
For details about program curriculum, visit the Degree Requirements - Graduate Catalog.
Prospective students must submit an online application for admission to the School of Interdisciplinary and Graduate Studies.
An applicant who does not meet one of the above criteria and wishes to be considered for admission should include, in his/her application package, a written rationale for why the doctoral admissions committee should consider the application.
Applicants ranked highest by the doctoral admissions committee based on their application package will be interviewed on campus or by telephone.
Visit the Doctoral Student web site to learn more about the admission process. If you have questions about the program, e-mail ecpyinfo@louisville.edu.
Spring Term Admission: October 15 only
Fall Term Admission: January 15 (if requesting financial assistance) or March 1 (if no assistance is needed and positions are available).
Note: If spaces are available in the program after the March 1 deadline, fall applications will be considered until June 15. Please check with the department prior to applying.
Bridgette Pregliasco
Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, Counseling, and Student Personnel
College of Education & Human Development
University of Louisville
Louisville, KY 40292
502-852-6204
This program is designed to prepare prospective professionals for upper-level positions in student affairs administration in institutions of higher education, and faculty positions in graduate professional preparation programs.
In addition to the financial aid opportunities offered by the University, the College of Education & Human Development also has information about financial aid.
Other financial aid opportunities available include graduate assistantships and other employment opportunities.
There are internships for students involved in the program. You can learn more on the College Student Personnel Internships page.