Doctor of Philosophy
Scholars for 21st Century Challenges
Students admitted to our PhD program pursue a customized course of study in an atmosphere of highest regard for scholarship and careful mentoring from faculty who are top ranked in the nation for funded research.
Pursuing a PhD at USC places you in the center of Los Angeles with an exclusive opportunity to develop and test research in one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse cities in the world.
The USC Graduate School is committed to providing detailed information on the inputs, outcomes and overall characteristics of its PhD programs, for the purposes of full transparency and to support informed decision making. You can find details, including admission statistics for our PhD program, on the USC Graduate School site and select Social Work for the program.
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PhD Admissions
Our admission PhD candidate selection process is rigorous, reflecting our emphasis on academic achievement, initiative and motivation.
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PhD Degree Requirements
The PhD program requires a minimum of 45 units beyond the master's degree and successful completion of written and oral qualifying exams and the doctoral dissertation.
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PhD Research
Our PhD program places major emphasis on independent inquiry, the development of competence in research methodology, and communication of research results.
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PhD Students
We provide our PhD Students a wide range of educational support services, a rich campus experience and our Doctoral Student Association.
PhD Faculty
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Olivia Lee Associate Professor Director, PhD Program
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María P. Aranda Professor Executive Director, Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging
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John Blosnich Associate Professor Director, Center for LGBTQ+ Health Equity
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Devon Brooks Associate Professor Associate Dean of Academic Affairs
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Carl Castro Professor Director, Military and Veterans Programs
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Julie Cederbaum Associate Professor
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John Clapp Director, Doctor of Social Work Program
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Daniel Hackman Associate Professor
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Ben Henwood Professor Director, Center for Homelessness, Housing and Health Equity Research
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Michael Hurlburt Associate Professor
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Yuri Jang Professor
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Michàlle Mor Barak Professor
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Hans Oh Assistant Professor
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Eric Rice Professor Director, USC Center for AI in Society
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Avelardo Valdez Professor
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Suzanne Wenzel Professor
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Shinyi Wu Associate Professor
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Ann Marie Yamada Associate Professor
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María P. Aranda
Professor Executive Director, Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging
Research interests address interplay between chronic illness, social resources and psychological well-being in low-income minority populations.
Aranda joined the USC faculty in 1995 and holds a joint appointment with the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. She has 20 years of licensed clinical experience providing mental health services to Latinos in the greater Los Angeles area. She has served on local and national boards and committees dedicated to the enhancement of practice, policy, research and advocacy related to underserved minority populations.
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Carl Castro
Professor Director, Military and Veterans Programs
Carl A. Castro is an associate professor, also serving as the director of Military and Veterans Programs. Castro joined the faculty in 2013 after serving 33 years in the U.S. Army, where he obtained the rank of colonel. Castro began his military career as an infantryman in 1981. He served in a variety of research and leadership positions, including as director of the Military Operational Medicine Research Program, Headquarters, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Fort Detrick, Maryland.
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Julie Cederbaum
Associate Professor
Dr. Cederbaum focuses on primary and secondary HIV prevention both within and outside the United States.
Julie Cederbaum joined in 2009 after completing her doctoral studies at the University of Pennsylvania, where she worked within a multidisciplinary team at the Center for Health Disparities Research. Her work has focused on primary and secondary HIV prevention both within and outside the United States.
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John Clapp
Director, Doctor of Social Work Program
John D. Clapp is a professor at the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work at the University of Southern California. Clapp is known internationally for his research and translational work in the field of alcohol problem prevention. A fellow in the American Academy of Health Behavior, Clapp is currently studying the system dynamics of drinking events with a team of engineers and computer scientists with the goal of developing “smart” real-time prevention applications. He has published more than 100 journal articles, with his work appearing in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, Addiction, Drug and Alcohol Dependence, among numerous other top research journals.
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Ben Henwood
Professor Director, Center for Homelessness, Housing and Health Equity Research
Expert on housing and integrative support for homeless individuals. Dr. Henwood is a licensed clinical social worker who has served as an administrator, clinician and researcher for organizations serving adults experiencing homelessness and serious health conditions, including mental illness, physical disease and addiction.
Henwood helped start and served as the clinical director for Pathways to Housing, Inc., a Housing First agency in Philadelphia, where he also served as the principal investigator of clinical research that sought to develop more effective models of integrating primary and behavioral health care.
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Eric Rice
Professor Director, USC Center for AI in Society
Social work expert, focusing on community outreach, network science, and the use of social networking technology by high-risk youth.
Eric Rice is an associate professor and the founding co-director of the USC Center for Artificial Intelligence in Society, a joint venture of the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work and the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. Rice received a BA from the University of Chicago, and an MA and PhD in Sociology from Stanford University.
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Suzanne Wenzel
Professor
Interdisciplinary researcher, specializing in the health-related needs of vulnerable populations. Suzanne Wenzel has devoted much of her career to interdisciplinary research that seeks to understand and address health-related needs of vulnerable populations, particularly individuals experiencing homelessness in urban communities. Wenzel has also served as the principal investigator on ten grants from the National Institutes of Health.
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