PhD in Human Development and Family Studies at Pennsylvania State University

This interdisciplinary program is one of the graduate programs of the College of Health and Human Development. It is administered through the Department of Human Development and Family Studies. The Human Development and Family Studies graduate program is designed to educate students about research, theory, and methodology related to the study of individuals and families across diverse populations and diverse settings. There is a strong interest in the ways in which social institutions and settings such as day care facilities, schools, neighborhoods, and social policy institutions facilitate (or inhibit) opportunities for development and change for individuals and families. Understanding the characteristics and conditions that place individuals or families at risk for developing problems, designing effective prevention programs to address those risks, and mounting rigorous evaluations of such programs is a growing emphasis in the program. All students, regardless of substantive area, are encouraged to develop strong skills in research methods, a hallmark of our graduate training. Through course work and apprenticeship experiences, students develop an understanding of the program's multidisciplinary life span/life course, and applied orientation. As students progress through the program, they are expected to develop specialized expertise in two or more of the department's areas of concentration: individual development, family studies, intervention research, and research methods.

1. Know. Graduates will demonstrate an understanding of core theories and methods related to lifespan development, family process, and prevention science.
2. Know, Apply/Create. Graduates will demonstrate skills in statistics and research methods with an emphasis on selecting and applying methods in conjunction with theory specific to their area of study.
3. Know, Think, Communicate. Graduates will demonstrate a mastery of the literature in their research area and an ability to integrate and communicate knowledge across at least 2 core department areas.
4. Communicate.  Graduates will communicate, in both written and oral formats, the importance and relevance of a research topic as well as the implications research results have for the field.
5. Apply/Create, Think, Communicate. Graduates will demonstrate the ability to develop independent research questions to be addressed empirically, conduct the empirical analyses, and convey findings in a manner suitable for dissemination to the field.
6. Professional Practice, Think.  Graduates will comply with standard ethical regulations regarding the conduct of research, knowledge of ethical guidelines regarding the analysis and publication of scientific research.