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Human Development & Psychology Division

In the Human Development & Psychology (HDP) graduate division, students explore the situations and processes that promote learning and development in a variety of social contexts for individuals and groups from diverse backgrounds. The program is designed for students interested in human learning and development to improve educational practices. The HDP Division offers two Ph.D. programs — the Ph.D. in Education and the Ph.D. in Special Education — and one M.A. in Education program. The Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education is offered with the California State University, Los Angeles.

Academic Information

Overview of the program.

The Division of HDP is committed to understanding individual differences and bettering the lives of children, adolescents, and their families from under-served and under-resourced communities, and those who are under-represented in the scientific literature.

HDP faculty and students employ a variety of research designs and methodological approaches. Faculty expertise includes qualitative (e.g., clinical structured interviews), quantitative (e.g., survey research methods), and mixed methods approaches, as well as randomized experimental designs, and longitudinal and intervention studies. The program has served as a model for training in applied research and the application of research to real-life settings.

Division Values

The goal of the HDP program is to study the nature and course of human development, in context, to inform practices and policies that affect the welfare of children. Topical Areas of Study Include:

  • Interactions between risk and resilience across development
  • Concerns with life circumstances (e.g., experiencing poverty or immigration) and personal characteristics (e.g., ability to learn a language or disability) that make individuals or groups vulnerable to variations in achievement, social, and emotional outcomes
  • Relationships between single and multiple risk factors
  • Processes that mediate the presence of a risk factor and later outcomes
  • Developmental trajectories of children and adolescents
  • Identifying protective factors that may alter or alleviate the impact of high risk
  • Specific disabilities, such as autism, mental health disorders, intellectual disabilities, and language disabilities
  • School-based research relevant to children’s and adolescent’s academic, social, and motivational development
  • Developing more effective learning strategies for diverse learners
  • Examining structural features (e.g., racial and ethnic diversity, socioeconomic composition of the school, dual language immersion programs) that affect educational progress and attainment
  • Studying process features (e.g., peer relations, instructional approaches, parental involvement in schools) that affect educational progress and attainment

What Our Graduates Do

The training that HDP students receive prepares them for work in a variety of fields. Recent HDP graduates have assumed positions either as faculty, consultants, or researchers in a number of institutions across the country.

  • Assistant Professor, Teacher Education Program, University of California, San Diego
  • Assistant Professor, Elementary Education, University of Georgia
  • Assistant Professor, Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education, University of Washington (Seattle)
  • Associate Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning, Peabody College, Vanderbilt University
  • Associate Professor, Special Education, Charter School of Education, California State University, Los Angeles
  • Postdoctoral Scholar in Child Abuse and Neglect, University of Nebraska, Lincoln
  • Postdoctoral Scholar in Special Education, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California, Los Angeles
  • Research Associate, LessonLab, Santa Monica, California
  • Program Specialist, Pomona Unified School District, California
  • Consultant, Milken Foundation
  • Research Associate, Los Angeles Unified School District, Los Angeles
  • Research Associate, American Institute of Research, Washington, D.C.

M.A. Program in HDP

The M.A. Program in HDP is typically a full-time, one-year program. You should plan to be enrolled in the equivalent of at least three 4-unit classes for all quarters. Most courses are offered during the day. University regulations are that the M.A. must be completed within 7 quarters (two and one-third years), but students in our division rarely take that long. As a student in the M.A. Program, you must take at least nine 4-unit courses. About half are required courses and half are courses selected to fulfill various required types. Consult with your advisor in order to choose courses that best support your academic plan and goals.

Ph.D. Program in HDP

The Ph.D. program is a full-time program. You should plan to be enrolled in the equivalent of at least three 4-unit classes every quarter and to be on campus almost every day. Many of the formal courses you will take are during the day, as are most colloquia, research group (RAC) meetings, and research work. You will gain valuable experience and learn much from the time you spend outside of courses with faculty and students conducting research, writing papers, and working in formal and informal educational settings. Typically, you should expect to finish your degree in four to six years. University regulations require that the Ph.D. be completed within 21 quarters (seven years), but students in our division normally do not take that long. As faculty, we are committed to helping you finish in a reasonable time-to-degree of four to six years.

Joint Doctoral Ph.D. Program in Special Education

If you are in the Joint Doctoral Ph.D. Program in Special Education, your general experiences and timetable will be similar to those of students in the HDP Ph.D. program. Like the HDP doctoral program, the Joint Doctoral Ph.D. program is full-time. The time periods within which you can and must complete the Joint Doctoral Ph.D. degree are also about the same as those for the HDP Ph.D. program with the main difference that you take your initial year of courses at California State University, Los Angeles and then complete course requirements at UCLA. Having the first year of courses at California State University, Los Angeles will not extend the length of your Ph.D. program.

The Joint Doctoral Program is DISTINCT from the HDP Ph.D. in the following ways: You will have a slightly different timeline as you will take your first year of courses at California State University, Los Angeles. You must complete a minimum of six courses at California State University, Los Angeles. You will be required to take three fewer quarters of colloquium. You will have NO publication requirement. You are required to have five rather than four dissertation committee members.

Students in Lab

Our Current Students

Visit the student directory and see what they are working on.

Graduate students at UCLA Department of Education benefit from — and contribute to — the resources of the country’s number one public graduate school of education.

A distinguished faculty committed to research, teaching, and excellent research centers and institutes offer extraordinary opportunities for graduate endeavors. We are preparing the next generation of researchers and professionals to address some of the most pressing challenges in the field.

Learn how HDP could be the right fit for you.

The UCLA Ed & IS Office of Student Services looks forward to assisting you through the application process. If we can be of service to you in any step of this process, please feel free to contact any one of our advisors.

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Student Resources

HDP M.A. Plan of Study

HDP Ph.D. Plan of Study

HDP Course Schedule

HDP Student Handbook

Admissions Resources

HDP Application Step-By-Step Guide

Information Sessions for this Program

Jennie Grammer

Jennie Grammer

Associate professor of education; faculty director, uc|csu collaborative for neuroscience, diversity and learning.

Sandra Graham

Sandra Graham

Distinguished professor.

Jeffrey Wood

Jeffrey Wood

phd in education ucla

Rashmita Mistry

Division head.

Alison Bailey  [email protected] (310) 825-1731

Division Administrative Assistant

(310) 825-9260

Division Graduate Advisor

Kim Mattheussens [email protected] (310) 825-0830

Student Ambassadors

Lauren Kinnard

Ingrid Tien

Maira Tafolla

Desiree Tanimura

[email protected]

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COMMENTS

  1. Education | UCLA Graduate Programs - University of California ...

    The Ph.D. degree in Education is a strongly research-oriented academic degree designed for individuals preparing for careers in basic research or college-level instruction. Major foci include theory, research methodology, basic studies, and in-depth knowledge in education and an approved cognate field.

  2. Doctoral Studies | UCLA Graduate Programs

    We offer six types of doctoral degrees in over eighty fields of study. Most of our doctoral degrees are PhDs; we also offer a Doctor of Education, Doctor of Environmental Science and Engineering, Doctor of Public Health, Doctor of Musical Arts, and Doctor of Nursing Practice.

  3. Ph.D. in Information Studies - UCLA School of Education ...

    UCLAs Department of Information Studies seeks students capable of undertaking a sophisticated, interdisciplinary, and innovative program of scholarly investigation. It offers students who undertake this demanding program an extraordinary educational experience.

  4. Department of Education - UCLA School of Education ...

    Through scholarship, teaching, institution, and community, our Department of Education prepares tomorrow’s leaders to fearlessly pursue the incredible potential of an educational system that embraces and adapts to difference. We train educators and researchers to cultivate equity and confront systemic inequity, to reshape how classrooms and ...

  5. Human Development & Psychology Division - UCLA School of ...

    The HDP Division offers two Ph.D. programs — the Ph.D. in Education and the Ph.D. in Special Education — and one M.A. in Education program. The Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education is offered with the California State University, Los Angeles.

  6. Educational Leadership Program | UCLA Graduate Programs

    UCLA's Graduate Program in Educational Leadership Program offers the following degree (s): Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) With questions not answered here or on the program’s site (above), please contact the program directly.