Majors, Minors and Certificates

The goal of the Ph.D. in Biology is to train students to become leaders in a sub-field within modern biology. Upon completion of the Ph.D., students will be prepared for post-graduate training and to eventually assume teaching or research positions in academia, industry, government or nonprofit agencies. The Ph.D. is a research degree and requires at least four to five years of academic study, including summer work.

The Chemistry Department includes research in the areas of analytical, inorganic, organic and physical chemistry. Research is a key focus of the 22 faculty members who comprise the department.

The Ph.D. program in Communication Studies is intended to qualify students to teach and conduct research in instructional communication, interpersonal communication, mediated communication, health communication, and organizational communication, among other courses, at the university level. Students who are accepted into the Ph.D. program in Communication Studies are awarded an assistantship for the first year that is renewable for the second and third years of the program.

The doctoral program in English develops fluency in the critical discourses of the profession and prepares graduates to teach English professionally on the post-secondary level, or to enter a wide range of alternate academic careers.

The doctorate is a research degree that culminates in a dissertation in an area that is jointly determined between a student and their faculty advisor. Each student takes three core courses and two colloquia as the academic foundation for developing their area of research.

The PhD in Geography is an advanced degree with a program made up of coursework, comprehensive exams and a major research investigation. Students are expected to be grounded in one or more of the geography program’s three areas of specialization: environmental geography, geographic information science and human geography.

WVU Geology offers both research Master’s and Doctoral degrees as well as a rigorous Master’s professional studies degree. Our graduate program comprises core geology faculty with expertise in the interdisciplinary subfields including:

Ph.D. students in History at WVU create a curriculum in consultation with faculty advisors and the Director of Graduate Studies in four fields: one major field and three minor fields (one of which must be outside of the student’s area of research concentration). In addition to these areas, the Department of History encourages doctoral research that is transnational and comparative in perspective.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy offers Masters of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees. Both degree programs provide a solid foundation in the fundamentals as well as a diverse range of specializations for research. In addition to working with Physics faculty in these research areas, graduate students have worked with faculty in a range of other departments at WVU.

The Department of Political Science offers a comprehensive curriculum leading to a Master’s Degree (MA) or to a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). Many of our doctoral students have gone on to earn tenure track positions at college and universities, including the University of Pittsburgh, West Virginia Wesleyan College, Longwood University, Monmouth University, and Wright State University. Our PhD and MA graduates have also been employed by government agencies and non-profit institutions such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and the U.S. Department of State.

The Behavior Analysis area of emphasis is accredited at the doctoral level by the Behavior Analysis Accreditation Board, the accrediting body for the Association for Behavior Analysis International. In 2019, the program was re-accredited until 2025.

The behavioral neuroscience area of emphasis is the newest and fastest growing area in the Department of Psychology. Students in behavioral neuroscience work closely with highly experienced faculty to study the biological bases of behavior. Training in behavioral neuroscience prepares students for a career in research in academics, academic medicine, government and/or industry. We expect our graduates to succeed in research, with an emphasis on publishing and obtaining extramural funding to support their work. We also foster strong mentorship skills, so that our students are prepared to teach their skills and way of thinking to their own students upon completion of our program. Our graduates make significant contributions to solving important problems in their field.

The Clinical and Clinical Child Psychology areas of emphasis jointly comprise West Virginia University’s accredited doctoral training program in Health Service (Clinical) Psychology. It has been accredited continuously by the American Psychological Association since 1966. In 2020, the program was re-accredited for ten years, with the next site visit scheduled to occur in 2030.

WVU has an illustrious history in life-span development as the first program in this field. Our program continues to provide in-depth training to the next generation of life-span developmental psychologists. Graduates are highly successful in obtaining employment and find positions in academia, government, research institutions, foundations and applied settings.

The WVU PhD program in Social Work will prepare students with the skills needed to excel in research, teaching, and leadership. The theme of the program, community-focused research, reflects the mission of WVU as a R1 land-grant institution to advance education, healthcare, and prosperity for all by intentionally promoting research that has significant impact on people’s lives. The PhD program is a full-time program with a hybrid course plan that allows flexibility to complete latter portions of the program remotely. It is designed to purposefully prepare students for dissertation research.

The Department of Sociology and Anthropology at WVU offers a Ph.D. in Sociology. All students entering the program will be enrolled as doctoral students. Students entering the program with a BA/BS will be dually enrolled in the M.A. and Ph.D. programs until they complete the M.A. requirements.