Overhead view of the 100-Woman Wall in SoHE

Human ecology is the study of the complex relationships between human beings and their environments. The school offers a doctorate of philosophy within four named options/specializations: 

Each named option has its own faculty, curriculum, requirements and includes a challenging array of coursework along with exciting opportunities for research, outreach, and service consistent with each student’s scholarly interests and career aspirations.

Students enrolled in one of the Human Ecology PhD program named options have the opportunity to earn the Human Ecology MS: Human Ecology Research degree along the way to the PhD upon successful completion of coursework and research.

As part of a Research I institution, SoHE faculty members have national reputations in their fields of study and are highly committed to nurturing future scholars and practitioners. They conduct research and mentor students to address issues that cross disciplinary lines. They work closely with graduate students to create courses of study that match each student’s personal and professional goals.

The School of Human Ecology has a strong tradition of outreach and counts several faculty members with budgeted extension appointments among its ranks. But all faculty members devote time and resources to ensuring their work benefits others beyond the campus. These efforts reflect the Wisconsin Idea, the notion that the university’s boundaries are those of the state, nation, and beyond. Graduate education at SoHE encompasses this mission by stressing the integration of research with program design and implementation, administration, policy development, and evaluation.

Admissions

Students interested in the Human Ecology PhD should apply directly to one of the named options:

Funding

Graduate School Resources

The Bursar’s Office provides information about tuition and fees associated with being a graduate student. Resources to help you afford graduate study might include assistantships, fellowships, traineeships, and financial aid. Further funding information is available from the Graduate School. Be sure to check with your program for individual policies and restrictions related to funding.

Program Resources

Funding opportunities for Human Ecology graduate students are available and made possible, in large part, by generous donations to SoHE. Every year, these funds are used to fund teaching or project assistantships, award academic excellence scholarships, and provide students doing their master's or doctoral research or final MFA project with conference travel scholarships and graduate research scholarships. See more funding information for the School of Human Ecology on our program website and enrollment requirements for funding eligibility in our handbook.

On This Page

Minimum Graduate School Requirements

Review the Graduate School minimum degree requirements and policies, in addition to the program requirements listed below.

Major Requirements

Curricular Requirements

Minimum Credit Requirement 51 credits
Minimum Residence Credit Requirement 32 credits
Minimum Graduate Coursework Requirement 26 credits must be graduate-level coursework. Refer to the Graduate School: Minimum Graduate Coursework (50%) Requirement policy: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-1244.
Overall Graduate GPA Requirement See Named Options for policy information.
Other Grade Requirements n/a
Assessments and Examinations See Named Options for policy information.
Language Requirements n/a
Graduate School Breadth Requirement See Named Options for policy information.

Required Courses

Select a Named Option for courses required.

Named Options

A named option is a formally documented sub-major within an academic major program. Named options appear on the transcript with degree conferral. Students pursuing the PhD in Human Ecology should select one of the following named options:

Policies

Students should refer to one of the named options for policy information:

Professional Development

Graduate School Resources

Take advantage of the Graduate School's professional development resources to build skills, thrive academically, and launch your career. 

Program Resources

The School of Human Ecology Graduate Program values the professional development of graduate students and provides financial awards to those who are invited to present at professional conferences/exhibits. The purpose of the support is to encourage participation in professional development, scholarly research, and/or creative endeavor and to help cover expenses not covered by other sources. Students may receive a maximum award of $650 for travel ($750 for international travel) to support conference participation in a single academic year. Students are encouraged to seek conference and travel funding from the Graduate School as a first step and apply for supplemental funds through SoHE as needed.

In addition, each academic department within the School of Human Ecology may offer additional professional development grant opportunities. See Programming and the Events Calendar for the most up-to-date information on professional development opportunities.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Articulate challenges, frontiers and limits with respect to theory, knowledge or practice within the area of study.
  2. Formulate ideas, concepts, designs, and/or techniques beyond the current boundaries of knowledge within one's area of study.
  3. Consider the role of social, political, ethical, and economic contexts of research and creative scholarship in one's area of study.
  4. Consider the role of multiple paradigms for describing reality in one's area of study.
  5. Contribute to advancing the Human Ecology perspective by reflecting the relations among humans and their natural, social, and built environments and applying an interdisciplinary and/or transdisciplinary lens in one's area of professional practice.
  6. Create research, scholarship or performance that makes a substantive contribution to one's field.
  7. Reflect the nature and significance of diversity in one's area of professional practice.
  8. Communicate complex or ambiguous ideas in a compelling manner to a variety of audiences.
  9. Foster ethical conduct and professional guidelines.