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The School of Child & Youth Care is pleased to announce that the renewal of our Doctoral Program has not been approved at all levels of governance at UVic. The PhD Program will relaunch as the Doctor of Philosophy Program in Child, Youth, Family & Community Studies in the fall of 2026.

Here is an overview of the PhD Program, including program outcomes, requirements, and courses:

Program Name

In alignment with the renewal of program and the community-engaged scholarship of many of our faculty, the name of our graduate program is now Child, Youth, Family and Community Studies. This new name more accurately reflects the scope of our program, the expertise of our faculty, and the type of research and practice undertaken by our students. It recognizes that our program situates children and youth as inextricable from their families and communities. The name of our undergraduate program and academic unit will remain unchanged.

Program Outcomes

Graduates of the PhD in CYFC Studies will have the skills and knowledge to:

Uphold Decolonial Ethics
Develop responsive scholarship that contributes to the wellbeing, resurgence, and self-determination of Indigenous nations globally, while also prioritizing the responsibilities to local First Peoples. Graduates will develop scholarship that addresses historical and ongoing forms of exclusion based on intersecting identities, including race, gender, sexuality, class, ability, and citizenship.

Engage in Interdisciplinary Knowledge Production
Advance decolonial, critical, and justice-oriented approaches to interdisciplinary knowledge production in diverse local, national, and global contexts to promote the well-being of children, youth, families, and communities.

Apply Critical Theory and Scholarship
Demonstrate a deep understanding and application of critical concepts and theoretical frameworks across disciplines, including critical child, youth and family studies, gender studies, critical disability studies, critical race theory, intersectionality, and Indigenous studies. Graduates will mobilize and advance ethical, strengths-based, and relational approaches to inform practice, research, and policy related to children, youth, families, and communities.

Demonstrate Change-Driven Leadership
Develop and implement responsive and collaborative skills in scholarship, advocacy, and systems-level change, preparing for leadership roles in diverse human service sectors that serve children, youth, and families, including organizations, government, private, not-for-profit, community, post-secondary education, and academia.

Promote Knowledge Mobilization for Social Impact
Advance innovation in the application and translation of diverse research methodologies and knowledge mobilization approaches that reflect multiple contexts, communities, and research paradigms. Graduates will promote actionable knowledge transfer through the integration of research, policy, and practice.

Program Requirements

• Courses - Four required core courses (see list below)
• Applied Internship
• Candidacy Exams
• Dissertation
• No required electives

Courses