With dynamic ideas, experiences, and research that enhances our department’s distinctive and exceptional qualities, graduate students are the heart of Civil Society and Community Studies (CSCR).
Through interdisciplinary coursework and research in community settings—often in collaboration with community organizations or coalitions—students have opportunities to become participant-scholars in change processes, and learn human ecological theory and participatory and application-focused research methods in the process.
Please note
We are not currently accepting new applications Fall 2022 admission. For more information, please contact us.
Build Professional Skills
Our CSCR program is designed to train educators/scholars to be highly qualified for positions in research and teaching within universities, cooperative extension, community-based groups, foundations, and other nonprofit and non-governmental organizations. Specifically, CSCR students build a range of sought-after skills and abilities in:
- Scholarship and research
- Publishing
- Teaching
- Outreach and application
- Professional development
Civil Society & Community Research Faculty
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Carolee Dodge FrancisEcology of Human Well-Being Professor; Department Chair
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Jennifer GaddisJane Rafferty Thiele Faculty Fellow, Associate Professor
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Leah HorowitzAssistant Professor
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Cynthia JasperVaughan Bascom Professor of Women and Philanthropy; Civil Society & Professor Consumer Science
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Kasey KeelerAssistant Professor: Civil Society & Community Studies; American Indian Studies
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Brian D. McInnesLeola R. Culver Professor in Nonprofits and Philanthropy; Associate Professor
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Carolina S. SarmientoAssistant Professor
Graduate Students-CSCR
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Vivien AhrensPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Erin BaileyPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Leo Kin-Chong ChaoPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Molly Clark-BarolPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Teresa CurtisPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Becca DowerPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Victoria FaustPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Tim FishPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Angela FitzgeraldPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Linnea HjelmPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Will HoutsPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Joseph JeanPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Rebecca LaurentPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Sirkka MillerPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Nilvio Alexander Punguil BravoPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Prerna RanaPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Emma Richmond-BoudewynsPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Michael Schlictingas of June 2016 specialized Transportation Administration and Community Development Program. Still under the School of Human Ecology
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Shiqi ShenPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Morgan SmallwoodPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Talia (Ye) TaoPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Mallory VanMeeterPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Pascale Ife WilliamsPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
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Garret ZastoupilPhD Student, Civil Society and Community Research
Civil Society & Community Research News and Research
Civil Society & Community Research Degree Requirements
Students entering the CSCR program without a master’s degree will earn a Master of Science degree in Human Ecology before progressing to the PhD option in Civil Society and Community Research. Master’s degrees require a minimum of 30 credit hours, of which at least 16 must have been taken as a graduate student at UW–Madison. In addition, students must complete an empirical master’s thesis under the supervision of their master’s degree committee.
To obtain a Ph.D. in Human Ecology with a named option in Civil Society and Community Research, students must also be able to demonstrate a high level of competency in the field as well as their specialization(s). Doctoral students will be required to complete a qualifying exam and a dissertation, as governed by the rules established by the Graduate School.
This UW–Madison PhD program requires a minimum of 51 credits of graduate study, distributed as follows:
- 6 credits: Introductory Courses
- 9 credits: Theoretical Foundations
- 18 credits: Methods and Applications of Community-Based Research
- 3 credits: Community Innovations for Civil Society
- 9 credits: A Doctoral Minor Specialization
- 6 credits: Research and Thesis
Timeline to a PhD
Full-time students can complete the required CSCR PhD coursework in six semesters (three years). A student beginning their graduate study and pursuing a PhD full-time should therefore expect to take at least five years from matriculation to graduation. Timelines will likely be shorter for students entering with master’s degrees or those with acceptable transfer credits in graduate coursework.
Four major learning objectives
- Professional development and community building
- Theoretical foundations of civil society
- Methods, analysis, and application of community research
- Innovations in civil society
Topics of study within Civil Society
- Community leadership
- Community organizing
- Program evaluation
- Voluntary associations
- Youth civic development
- Adult learning
- Community development
- Social change
Resources, Forms & Documents
Program Contact
Cynthia Jasper
Professor
608-262-2384
crjasper@wisc.edu
School of Human Ecology Graduate Program
gradprog@sohe.wisc.edu