Dec 05, 2025  
2016-2017 Graduate Catalog 
    
2016-2017 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Marriage and Family Therapy (Ph.D.)


The Family Studies and Human Services  department participates in the Ph.D. degree program awarded from the College of Human Ecology  with a specialization in Marriage and Family Therapy. The mission of our MFT doctoral program is to educate and mentor family scientist-practitioners with the most advanced, cutting edge research training, for the purpose of developing scholars prepared to make significant contributions in academic and clinical settings. Our goal is to develop distinguished scholars who are highly sought after due to their demonstrated competency as world-class researchers, excellent clinicians, clinical supervisors, and educators. Students pursue programs of study that include course work in human development, family studies, marital and family therapy, statistics, and research methods. The Ph.D. specialization in marriage and family therapy is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).

Program Requirements


This curriculum for the Ph.D. in MFT follows COAMFTE guidelines. It assumes students have completed the requirements for the COAMFTE Master’s-Level Standard Curriculum. Where that is not the case, students must complete the equivalent of any deficiencies. Most students complete the program in four years. Students have seven years to complete the program. A minimum of 90 credits is required. No more than 30 credit hours from a masters degree may be applied to fulfill PhD requirements.

Assessment and Treatment in Marital and Family Therapy (3 hours)


 

Family Studies and Human Services (3 hours)


 

Supervised Clinical Practice (3-9 hours)


 

Additional Learning (6 hours)


  • One research or clinical or teaching elective - 3 credit hours
  • One research elective - 3 credit hours

End-of-Program Requirements


  • Accumulate 1000 approved clinical hours (including approved transfer hours)
  • Successfully defend your dissertation proposal seminar, write the dissertation, and successfully complete your oral defense of the dissertation
    AND
  • Successfully complete required MFT portfolio
    OR
  • Complete written preliminary examinations and, if necessary, successfully defend them in the oral preliminary examination

 

Those taking the minimum credit hours from the courses listed above will need to take additional hours to reach the required 90 credit minimum.

Notes


Students interested in this option with questions about program requirements or curriculum should contact:

Dr. Jared Anderson
Doctoral Program Admissions Chair
Marriage and Family Therapy
School of Family Studies and Human Services
113 Campus Creek Complex
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
(785) 532-4198
jra@ksu.edu

Students interested in this option with questions about admission should contact:

Connie J. Fechter
Graduate Program Admissions Coordinator
School of Family Studies and Human Services
304 Justin Hall
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
(785) 532-1473
fechter@ksu.edu