Lesley University

Earn a PhD from Lesley University

Step into your future and advance your career with a PhD in Education or Mental Health & Well-Being.

Ready to find the perfect fit for you?

Explore PhD Programs

Doctoral programs at Lesley University are low-residency, and designed to fit your busy life. We’ll work with you to help you level up your career, contribute to your field, and make your dream a reality. If you’ve been considering whether or when to earn your PhD:

Now’s the time. And Lesley’s the place.

Expressive Therapies

Unlock the power of your creativity to inspire healing and effect meaningful change. Deepen your expertise, advance groundbreaking research, and shape the future of arts-based therapy. Established over 40 years ago, we were the first graduate program in the U.S. to train professionals in this emerging discipline and remain a leader in the field, offering a range of academic pathways—including certificates, master’s, and doctoral degrees—to support professionals at every stage of their careers.

Counseling & Psychology

If you’re an experienced counselor or clinician looking to deepen your expertise, our non-clinical Counseling & Psychology PhD is the perfect way to expand your training, particularly in research methodologies and teaching. You’ll become better equipped to advance social justice, expand your knowledge of cutting-edge theories and techniques, and connect with applied research opportunities. Our weekend cohort model meets the needs of busy professionals, while allowing you to explore research that is meaningful to the communities you serve.

Educational Studies

Lead with vision, inspire change, and shape the future of education. Because our unique, low-residency program allows students to focus on their individual research after 3 summer residencies, it can be completed in only 3 years with 45 credits. Our PhD in Educational Studies offers two areas of focus: Educational Leadership, best for aspiring school or district leaders, and Individually Designed, which allows students to tailor their goals to their research interests.

Why pursue a PhD?

As an advanced mental health or education practitioner, you understand the complex issues that schools, organizations, and communities face. A PhD gives you the credibility, status, and knowledge you need to drive change. You’ll expand your knowledge base, make a scholarly contribution to your field, and build a cohort of peers that you can rely on and network with. Plus, there’s the added perk of widening your career potential and increasing your salary.

Why pursue a PhD at Lesley University

Our flexible, low-residency, or monthly weekend cohort programs ensure that earning your next degree aligns with your busy life. When you are meeting on campus, you’re in Cambridge, one of the strongest hubs in the country for education and mental health practice and research. Lesley doctoral programs are led by world-recognized faculty who partner with you to design the programs that will benefit you the most, whether you’re looking to advance to the next phase of your career in education, strengthen your expressive therapies practice, or enhance your non-clinical counseling skills.

The PhD program at Lesley helped me to define my core values and goals better and to put them into practice professionally

- Sarah Schwerdel

PhD Alumni