PhD in Psychology Further Your Understanding of Psychology

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Degree Options
100% online, 8-week courses
Transfer in up to 50% of the degree total
Understand the Human Experience from a Biblical Worldview with an Online PhD in Psychology
Do you want to deepen your knowledge in psychology and use your research to contribute to the field of understanding human behavior? Liberty University’s Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Psychology can provide rigorous research training that can better prepare you for a career in academia and research. An online PhD in Psychology is ideal for students who want to bring new knowledge of human behavior to the field and find new ways to help people heal, grow, and thrive.
Liberty’s PhD in Psychology is designed to prepare you to evaluate research and to understand the truth about human behavior from a biblical worldview. Our mission is to Train Champions for Christ, and we fulfill this mission by training professionals to use science and biblical values to understand the full breadth of the human experience. Our unique, biblically-based approach to this field can help prepare you to make a positive impact on those you work with.
With Liberty’s PhD in Psychology, you can take part in optional face-to-face on-campus intensives that will allow you to meet faculty and other students while you develop your professional and research skills.
Your officially confirmed degree name will be Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Psychology.





What Will You Study in Our PhD in Psychology Degree?
Liberty’s online PhD in Psychology is designed to build on your previous study and experience in human psychology and develop you into a researcher and psychologist who demonstrates ethical and academic excellence while integrating biblical values into your practice.
Through this program, you can:
- Study how an appreciation of biblical values enhances psychiatric practice by putting human value at the forefront of technique and theory.
- Develop a grounded critical approach to psychiatric research and theory while integrating a biblical worldview into approaches to current issues in psychology.
- Master psychiatric research and writing techniques that can establish your work in the study of human behavior.
- Complete dissertation research through your program with mentorship from your professors so that you have the option to present research at conferences.
Through this program, you will be encouraged to become a thought leader on a variety of topics related to the human experience. Our goal is to help you venture into the world of psychiatric research and practice and offer insights based on biblical foundations of truth that can help people heal and thrive.
Featured Courses
Degree Information
- This program falls under the School of Behavioral Sciences.
- View the Graduate Behavioral Sciences Course Guides (login required).
- View the PhD in Psychology Dissertation Handbook
- The online PhD in Psychology is a non-clinical, non-licensure program.
Why Choose Liberty's Online Degree?
To help you meet your educational goals in a way that fits your life, our online PhD in Psychology provides scheduling flexibility and keeps affordability in mind. Our PhD in Psychology’s online format allows you to take your classes from home without traveling to campus. However, this program still provides a community of psychology professionals and the ability to take optional intensive courses to allow you to connect in person.
Throughout this program, Liberty incorporates a biblical worldview into your instruction. This perspective in your research and practical training in psychology can help you develop professional and academic excellence without compromising an ethical appreciation for human life. Additionally, our caring faculty are devoted to helping you grow personally and academically.
With our online PhD in Psychology, you can learn effective clinical techniques, essential behavioral theory, and develop your research and writing expertise. You can be equipped with a thorough understanding of human thought and behavior while developing your own research to further the field.
Earning a PhD in Psychology online with Liberty means that you will be trained to engage with research and psychiatric practice critically and biblically. If you are interested in becoming a thoughtful, articulate, and research-focused professional, then this is the program for you.

Backed by a brick-and-mortar campus ranked among Niche.com's Top 5 College Campuses in America
What Sets Us Apart?
- Private Nonprofit University
- 600+ Online Degrees
- No Standardized Testing for Admission
- Transfer in up to 75% of an Undergrad Degree
- Transfer in up to 50% of a Grad/Doctoral Degree
Potential Career Opportunities for PhD in Psychology Graduates
- Corporate psychologist
- Professor
- Program or department head
- Project manager
- Researcher
Degree Options for Our PhD in Psychology Program
Focus your studies in psychology with a specialization.
Behavioral Health Leadership
Through the PhD in Psychology – Behavioral Health Leadership, you can hone your research and leadership skills as you prepare to pursue administrative and management positions in mental and behavioral health organizations.
View the Degree Completion Plan.
Developmental Psychology
Through the online PhD in Psychology – Developmental Psychology, you can learn about research theory related to human development, including cognitive development, social development, and language development.
View the Degree Completion Plan.
General Psychology
The online PhD in Psychology – General Psychology provides an in-depth study of advanced psychiatric research and practice while giving you room to customize your course content.
View the Degree Completion Plan.
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
In the online PhD in Psychology – Industrial/Organizational Psychology track, you will study human behavior in organizations and the workplace. You will focus on deriving principles of individual, group, and organizational behavior and applying that knowledge to developing solutions for challenges in the workplace.
View the Degree Completion Plan.
Social Psychology
In the online PhD in Psychology – Social Psychology track, you can learn about research and theory related to social processes and relationships, attitudes, and other constructs related to social psychology.
View the Degree Completion Plan.
Theology
In the online PhD in Psychology – Theology track, you can learn how to study the Bible and integrate that study of the Bible with research in psychology to further your understanding of psychological concepts.
View the Degree Completion Plan.

Not sure what to choose?
Speak to one of our admissions specialists to help you choose the program that best fits your needs.
Tuition & Aid
Your success is our success, which is why we are committed to providing quality academics at an affordable tuition rate. While other colleges are increasing their tuition, we have frozen tuition rates for the majority of our undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs for the past 9 years – and counting.
Doctoral Full Time | $595/Credit |
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Doctoral Part Time | $650/Credit |
Eligible current and former military service members and their spouses may qualify for a special rate of $300/credit hour (learn more).
Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.
All Tuition & Fees
Financial Aid & Scholarships
Admission Information for Our PhD in Psychology Degree
Admission Requirements
- Apply online or over the phone with an admissions counselor by calling (800) 424-9596.
- A non-refundable, non-transferable $50 application fee will be posted on the current application upon enrollment (waived for qualifying service members, veterans, and military spouses – documentation verifying military status is required).
- Send official college transcripts (mailed as sealed, unopened copies or sent via a direct electronic transcript system). A regionally or nationally accredited master’s degree with at least a 3.0 GPA is required for admission in good standing.
- Contact information for 2 recommenders is required (approved recommenders are the student’s former college professors or supervisors).
- Statement of Purpose is required (1,000-1,500 words, double spaced).
- Departmental approval is required.
- Applicants whose native language is other than English must submit official scores for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or an approved alternative assessment. For information on alternative assessments or TOEFL waivers, please call Admissions or view the official International Admissions policy.
Preliminary Acceptance
If you are sending in a preliminary transcript for acceptance, you must:
- Be in your final term and planning to start your doctoral degree after the last day of class for your master’s degree.
- Complete a Master’s Self-Certification Form confirming your completion date. You may download the form from the Forms and Downloads page or contact an admissions counselor to submit the form on your behalf.
- Submit an official transcript to confirm that you are in your final term. The preliminary transcript must show that you are within 6 credit hours of completion for a 30-48 credit hour master’s degree or within 9 credit hours of completion for a 49+ credit hour master’s degree.
- Send in an additional, final official transcript with a conferral date on it by the end of your first semester of enrollment in the new doctoral degree.
Transcript Policies
Official College Transcript Policy
An acceptable official college transcript is one that has been issued directly from the institution and is in a sealed envelope. If you have one in your possession, it must meet the same requirements. If your previous institution offers electronic official transcript processing, they can send the document directly to luoverify@liberty.edu.
Admissions Office Contact Information
Liberty University Online Admissions Verification
1971 University Blvd.
Lynchburg, VA 24515
Military
Liberty University is dedicated to providing world-class educational experiences to military students across the globe.
Who May Qualify?
- Active Duty
- Reserve/National Guard
- Veterans/Retirees
- Spouses of Service Members and Veterans/Retirees
Military Tuition Discount
We want to help you find the doctoral degree you want – at a price you’ve earned. As a thank-you for your military service, Liberty University offers eligible current and former service members like you or your spouse multiple pathways to earn a doctoral degree for only $300/credit hour. Find out how you can take advantage of this unique opportunity as you work toward your goal of reaching the pinnacle of your profession – for less.
Tuition rates may change annually. For the most current information, please visit our LU Tuition Cost page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there opportunities to interact in-person with peers?
You can meet faculty and fellow students in person through optional on-campus intensives.
Can I have an impact through this degree?
Through your dissertation, you can contribute to the understanding of human experience and behavior.
Inner Navigation
- Overview
- What Will You Study?
- What Sets Us Apart?
- Potential Careers
- Specializations
- Tuition & Aid
- Admission Information
- Military
- FAQs
Have questions?