The School of Human Sciences is now welcoming graduate students who wish to pursue a master’s degree or Ph. D. in Human Development and Family Studies, and a new graduate program will allow them to do so here at Mississippi State University.
Students can enroll in the master’s degree program now for the fall semester of 2012.
However, the Ph. D. will not be offered until the fall of 2013.
According to a press release, the Human Development and Family Studies programs will be interdisciplinary lifespan approaches to the study of children, youth and families.
Specifically, HDFS includes infant and child studies, youth studies, family resource management and gerontology.
This program will strive to prepare graduate students to go on to positively affect the lives of children, youth and their families.
Students who complete this graduate program will be ready to work to further research and policy relating to young children, youth and families and also to be effective leaders who will develop, manage and evaluate these areas as well.
Sheri Worthy, graduate coordinator and professor of human sciences, said the new graduate program will be a positive asset not only to MSU but to the state of Mississippi and its development in the world of human sciences as well. 
“We envision the new graduate degree programs in HDFS will produce both tangible and intangible benefits by contributing to the development of human capital in the state of Mississippi,” she said. “These benefits will be realized through research, program development, implementation and evaluation and preparation of professionals in the field of human development and family studies.”
For more information regarding the master’s degree or Ph. D., please contact Worthy at 325-0918 or [email protected].
Students who wish to apply for the master’s degree in HDFS can visitwww.grad.msstate.edu/prospective.