--- title: What is Social Justice in Education? Getting a Social Justice Degree Online description: Become a leader for change — in social justice and education — through the USD PhD in Education for Social Justice online. image: https://solesstories.sandiego.edu/hubfs/SOLES/soles-premium-content/soles-nonprofit-guide/SOLES-online-LP-cup.jpg --- [Skip Navigation](https://solesstories.sandiego.edu/degree-of-difference/heres-how-you-can-earn-a-phd-in-social-justice-online#main) [![University of San Diego](https://solesstories.sandiego.edu/hubfs/KROC/%5BKROC%5D%20Branding%20Assets/logo-usd.png)](https://www.sandiego.edu/) [School of Leadership and Education Sciences](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/) - [About](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/about/) [About Overview](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/about/) GETTING STARTED - [Visit](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/about/visit.php) - [Social Justice Initiatives](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/about/social-justice-initiatives.php) - [Accreditation](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/about/accreditation.php) - 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Getting a Social Justice Degree Online](https://solesstories.sandiego.edu/hubfs/SOLES/soles-premium-content/soles-nonprofit-guide/SOLES-online-LP-cup.jpg) May 14, 2020 # What is Social Justice in Education? Getting a Social Justice Degree Online [Online Programs](https://solesstories.sandiego.edu/degree-of-difference/tag/online-programs) On This Page [Subscribe](https://solesstories.sandiego.edu/degree-of-difference/heres-how-you-can-earn-a-phd-in-social-justice-online#subscribe) ##### Share \[SOLES\] What is Social Justice in Education? Blog 4:38 Day after day, news stories remind us of the frightening reality of injustice in our society. Whether it’s about race, environmental health, access to education, mental or physical ability, there are countless ways in which marginalized groups are hurt by social and structural inequalities. **Educational systems are places where social inequality can either be perpetuated or radically disrupted.** The education landscape has the power to level playing fields, change minds and hearts, and create engaged, collaborative students who go on to become engaged and justice-oriented global citizens.  **This is why social justice in education is so important today.**  Did you know that you can enroll in an [online PhD program in Education for Social Justice](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/academics/phd-education/) at the University of San Diego (USD)?  If you are an education professional or someone interested in building equity in our school systems by obtaining a social justice degree, keep reading to learn how you could become an agent for change in social justice and education. ### Why You Should Get a Social Justice Degree at the University of San Diego: At USD, social justice and education are not initiatives confined to certain programs; social justice informs everything we do as an educational institution and as a community. A commitment to social justice and education is one of our core values, and professors and students across programs find ways to engage questions of social justice in their respective fields, whether that field is law, policy, health care, science, or education. **Social justice is not a nice add-on conversation for us — it is a part of how  we live, think, and serve as a community.** At a time of heightened polarization and outdated, counterproductive criminal justice, workplace, church, and school disciplinary policies, concepts of social and restorative Justice (RJ) offer an alternative approach focused on harms, needs, and obligations rather than retribution. **The goal of [USD's PhD in Education for Social Justice online](https://solesresources.sandiego.edu/4-online-graduate-programs-that-can-transform-your-career#phd_edu) is to create meaningful opportunities for  healing, accountability, and earned redemption in the social justice and education landscape.** ### A Look at the USD PhD in Education for Social Justice online: The [USD PhD in Education for Social Justice online](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/academics/phd-education/) was established to build critical scholars capable of impacting the complex world of social justice and education. USD social justice degree scholars graduate with rich understandings and experiences of how they might use education to build more equitable, tolerant, and socially-just societies and institutions. Students enrolled in this **PhD in Social Justice online** will emerge poised to take on a variety of social justice jobs in the educational realm including: - Change agents in institutes, districts, and schools - Educational researchers and instructors - Teacher-researchers with instructional expertise ### Program Features of the USD PhD in Education for Social Justice: - Use theory to address pressing educational questions and challenges - Engage in critical conversations of social justice, culture, and opportunity - Analyze and critique existing educational research using qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method research techniques - Apply the knowledge gained to their personal and professional lives ### Program Format for the USD PhD in Education for Social Justice: - 4 Years Online - 54 Units/8 Terms - 1 Global Studies Requirement - Dissertation - Required Doctoral Required Doctoral Seminars I, II, III and IV ### There is a Critical Need for Agents of Change in Social Justice and Education — Connect with USD to Today! Without pioneers and leaders who push our school systems to improve, marginalized groups and the whole of society will continue to suffer because of social injustice.  We need researchers, principals, teachers, administrators, and education consultants to be aware of and knowledgeable about the types of practices that lead to a greater quality of education in our schools. It’s time for educational environments to become places of justice, healing, restoration, and hope for the future. Will you become one of these social justice and education leaders that we need? If you hope to transform the field of social justice and education with a PhD in Social Justice online, we encourage you to [request more information](https://solesresources.sandiego.edu/soles-admissions-official-inquiry)or [start your online application](https://www.sandiego.edu/soles/admissions/deadlines.php#content-edsj) today. ### Dive into the specifics about the USD PhD in Education for Social Justice and begin your journey today! 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