College of Psychology and Community Services:

Doctor of Public Safety and Leadership

The Doctor of Public Safety and Leadership program, including its specializations, is not designed to lead to professional licensure including licensure as a professional therapist, counselor, social worker, or psychologist. 

• 68 quarter credits 
• Doctoral Writing Assessment 
• Foundation course (3 credits) 
• Core courses (35 credits) 
• Elective courses (10 credits) 
• Completion of the Doctoral Capstone 
  • Doctoral Study Seminar courses (5 credits; enrolled in 1 credit per term for a minimum of 5 terms until completion)
  • Capstone writing courses (15 credits) 

Foundation Course (3 credits)

Core Courses (35 credits)

Elective Courses (10 credits)

Choose two courses: 

Doctoral Study Seminar Courses (5 credits)*

*continuously enrolled in 1 credit per term for a minimum of five terms until completion.

Capstone Writing Courses (15 credits)

*Students take DPSL 8391, 8392, 8393, 8394, and 8395 Professional Study Seminars along with courses for five quarters before beginning DPSL 8400 Professional Study Capstone. 

**To complete the Doctor of Public Safety Leadership degree, students must complete all required program courses, as well as five one-credit Professional Study Seminar courses. These courses prepare students for capstone work by focusing on problem identification, stakeholder analysis, organizational assessment, and research design. Following these preparatory seminars, students advance to the three-course Professional Study Capstone sequence (15 credits total), where they apply the Action Research cycle of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting to identify meaningful public safety problems, engage with stakeholders, design and implement action plans in real-world settings, collect and analyze data through available organizational performance metrics and public information, and develop evidence-based recommendations for practice. The capstone culminates in both a comprehensive written report submitted to Form and Style for review and approval, as well as a formal oral presentation that demonstrates the student's ability to integrate advanced leadership principles, Action Research methodology, and practical solutions to complex public safety challenges. Throughout the program, students engage in the Charrette feedback model, participating in collaborative problem-solving sessions with peers, faculty mentors, and agency stakeholders to ensure their work addresses genuine organizational needs and contributes to positive social change in public safety practice. Learn more about the doctoral study process in the Professional Doctorate Documents. 

Students who start or readmit to doctoral programs at Walden University in the university catalog for academic year 2017 or later will complete the university’s required doctoral writing assessment. Designed to evaluate incoming doctoral students’ writing skills, this assessment aims to help prepare incoming doctoral students to meet the university’s expectations for writing at the doctoral level. 

Students have up to 8 years to complete their doctoral degree requirements (see Enrollment Requirements in the student handbook). Students may petition to extend the 8-year maximum time frame, but an extension is not guaranteed.