• Gain valuable career experiences during the final year of the program through a semester-long internship in an employment setting serving youth.
• Develop skills for working in a variety of human service and educational settings.
• Gain a broad perspective on individual and family development through faculty from a range of disciplines and professional areas.
• Focus on physical, social, cognitive, and affective development with an emphasis on development within the family.

Requirements for the adolescence certificate

HD 300/400—Any Upper Division Course
HD 302—Parent-Child Relationships
HD 408—Advanced Adolescent Development
HD 479—Planning and Evaluation in Human Development or HD 480—Instructional Strategies in Human Development

One of the following:

Psych 230—Human Sexuality 
Psych 265—Biopsychological Effects of Alcohol and Other Drugs
Soc 360—Social Deviance
Soc 362—Juvenile Delinquency

For more about the adolescence certificate and the human development program, see the Department of Human Development website.

Joining the human development major

Students can certify as a human development major after taking 24 credit hours and earning at least a 2.35 GPA. Certified human development majors are required to maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.6 or better in human development courses and other courses accepted for the required human development core.

Core courses

HD 101—Human Development Across the Lifespan
HD 200—Introduction to the Field of Human Development
HD 204—Family Systems: Understanding Family Interaction 
HD 220—Human Development Theories 
HD 306—Child Development
HD 307—Middle Childhood and Adolescent Development 
HD 308—Adult Development
HD 310—Research Methods
HD 350—Family Diversity
HD 410—Public Policy Issues in Human Development
HD 497—Professional Preparation Seminar
HD 498—Field Placement

Graduation requirements

Consult the WSU Catalog for degree requirements and talk with your academic advisor about planning and scheduling your courses. All students must meet requirements as outlined in the catalog in order to graduate.

A variety of state, federal, and university-sponsored programs are available to help students with educational costs

For adolescence and human development students

Students in the human development program are eligible to compete for special scholarships from the Department of Human Development and from the College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences.

For all students at WSU

Washington State University awards millions of dollars in financial aid and scholarships to students every year based on financial need, academic merit, or a combination of the two.

Students should complete the Washington State University general scholarship application and the FAFSA to ensure their eligibility for the widest range of scholarships and need-based financial aid.

For information or to apply for financial aid and scholarships from WSU, see the Scholarships and Finances section of the WSU website.

• Desire to strengthen individuals, families, and communities
• Interest in current social issues and policies that impact families or individual family members
• Sensitivity to the valuable contributions and unique needs of all people
• Desire to learn about the development of individuals, families, and communities
• Desire to learn how a variety of educational approaches, social policies, and prevention/intervention strategies can influence the development of children, youth, and families

Human development graduates with an adolescence specialty are employed in community action centers, family support centers, adolescent counseling centers, residential treatment centers, juvenile correction programs, and other youth programs.

Students are also prepared to pursue graduate education in family therapy and human development.