Schools & Divisions
Division of Social Work
Courses
Social Work is a dynamic profession concerned with the changing needs of people and society. To respond to these needs, the School of Social Work curriculum undergoes a continual review by faculty, students, and members of the practice community. Students must complete a minimum of 60 credit hours of graduate level course work to meet the minimum requirements of the Master of Social Work degree. All students complete a common 15 credit Foundation Curriculum and a 15 credit Intermediate Curriculum that emphasize a generalist perspective for social work practice. The Intermediate Curriculum includes a one semester practicum at a minimum of 320 clock hours. Following that, students complete a Concentration Curriculum that prepares them for advanced practice in child welfare, school social work, health, leadership, mental health, and addictions. The Concentration Practicum of at least 640 clock hours is usually completed over two semesters. All Foundation Curriculum course work must be completed before students are eligible to enroll in nay required courses in the Concentration Curriculum.
- SWK-S 102 Understanding Diversity in a Pluralistic Society (3 cr.) This course covers theories and models that enhance understanding of our diverse society. It provides content about differences and similarities in the experiences, needs, and beliefs of selected minority groups and their relation to the majority group.
- SWK-S 141 Introduction to Social Work (3 cr.) Examination of characteristics, function, and requirements of social work as a profession. Emphasis on the ideological perspectives of the profession and the nature of professional function and interaction. Overview of the different fields in which social workers practice.
- SWK-S 221 Growth and Human Development in the Social Environment (3 cr.) P: S141 or consent of the instructor Understanding of human development and functioning at all system levels as a basis for social work practice. Emphasizes the interaction between the person and family, groups, and communities. Coverage of major theories of individual functioning, life cycle development, and the family context. Exploration of inequality, discrimination, and differential access to opportunities for diverse populations.
- SWK-S 251 History and Analysis of Social Welfare Policy (3 cr.) P: S141 or consent of the instructor Examination of the evolution of social services in response to human needs and social problems as related to the Case Management Certificate.
- SWK-S 305 Child Abuse and Neglect (3 cr.) This course is designed to provide a comprehensive introduction to child abuse and neglect from psychological, social, cultural, legal, and economic perspectives. This course introduces the values and ethics of the social work profession in the child welfare arena, specifically the right of children to appropriate care, to be free of abuse and neglect, and to grow up in a safe environment.
- SWK-S 306 Crisis Intervention (3 cr.) Students may use this course to fulfill requirements for the Certificate on Case Management, or they may take it as an elective. This course focuses on the increasing number of complex and painful personal, couple, family and community crisis situations encountered by social workers in the course of service delivery.
- SWK-S 309 Working with Families (3 cr.) Exploration of family relationships and roles in the 21st century. Examination of challenges encountered by families across the family life cycle.
- SWK-S 311 Developmental Issues for Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual People (3 cr.) Gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GL&B) people constitute an important presence in American society. They are denied full participation in a wide range of social institutions including family life, religion, education, employment, recreation, the military, and many others. Serious issues related to lack of legal protection, violence, and limited political representation are analyzed.
- SWK-S 313 Poverty in the U.S. (3 cr.) Working with persons experiencing poverty is a major focus of the social work profession. The primary purpose of this course is to examine the nature of poverty, both rural and urban, in the United States. To achieve this purpose, the history of poverty in the United States is explored and examined, as are theories about the causes of poverty, and the effects of poverty on individual development. The demographics of poverty are examined and the co-occurrence of poverty and oppression. Finally, various policies and programs that have been designed to alleviate poverty, the effects and consequences of these efforts, are studied and other possible intervention strategies are discussed.
- SWK-S 322 Small Group Theory and Practice (3 cr.) P: S221 and formal admission to the major. Examination of the significance of the small group as context and means for social development of individuals and as a vehicle for generalist practice. Discussion of the individual as a member of a variety of groups, including the family. The course covers group theories as well as mezzo practice strategies.
- SWK-S 331 Generalist Social Work Practice I: Theory and Skills (3 cr.) P or C: S221. Development of a critical understanding of social work practice. It focuses on the beginning phase of the helping process and related skills. Topics include the nature of the helping relationship, NASW Code of Ethics, practice as it relates to oppressed groups, assessment, and practice evaluations.
- SWK-S 332 Generalist Social Work Practice II: Theory and Skills (3 cr.) P: S231, S251. C: S381. P or C: S352. Development of a critical understanding of social work practice. It focuses on the beginning phase of the helping process and related skills. Topics include the nature of the helping relationship, NASW Code of Ethics, practice as it relates to oppressed groups, assessment, and practice evaluations.
- SWK-S 350 Global Human Rights (3 cr.) This course covers issues related to human rights, and cross-cultural practice. Social work practice in different continents will be also discussed. Global social justice issues faced by developing countries will be examined. A large part of the course will focus on assumptions and biases about cultures perceived as different.
- SWK-S 352 Social Welfare Policy and Practice (3 cr.) P: S251. Examination of policies, structures, and programs of service delivery systems at local, regional, and national levels with emphasis on relations among such systems as formal organizations. Students acquire knowledge of the policy development process, which helps them establish a beginning capacity for policy analysis and practice.
- SWK-S 371 Social Work Research (3 cr.) Examination of basic research methods in social work, the relevance of research for social work practice, and selection of knowledge for use in social work.
- SWK-S 371 Social Work Practicum (4 cr.) P: S231, S251. C: S332. P or C: S352. Guided field practice experience (15 hours per week) for application of generalist practice concepts and principles and development of basic practice skills. Students practice in a human service organization for a minimum of 240 clock hours, including a bimonthly seminar.
- SWK-S 401 Integrative Field Practicum Seminar I (2 cr.) P: All junior level social work courses. C: S482. This course is designed to integrate theoretical material gained from social work practice and theory courses with the realities of practice in the field, which the student will confront and use in her/his practicum placement. This course combines an exploration of social work practice with an exploration of client situations in the environment through instructor and peer discussion.
- SWK-S 402 Integrative Field Practicum Seminar II (3 cr.) P: All junior level social work courses. C: S482. This second semester of practicum seminar provides a continuing forum for the integration of academic learning with agency-based field placement. Taken as a co-requisite with S482 Social Work Practicum II, this course provides students with educational and administrative support to synthesize knowledge from all previous social work courses and the experiential learning from field, increases communication between student, liaison, agency, and provides opportunities critical thinking in problem-solving practice challenges, utilizing collaborative conferencing with peers, and transitioning from student to social work practitioner. The seminar includes discussions on selected topics and issues related to the learning experiences in the field (both instructor- and student-initiated) with emphasis on student demonstration of core competencies for generalist social work practice.
- SWK-S 423 Organizational Theory and Practice within a Generalist Perspective (3 cr.) P or C: S 322. This course provides the theoretical and conceptual foundation for understanding organizational functioning and behavior, and introduces the knowledge and skills necessary for generalist social work practice and leadership within an organizational context.
- SWK-S 433 Community Behavior and Practice (3 cr.) P: All junior level social work courses. C: S472, S482, S402. This course provides the theoretical foundation about community functioning and behavior and the knowledge and skills of community interventions geared to mitigate social, political and economic injustice and bring social change.
- SWK-S 442 Practice-policy Seminar in Fields of Practice (3 cr.) P: S400, S433, S472, S482. Addresses practice and policy issues in specific fields of practice such as child and family, aging, addictions, and developmental disabilities.
- SWK-S 472 Practice Evaluation (3 cr.) P: S371 and all other junior level social work courses. C: S402, S433, S482. Develops the knowledge and skills necessary to evaluate one’s own practice with individuals, groups, communities, and organizations.
- SWK-S 482 Social Work Practicum II (5 cr.) P: All junior level social work courses. C: S402, S433, S472. Guided field experience (20 hours per week) for application of concepts and principles and development of skills for generalist practice with selected social systems. Students practice in a human-service organization for a minimum of 320 clock hours of supervised field experience.
- SWK-S 490 Independent Study (1-6 cr.) P: Permission of Program Administrator. An opportunity to engage in a self-directed study of an area related to the school’s curriculum in which no formal course is available.
- SWK-S 501 Professional Social Work at the Masters Level: An Immersion (3 cr.) This foundation course provides an overview of social work including the definition, scope, history, ethics and values of the profession. This course will provide basic orientation to the available resources and expectations of graduate education in general, and the MSW program, in particular, all within the framework of the adult learner model. Students will develop basic communication, self-assessment, and reflection skills necessary for success in the MSW program. Students will have an opportunity to survey various fields of practice and will begin to identify personal learning goals for their MSW education as well as develop a commitment to lifelong learning as a part of professional practice.
- SWK-S 502 Research I (3 cr.) This foundation research course assists students in developing the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of social work practice. Emphasis is placed upon knowledge of qualitative and quantitative designs, methodologies, and techniques that inform students of best practices in social work. Students will recognize the impact of ethnicity, gender, age, and sexual orientation on the research process and be able to critically review published studies with attention to researcher bias.
- SWK-S 503 Human Behavior and the Social Environment I (3 cr.) This course provides content on the reciprocal relationships between human behavior and social environments. It includes empirically based theories and knowledge that focus on the interactions between and within diverse populations of individuals, groups, organizations, societal institutions, and global systems. Knowledge of biological, psychological, sociological, cultural, and spiritual development across the life span is included. Students will learn to critically analyze micro and macro theories and explore ways in which theories can be used to structure professional activities. Concepts such as person-in-environment are used to examine the ways in which social systems promote or deter human well being social and economic justice.
- SWK-S 504 Professional Practice Skills I (3 cr.) This foundation practice course focuses on basic generalist theory and skills that are necessary when working with a wide variety of client systems: individuals, families, small groups, communities, and organizations. Students are expected to demonstrate competent use of the following skills: attending, establishing rapport, reflecting, summarizing, exploring, questioning, contracting, and establishing clear well-formed goals. In this course students will have opportunities to continue learning about themselves and will examine their personal values and any conflict between personal and professional values so the professional practice standards can be upheld.
- SWK-S 505 Social Policy Analysis and Practice (3 cr.) This foundation policy course will focus on using several policy analysis frameworks to analyze current social policies and programs both at the state and federal levels and to develop policies that increase social and economic justice. Students will be expected to develop a range of policy practice skills to influence policy development within legislative, administrative, community, political, and economic arenas.
- SWK-S 513 Human Behavior in the Social Environment II (3 cr.) This course builds upon S503 (HBSE I) and focuses on developing further knowledge of human behavior theories and their application to practice. Students will link course content to the concentration that the student has selected.
- SWK-S 514 Practice with Individuals and Families and Groups I (3 cr.) This course builds on the practice theories, principles, and skills introduced in S504 to prepare students for competent social work practice with individuals, families and groups. A strengths perspective will be emphasized, and students will be introduced to the fundamental components of the task-centered and solution-focused approaches to practice. The transtheoretical model of change will be presented, and students will develop skills, that will empower individuals, families and groups to engage in the process of change. Students will be prepared to complete assessments and to use intervention skills that will serve diverse populations with specific attention to gender, class, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation.
- SWK-S 516 Social Work Practice with Organizations, Communities, and Societies (3 cr.) This course is concerned with helping communities and other social units to empower themselves and eradicate oppressive situations and practices through networking, political participation, leadership development, mobilization, utilization of resources, and other strategies and techniques.
- SWK-S 517 Assessment in Mental Health and Addictions (3 cr.) Recognizing the social, political, legal, and ethical implications of assessment, students will critically examine various conceptual frameworks and apply bio-psychosocial and strengths perspectives to understand its multidimensional aspects. Students learn to conduct sophisticated mental status and lethality risk interviews, engage in strengths and assets discovery, and apply the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association and other classification schemes in formulating assessment hypotheses. They gain an understanding of the application of several relevant assessment instruments and learn to evaluate their relevance for service to at- risk populations, including persons affected by mental health and addictions issues. Students learn to collaborate with a diverse range of consumers and other professionals in developing meaningful assessments upon which to plan goals, intervention strategies, and means for evaluation.
- SWK-S 555 Social Work Practicum I (3 cr.) The M.S.W. Social Work Practicum I is an educationally directed practice experience under the direct supervision of an approved field instructor. The assigned faculty liaison oversees the practicum to ensure that course objectives have been met. The practicum provides opportunities for the application and the integration of classroom concepts and principles for the development of core skills in generalist social work practice with selected social systems using a strengths perspective. It builds upon the knowledge and skills learned and developed during the immersion and intermediate course work of the program. Learning opportunities emphasize the values and ethics of the profession, foster the integration of the empirical and practice-based knowledge, and promote the development of the professional competence. Field education is systematically designed, supervised coordinated, and evaluated on the basis of criteria by which students demonstrate the achievement of program objectives. The Field Practice Seminar is designed to assist students in integrating classroom learning with the experience of an internship. Students will also be introduced to assessment systems including the DSM and SWOT. The seminar provides a supportive setting for students to discuss practice issues raised in the field placement related to their Learning Agreement and field experience. This involves recognizing/exploring professional and personal biases, discussing ethical dilemmas and supervisory issues, and increasing cross cultural competencies.
- SWK-S 600 Electives (3 cr.) Vary in subject matter. Scheduling of these courses will be announced prior to semester registration.
- SWK-S 616 Social Work Practice in Schools (3 cr.) This advanced level practice course is designed to provide students with an overview of contemporary social work practice in school settings. Specific topical areas include the historical and contemporary contexts of social work service in school settings, legal mandates for social work practice in schools, social policies and trends in education affecting school settings and social work practice in schools, preventive and intervention methods and roles applicable to diverse populations in school settings, research issues and practice effectiveness, and multiculturalism and diversity issues in social work practice in schools.
- SWK-S 618 Social Policy and Services II (3 cr.) A group of courses covering topics or content including social problems, special populations, particular social service delivery areas, and social indicators that predict areas of future social policy transformations. Students link this course content to the concentration that the student has selected.
- SWK-S 619 Social Work Practice with Children and Adolescents (3 cr.) This course is designed to develop and broaden student knowledge and skill in direct practice with children and adolescents. Social work practice will be examined within the context of meta-frameworks that include developmental stages/tasks, sexual development and orientation, gender issues, family context, culture, larger environmental systems, discrimination/oppression, and legal rights and responsibilities. Emphasis will be placed on practice methods including assessment, interviewing, comparative treatment models, and practice with special populations.
- SWK-S 623 Practice Research Integrative Seminar I (3 cr.) This course furthers the knowledge, skills, and values students develop in the foundation-year research course. Students will apply their knowledge and skills in research to evaluate practice or program effectiveness in their concentrations, using research methods that are sensitive to consumers' needs and clients' race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and additional aspects important to effective and ethical research.
- SWK-S 632 Child Welfare Practice I: Working with Children Impacted by Violence in the Family (3 cr.) This course is designed to build individual and group practice skills for work with children and families impacted by child physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and/or family violence. Emphasis will be placed on practice skills with children. Students will practice assessment and intervention skills guided by theories of child development, attachment and bonding, grief, and trauma. The goals of safety, permanency and well-being will be emphasized when assessing risk and trauma and intervening within the child welfare and school systems. Students will explore cultural differences and issues impacting particular oppressed and underserved populations.
- SWK-S 651 MSW Concentration Practicum II (4 cr.) C: S651. These courses together provide an in-depth practicum experience for M.S.W. concentration students under the guidance and supervision of an approved field instructor. A field liaison oversees the practica. Students complete both courses in the same agency, although the student may use multiple departments or programs as sites for learning experiences. Practicum II and III build upon and deepen the practicum experiences and classroom knowledge gained in the intermediate year. The practicum courses provide students with experiences in the aformentioned curricular emphasis areas, which support the processes of synthesis, application, critical analysis, and evaluation of knowledge using a strengths perspective. The field practice seminar integrates concentration classroom learning with the experience of an internship. Students have the opportunity to apply their basic knowledge of group process as well as practice group leadership skills. This seminar will assist students in the identification and examination of significant practice and professional issues that occur in the last phase of the M.S.W. program. A major instructional goal of the practicum is to increase the students' competence in understanding and dealing with cross-cultural issues. Information and resources on diversity are discussed and applied in seminar and field placement, and students are encouraged to further explore and increase their own competence in dealing with cross cultural issues. It is expected that students will develop an awareness of their own privilege in relation to their clients systems. Further, students are expected to use advocacy skills in a cultural context and carry these skills into action in their agencies and wider community.
- SWK-S 652 MSW Concentration Practicum III (5 cr.) C: S651 These courses together provide an in-depth practicum experience for M.S.W. concentration students under the guidance and supervision of an approved field instructor. A field liaison oversees the practica. Students complete both courses in the same agency, although the student may use multiple departments or programs as sites for learning experiences. Practicum II and III build upon and deepen the practicum experiences and classroom knowledge gained in the intermediate year. The practicum courses provide students with experiences in the aformentioned curricular emphasis areas, which support the process of synthesis, application, critical analysis, and evaluation of knowledge using strengths perspective. The field practice seminar integrates concentration classroom learning with the experience of an internship. Students have the opportunity to apply their basic knowledge of group process as well as practice group leadership skills. This seminar will assist students in the identification and examination of significant practice and professional issues that occur in the last phase of the M.S.W. program. A major instructional goal of the practicum is to increase the students' competence in understanding and dealing with cross-cultural issues. Information and resources on diversity are discussed and applied in seminar and field placement, and students are encouraged to further explore and increase their own competence in dealing with cross cultural issues. It is expected that students will develop an awareness of their own privilege in relation to their clients systems. Further, students are expected to use advocacy skills in a cultural context and carry these skills into action in their agencies and wider community.
- SWK-S 661 Executive Leadership Practice (3 cr.) This course addresses administrative, management, leadership, and supervisory skills necessary for leadership practice. Included are staff hiring, supervision, evaluation, and termination; working with boards and volunteers, leadership styles, strategic planning, and current best practices in administration.
- SWK-S 662 Fiscal Management, Marketing and Resource Development (3 cr.) This course consists of three modules designed to develop core skills in fiscal management (including issues of budgeting, understanding balance sheets, audits, and theories of accounting); resource development (including fund raising, grant writing and personnel policies); and marketing for social work leaders.
- SWK-S 663 Leveraging Organizations, Communities, and Political Systems (3 cr.) This course focuses on knowledge and skills essential for understanding, analyzing, and application in organizations, communities and political arenas. Such knowledge and skills include, but are not limited to, organizational theories, structures, and processes; examination and application of rural, urban, and virtual community models, themes and practices; and understanding and involvement in political, social action, and social change interventions and empowerment practices.
- SWK-S 664 Designing Transformational Programs (3 cr.) This course focuses on alternative, transformational models of strategic, community, and program planning. Featured development models center on collaboration, cultural competence, empowerment, and social justice. The course will address advanced grant writing, identification of funding and other resources, and philanthropic trends within a variety of social service delivery systems. It will move beyond a focus on the technology of program development to examine planning as a vehicle for designing organizational, community, and social change.
- SWK-S 683 Community-Based Practice in Mental Health/ Addiction (3 cr.) Students enrolled in this course will focus on a wide range of community-based services provided for people with severe mental illness and/or severe addiction problems. Special attention will be given to strength-based, client-driven, and evidence-based practice models. Content will include community- based services in areas of case management, employment, housing, illness management, family, dual disorder treatment, and consumer self-help. Students also examine a variety of issues involved in the provision of community-based services such as ethical and legal issues, quality and continuity of care, cultural competency, organizational and financial factors, and other relevant policy and practice issues.
- SWK-S 685 Mental Health and Addictions Practice with Individuals and Families (3 cr.) Students enrolled in this course develop knowledge, values and ethics, skills, and judgment necessary for competent application of selected evidence-based, best practice approaches for service for children, youth, adults, and families affected by mental health and addictions issues. Students explore topics such as risk and resilience, recovery, and relapse prevention, and consider implications of current social and policy factors affecting service delivery to persons affected by mental health and addictions issues. Students learn to discover, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate evidence of practice effectiveness and apply that knowledge in communication, strengths discovery and assessment, hypothesis formation, contracting, intervention and prevention planning, service delivery, and evaluation. Students develop professional understanding and expertise in the application of at least one evidence-based approach for service to individuals and families affected by at least one specific mental health or addictions issues.
- SWK-S 686 Social Work Practice: Addictions (3 cr.) The purpose of this course is to provide learners with knowledge and skills relevant to various aspects of social work practice in prevention, intervention, and treatment of selected addictions. Students draw upon previous and concurrent learning experiences and integrate values, knowledge, and skills acquired in other social work courses with the values, knowledge, and skills characteristic of addictions practice. The course assists students to develop a multidimensional understanding of prevention, intervention, and treatment needs of diverse populations and associated social work practice principles, methods, and skills. Students explore the relationships between and among addiction and socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, culture, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, physical and mental ability, and other socio-environmental factors of vulnerability. Consistent with strengths and ecosystems perspectives, students consider the impact of social environments, physical settings, community contexts, and political realities that support or inhibit the emergence of addiction problems.
- SWK-S 687 Mental Health and Addictions Practice with Groups (3 cr.) Students enrolled in this course develop professional knowledge and skills for group work services to persons affected by mental health and addictions issues. The phases of group development and intervention during the various group work stages provide a conceptual framework for the course experience. Students learn to serve children, youth, adults, and families in groups that are therapeutic, growth producing, and life enhancing. Students examine a number of theoretical perspectives, including cognitive behavioral, communications, behavioral, and interpersonal approaches.
- SWK-S 690 Independent Study (1-6 cr.) An opportunity to engage in a self-directed study of an area related to the school's curriculum in which no formal course is available. (In order to enroll in S690, approval from an academic advisor and the director of the M.S.W. program is required).
- SWK-S 692 Practice Skills for Health Settings (3 cr.) This course will focus on the role of the social worker in a health care setting. Issues such as team building, professional identity, patient advocacy, ethics, and managed care will be addressed. Also, the impact of health care payment sources and health care choices for patients will be explored.
- SWK-S 693 Practice with Individuals, Families, and Communities in Health Care Settings (3 cr.) This course will examine the psychosocial impact of illnesses. Areas such as coping with chronic illness, caregiver stress, grieving and loss, medical ethics, and violence as a health care issue will be examined. The needs of at-risk populations (i.e. children, survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, frail elderly, individuals living with HIV/AIDS, etc.) will be addressed.
- SWK-S 694 Social Work Practice with Older Adults (3 cr.) The purpose of this course is to provide health practice concentration students with increased depth of knowledge in the area of practice with older adults in healthcare areas, such as acute care hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, adult day care and long-term care facilities. Effective social work practice relies on evidence-based theories on aging, biopsychosocial assessment, and relevant research on aging. Older adults are one of the fastest growing populations in the United States, and advances in technology have enhanced longevity. However, increased longevity has engendered complex and demanding issues, such as quality of life, right of self-determination, biopsychosocial issues and the responsibility to protect a vulnerable population. The course is designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills to effectively work with older adults.
- SWK-S 696 Confronting Loss, Grief, Death and Bereavement (3 cr.) This is an issue-oriented, social work course on the policy and practice issues in loss, grief, death, and dying across the life span for diverse populations. The major educational goal is to evaluate and understand the many problems and key resources relevant to social work practice with persons encountering grief, loss, death and bereavement in the context of health care settings. Students will attain knowledge, values and skills to meet the demands for entry level practice with clients (and their families) encountering chronic or terminal illness.