Liberal Arts
Social Work
Professor Bognar
Associate Professors Baker, Brun, Curry-Jackson (chair), Myadze
Assistant Professor Rogers
The Bachelor of Arts program in social work prepares students for beginning employment in social work or for graduate study. Students considering social work as a career should be interested in people of widely varying ages, abilities, and backgrounds; they need to be disciplined, emotionally stable, and intellectually creative. Social workers typically find employment in family services, children's services, public schools, hospitals, mental health centers, and probation and parole boards. While most social workers perform direct practice duties, others are employed as outreach workers, community organizers, and administrators in public, voluntary, and for-profit agencies. Newer fields are also opening up for social workers, such as services to older adults.
The baccalaureate program is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. Requirements for admission to the social work program include completion of SW 270 and 271 with a grade of "C" or higher, with an overall GPA of 2.25 or higher; related social science courses; human biology; and the writing portion of the Pre-Professional Skills Test or passing the writing intensive component of four General Education courses.
Applications are accepted two times per year: March 1 and November 1. Admissions to the social work major are selective. Not all persons meeting the minimum requirements can be accepted into the major. Students should see the department's academic advisor if they have questions about the application criteria.
To graduate with a social work degree, a grade of "C" or higher is required in all social work courses including SW 491 or the following accepted inferential statistics courses: STT 265, MS 202, or PLS 211.
Degree Requirements - Social Work
Bachelor of Arts Degree
| General Education Requirements | 57 |
| Specific Courses: Area Three - The Non-Western World: CST 240 - Comparative Non-Western Cultures Area Four - Understanding the Contemporary World: BIO 107 |
|
|
Departmental Requirements |
56 |
| SW 270, 271, 375, 380, 470, 481, 482, 483, 484, 490, 491; SW 487, 488, 489 (field practicum) | |
|
Related Requirements |
7 |
| COM 102 | |
| PSY 341 | |
|
Foreign Language and Research Methods Requirement |
24 - 32 |
|
Electives |
40 - 48 |
|
Total (minimum requirement) |
192 |
Social Work Honors Program
The Department of Social Work recognizes superior achievement by social work majors with an honors program that allows students to graduate with the designation of honors in social work. Students in the program have an opportunity to pursue original research and analysis that goes beyond the requirements of their course work.
Junior and senior students with a 3.0 overall GPA and a 3.5 average in social work may apply. Students must initiate and successfully complete an honors project. The department suggests that honors students take at least one UH 400 interdisciplinary seminar before starting their honors project.
Certificate in Gerontology
The certificate in gerontology program offers students academic preparation and practical experience in the growing field of gerontology:
- Knowledge about the consequences of the aging process (physical, social, and psychological) and the needs associated with the aging process throughout the life span
- Knowledge about current social and health policies, as well as programs developed to meet the increasing needs of older people
- Skills to work as a team member in an interdisciplinary setting designed to help older people
- Sensitivity about the values necessary to work with older people
