Prepare for Career in Social Work: Be a Social Work Major
Faith, Reason, Service.… Major in Social Work
Social work is an exciting profession for undergraduates who want to work with people. Generalist social work practice at the undergraduate level prepares you to work in numerous fields and settings and with a variety of populations, from infants to the elderly. Social workers work in schools, hospitals, prisons, residential treatment centers, child welfare, child development centers, community advocacy agencies, nursing homes, etc. Social work majors at the undergraduate level are eligible for licensure as social workers in many localities.
Social Work was my dream major. I wouldn't be who I am today
Without it… marissa (class of 2004)
if you want peace, work for freedom
if you want freedom, work for justice
if you want justice, be a social worker...peace Orlando (class of 2005)
Social work is more than just a major, it is a culture and a way of looking at the world. When I first became a social work major, I knew very little about the profession, but as I have learned more, I see that it is nothing short of an organized, professional way of bringing about positive change in the world through respecting the dignity and worth of each person. Social work is unique because it is the only profession whose end goal is to make itself unnecessary…. Dan (class of 2005)
Admissions and Financial Aid
Admissions: Admission to the full-time curriculum of the School of Arts and Sciences or to Metropolitan College is necessary to enter the undergraduate program in social work. Undergraduate applicants interested in social work apply to the University through the College of Arts and Sciences. Follow this link for more information on Admissions at The Catholic University of America.
Financial Aid at The Catholic University of America: A variety of scholarships, grants, and loans are available to new and continuing students. Federal funds are, by statute, awarded solely on the basis of financial need as determined by a federally approved needs analysis system. These funds are available to as many qualifying students as funding will allow. We direct you for further information to The Catholic University of America or to the web site links, without endorsement, listed below.
· College loan information: SallieMae and NellieMae
· The Financial Aid Information Page for a free guide to financial aid -- includes free scholarship search!!
· Link to many other related sites
· On-line FAFSA form
PROGRAM GOALS
The goals of the National Catholic School of Social Service undergraduate program are the following:
- Integrate a broad liberal arts perspective with social work education and field education.
- Prepare beginning level social workers for generalist social work practice in a variety of settings and with diverse client populations.
- Develop competent social work practitioners who are steeped in respect for human diversity and in the values and ethics of the social work profession.
- Provide content that prepares students to become critical consumers of social work research and active participants in research efforts applicable to generalist social work practice.
- Provide content that enables students to recognize the dynamics of oppression and discrimination on all populations, with a special emphasis on populations-at-risk.
- Prepare generalist practitioners to use theories of human behavior and theories of human growth and development in order to enhance the well-being of individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
- Challenge students to develop a deep commitment to the promotion of social and economic justice: the elimination of poverty, discrimination, and oppression in the context of the tradition of Catholic social teachings and the mission of The Catholic University of America.
- Prepare social work practitioners to analyze current social policy, critique federal, state, and local agency social programs; and examine them in the context of American social welfare history and contemporary society.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
The objectives of the National Catholic School of Social Service undergraduate program are the following:
- Understand the history of professional social work, including past traditions and current issues.
- Apply critical thinking skills to social work practice.
- Know the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers and apply social work values and ethics to social work practice within all work environments.
- Engage in respectful, knowledgeable, skillful, and nondiscriminatory practice with particular attention to people who may have been discriminated against on the basis of age, class, color, culture, disability, national origin, ethnicity, race, religion, family structure, marital status, sex, and sexual orientation.
- Develop knowledge and skills necessary for generalist practice with systems of all sizes, including individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
- Apply a theoretical approach supported by empirical evidence to the helping process including relationship building, assessment, planning, and intervention with client systems of all sizes, with special attention to populations-at-risk.
- Develop the knowledge and skills necessary for professional practice with diverse religious and spiritual client populations.
- Take personal responsibility for professional development through supervision and consultation.
- Promote social and economic justice.
- Prepare social work practitioners to critically analyze existing social policy, including global, federal, state, local, and agency polices and programs, in the context of American social welfare history and contemporary society.
- Apply knowledge of bio-psycho-social-spiritual development and theoretical frameworks of human behavior to an understanding of individuals, families, groups and organizations across the life span using a person-in-environment approach.
- Participate in scientific inquiry through the development of research knowledge and skills to evaluate research studies, apply research findings to practice, and evaluate personal practice.
- Function within the structure of organizations and service delivery systems and seek necessary organizational change.
- Learn to use communication skills differentially across client populations, colleagues, and communities to affect change and to improve service delivery to agency clients.
Curriculum
The undergraduate social work curriculum is designed to prepare students for (1) direct entry into social work practice, under supervision, in public welfare agencies, general and mental health hospitals, courts and probation departments, family and children services agencies, neighborhood and community action agencies, and other settings; (2) graduate social work education; and (3) leadership roles in community efforts in social welfare.
Social work majors learn about social welfare and social work in the introductory courses through reading, research projects, and field observation. Students seek opportunities in the community to explore their interests in social work. To be accepted as concentrators, students must give evidence of an aptitude for working with people. During the second semester of the junior year, after being accepted as a concentrator, students spend four hours each week in community social welfare agencies in a supervised practicum. During the senior year, all students spend two days each week in community social welfare agencies in a supervised practicum. This practicum enables students to test theories and develop beginning skills in the practice of social work.
The social work major at CUA is designed to prepare generalist practitioners who have a strong grounding in the liberal arts. Distribution requirements of the School of Arts and Sciences or Metropolitan College for the baccalaureate degree must be fulfilled. Students should consult their advisers for specific courses that are recommended within the distribution requirements.
Students concentrating in social work are required to take the major and support courses diagrammed below. Some courses may be substituted or added with the permission of the program chair. However, no credit is given for life or previous work experience, in whole or part, in lieu of the field practicum or of the courses in the professional foundation specified by the Curriculum Policy Statement of the Council on Social Work Education. Students must apply to be accepted as social work concentrators in their sophomore year. Application information is available at NCSSS.
Link here to the social work curriculum and selected course syllabi. |
