The Combined Concentration at NCSSS

The Combined Concentration at the National Catholic School of Social Service prepares advanced practitioners who act as agents of change, with client systems of all sizes (micro, mezzo, and macro). The mission of the Combined Concentration is to provide students with knowledge from courses in ethics, human development, clinical practice theories, research, social justice, social change and field education experiences to prepare for multi-level interventions that include work with individuals, families, small groups, organizations, and communities. The Combined Concentration focuses on ethical practice that ranges from case management and clinical practice with individuals, families and groups through organizational administration and change, policy development, and community practice.

  

The Combined Concentration intentionally includes both clinical and macro components in its required courses and field. It directly addresses the dynamic environment of social work practice in the 21^st century, which often requires social workers to be prepared to “do it all,” especially when they work directly with clients in non-profit, community settings.

 

The Combined Concentration prepares students for a wide range of professional activities, including working with clients, writing grants, managing budgets, monitoring the success of programs, and working with boards, community groups and governmental policy making structures.  Students learn clinical methods and theoretical approaches to working with clients, group facilitation, diagnostic methods and ethics.  They also learn research, program and/or policy analysis, management skills, and planning.   

 

Some examples of competencies Combined Concentrators develop are:

• Clinical skills to support individual, family and group therapeutic work.  
• Program management skills to conduct cost analysis of therapeutic work.
• Grant writing skills to acquire funding to continue or expand direct service work
• Policy analysis skills to advocate for positions that support the best interests of clients.
• Research skills to acquire evidence to support effective practice.

However, the Combined Concentration is not: 

• ... an extension of Social Work 101,
• ... a concentration on “How to be a case manager,”
• ... the last resort because students cannot decide between Clinical and SJSC (Macro).

Ideally, a student in a combined placement is able to see Case as well as Cause, to use Dr. Barbara Soniat’s words. For example, a student placed at the DC Rape Crisis Center will, among other responsibilities, serve as a hospital advocate for rape victims – direct clinical work with a client. This student may also be involved in reviewing and evaluating how police deal with crime victims and later, with training police to deal more sensitively with crime victims.  Case to Cause.

 

Or, consider going from Cause to Case. A student placed within a school system learns all about the No Child Left Behind Act, and then helps to plan educational policy so that the school can meet required standards. The policy is implemented by developing programs, going from paper to program. Then the student helps implement the programs by working closely with a school team, parents, children, so that everyone understands the goals and how the programs will be evaluated. At the same time, the intern is seeing some children for individual counseling.

 

Combined Concentration at NCSSS

801, 802, 803, 804 (elect 1)   821, 822 (elect 1)     831, 832, 833, 835, 886 (elect  2)           723, 724, 725 (elect 1)   880, 884, 885, 946 (elect 1)     756, 757 (elect 1)   740   873, 874

Clinical SW with Older Adults; Adults; Adolescents and Young Adults; Children   Clinical SW with Families: Traditional Models; Strengths-based Model   Advanced Policy Analysis; Nonprofit Management; Social Planning; Community Organizing; Issues In International Social Development   Psychodynamic, Cognitive-Behavioral, Transpersonal Theories   Organizational Theories and Change; Theories of Administration; Theories of Social Justice   Practice Evaluation, Program Evaluation   Ethics   Combined Field Education and Integrative Seminar I & II

 

If you have questions about the Combined Concentration, please feel free to contact Aileen Worrell at worrell@cua.edu; 202-319-5496.