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Bachelor of Social Work

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About the Bachelor of Social Work

Our Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) degree program prepares you to support the needs of individuals, families, and communities. You will gain the knowledge, skills and experience in social work processes, collaborative problem-solving, direct practice, advocacy and community organizing that leverages the strengths and capacities of individuals, families, groups and communities. The Social Work major engages students through inclusive, community-centered educational experiences to develop and practice professional Social Work competencies necessary for effectively serving in diverse practice roles and communities, and successful application to Social Work graduate education pathways.

Mission Statement

The BSW program engages and prepares students through inclusive, community-centered educational experiences to develop and practice professional social work competencies necessary for effectively serving in diverse generalist practice roles and communities, and successful application to social work graduate education pathways.

Building on the values and ethics of the social work profession, the program supports future generalist practitioners with diverse intersectional identities to serve through a culturally-grounded, equity-minded and social justice approach to leverage the strengths of individuals, families, groups and communities.

What Will Our B.S.W. Offer You?

Real-World Field Experience

Community engagement opportunities are integrated into coursework and student experiences through community-based assignments, interactions with faculty practitioners and professional networks, case conceptualization, ‘lived experiences’ sources, and organizational highlights. Social Work students complete 400 hours of practica with an integrated seminar in their senior year, supported by field education faculty.

Expert Faculty

Learn from professors who have real-world experience as Social Work practitioners in the field, bringing years of expertise in various roles and organizations and engaging, evidence-based practices to the classroom.

Customizable Degree

Enhance your degree with a variety of concentrations and minors, including Psychology, Criminal Justice, Business and Humanities, among others, which will allow you to tailor your degree to your passion and interest.

Flexible Classes

Choose from online, campus-based, and blended class formats, including evening class options, which allow you to fit your degree around your busy schedule.

Program Requirements and Details

Curriculum

What You Will Learn

The SWK major is 180 quarter hours in length, with 60% in direct study of a variety of social work areas and a select minor. Coursework for the BSW focuses on developing and applying critical thinking skills and a social justice approach to leverage the strengths of individuals, families, groups and communities and effect social change.

Highlights of what you’ll learn include:

Intercultural Competency

Intercultural Competence is a lifelong journey to develop the ability to understand, interact, and communicate with individuals across cultural identity factors. It includes an awareness of one’s own cultural views, managing one’s biases, developing positive attitudes toward cultural difference, and have a working knowledge of varying cultural worldviews, practices and social experiences.

Interviewing and Assessment Skills

These skills involve relationship-building, active listening, empathy and a strength-based approach to understanding clients and community members in the context of their environment. Assessment skills involve an unbiased and non-judgemental stance, critical thinking and knowledge of theories of human behavior and culturally responsive interventions.

Collaborative Problem-Solving

Collaborative problem-solving skills enable individuals to effectively communicate, share resources and strategies, and contribute to critical thinking and solutions-focused processes to reach a common goal when serving as members of a group or team. Students who think critically about behavior, engage in problem-solving, communicate well, and collaborate to find solutions will be well prepared to service in the Social Work profession.

Case Conceptualization

Case conceptualization is an integrated approach counselors and other direct practitioners use to understanding a client’s experience through theoretical perspectives as well as biopsychosocial contexts. This significant competency provides a framework for a practitioner to synthesize/organize information about the client and challenges they experience, develop goals collaboratively with the clients, determine interventions, and leverage their strengths and resources.

Culturally Grounded Practice Strategies

Culturally grounded practice strategies involve a set of knowledge, skills and behaviors within practitioners, to understand and value the resources and protective factors within diverse individuals and cultural communities. Culturally grounded practice approaches focused on culturally responsive interventions in the context of a relationship which honors the meanings, messages and identities inherent in one’s cultural experience. 

Individual and Systems Advocacy

Individual Advocacy involves the ability to effectively communicate and assert oneself in order to support the interests or cause of someone or a group of people, particularly when there are injustices or inequities that impact the persons. An Advocate can educate and encourage an individual to know their options, resources and take control of their goals and decisions. Systems advocacy involves changing policies, laws or rules that impact how someone lives their life and their access to well-being.

Career Outlook

Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2018), employment opportunities in social work are projected to grow much faster than average (11 percent from 2018 to 2028), due to an aging population, additional home health care services, an increasing number of children living in poverty, increased social work needs in schools, and greater emphasis on substance-abuse treatment rather than imprisonment for drug offenders. About half of social work jobs are expected to be in health care and social assistance industries, with about 30 percent of jobs in government agencies.

Graduates with a Social Work degree are also prepared for these fast-growing careers:

  • Child Welfare Specialist
  • Youth Worker
  • Crisis Response
  • Community Outreach Specialist
  • Prevention Educator Facilitator
  • Community Organizer
  • Substance Abuse Counselor
  • Disability Specialist
  • Social and Community Service Managers
  • Rehabilitation Case Worker
  • Corrections Specialist
  • Community Health Advocate
  • Program Coordinator

Accreditation and Assessment

Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Accreditation

NLU's Bachelor of Social Work program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE) Board of Accreditation (BOA).

Accreditation of a baccalaureate social work program by the BOA indicates that it meets or exceeds standards of program quality evaluated through a peer review accreditation process. An accredited program has sufficient resources to meet its mission and goals and the BOA has verified that it demonstrates compliance with all sections of the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS).

Accreditation applies to all program options, which includes locations and delivery methods. Accreditation provides reasonable assurance about the quality of the program and the competence of students graduating from the program. 

Students who graduated from NLU with their BSW beginning in Fall of 2021 and later, are graduates of an accredited Social Work program. Students graduating from an accredited program may enter a Master of Social Work graduate program with Advanced Standing status, significantly reducing the time and cost of graduate education. 

Assessment

Form AS 4(B): A form required for Reaffirmation, Candidacy, and ongoing compliance per AS 4.0.3.

This form is used to assist the COA in the evaluation of the program’s compliance with the accreditation standard below:

4.0.3: The program uses Form AS 4(B) and/or Form AS 4(M) to report its most recent assessment outcomes for each program option to constituents and the public on its website and routinely up-dates (minimally every 2 years) its findings.

All programs accredited by the Council on Social Work Education’s Commission on Accreditation (COA) are required to measure and report student learning outcomes.  All students are assessed using a minimum of two measures on their mastery of the nine competencies that comprise the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) and any additional competencies programs may choose to add.  These holistic competencies reflect the dimensions (knowledge, values, skills, and cognitive & affective processes) of social work practice that all social workers are expected to master during their professional training.  

NLU BSW Program Form-AS-4(B)

Curriculum

The undergraduate major in Social Work requires 180 quarter hours including 60 quarter hours of general education, including completion of Statistics, Introduction to Psychology, Introduction to Sociology, and a Civics/American History Course with a C or Better for admission to the program. Students must also receive a minimum grade of "C" in all major courses to graduate. Students are able to select a minor or up to two concentrations to add on to their major courses.

Core Courses
SWK 200 Introduction to Social Work and Social Justice 5QH
SWK 301 Human Behavior in the Social Environment I 5QH
SWK 302 Human Behavior in the Social Environment II 5QH
SWK 303 Cultural Diversity and Social Justice 5QH
SWK 304 Social Work Practice I: Individuals and Families 5QH
SWK 305 Social Work Practice II: Groups 5QH
SWK 306 Social Work Practice III: Organizations and Communities 5QH
SWK 401 Introduction to Social Work Research 5QH
SWK 402 Social Policy Analysis 5QH
SWK 491 Field Seminar and Practicum I 5QH
SWK 492 Field Seminar and Practicum II 5QH
SWK 493 Field Practicum in Social Work III 5QH

BSW Program Outcomes

At the completion of the program, students in the BSW program should be able to demonstrate the following competencies and practice behaviors.

Social workers:

  • make ethical decisions by applying the standards of the NASW Code of Ethics, relevant laws and regulations, models for ethical decision-making, ethical conduct of research, and additional codes of ethics as appropriate to context;
  • use reflection and self-regulation to manage personal values and maintain professionalism in practice situations;
  • demonstrate professional demeanor in behavior; appearance; and oral, written, and electronic communication;
  • use technology ethically and appropriately to facilitate practice outcomes; and
  • use supervision and consultation to guide professional judgment and behavior.

Social workers:

  • apply and communicate understanding of the importance of diversity and difference in shaping life experiences in practice at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels;
  • present themselves as learners and engage clients and constituencies as experts of their own experiences; and
  • apply self-awareness and self-regulation to manage the influence of personal biases and values in working with diverse clients and constituencies.

Social workers:

  • apply their understanding of social, economic, and environmental justice to advocate for human rights at the individual and system levels; and
  • engage in practices that advance social, economic, and environmental justice.

Social workers:

  • use practice experience and theory to inform scientific inquiry and research;
  • apply critical thinking to engage in analysis of quantitative and qualitative research methods and research findings; and
  • use and translate research evidence to inform and improve practice, policy, and service delivery.

Social workers:

  • Identify social policy at the local, state, and federal level that impacts well-being, service delivery, and access to social services;
  • assess how social welfare and economic policies impact the delivery of and access to social services;
  • apply critical thinking to analyze, formulate, and advocate for policies that advance human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice.

Social workers:

  • apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks to engage with clients and constituencies; and
  • use empathy, reflection, and interpersonal skills to effectively engage diverse clients and constituencies.

Social workers:

  • collect and organize data, and apply critical thinking to interpret information from clients and constituencies;
  • apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks in the analysis of assessment data from clients and constituencies;
  • develop mutually agreed-on intervention goals and objectives based on the critical assessment of strengths, needs, and challenges within clients and constituencies; and
  • select appropriate intervention strategies based on the assessment, research knowledge, and values and preferences of clients and constituencies.

Social workers:

  • critically choose and implement interventions to achieve practice goals and enhance capacities of clients and constituencies;
  • apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks in interventions with clients and constituencies;
  • use inter-professional collaboration as appropriate to achieve beneficial practice outcomes;
  • negotiate, mediate, and advocate with and on behalf of diverse clients and constituencies; and
  • facilitate effective transitions and endings that advance mutually agreed-on goals.

Social workers:

  • select and use appropriate methods for evaluation of outcomes;
  • apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks in the evaluation of outcomes;
  • critically analyze, monitor, and evaluate intervention and program processes and outcomes; and
  • apply evaluation findings to improve practice effectiveness at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels.

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