Course Descriptions and Completion Plans

This course is a foundation MSW course. The course emphasizes the history of social welfare policies and the role they play at present time. Student will utilize frameworks for analyzing social and economic policies as they relate to social welfare. Preparation for roles not only as service providers within existing policies but also as participants in efforts to change policy will be discussed. The class will also have an emphasis on values underlying the social welfare system, particularly the principles of social and economic justice.

This course is a foundation year MSW course. The course focus is on theories, methods, and values of social work practices well as beginning to advanced interviewing skills with an emphasis on Trauma-Informed Perspective and Intervention and various Evidenced Based Practices.

This course is a foundation year MSW course. This overview of theories of human behavior in the social environment in relation to advanced social work practice will focus on the relationships among biological, psychological, social, and cultural systems as they affect the "person-in-environment" across the life span. Students will consider the importance of integrating multiple critical perspectives to solve complex human problems to influence well-being and empowerment.

This course is the foundation Social Work Research course. Social Work research design methodology, with emphasis on applied research in human service and public services settings. Special emphases are placed on program evaluation, single subject design studies, human service surveys, and ethical issues in research. This course is an introduction to elementary statistical concepts, including frequency distributions, measures of central tendency, and beginning bivariate analysis and inferential statistics. Students in this course are prepared for critical use of research, and evaluation of their own and other professional knowledge base.

This course is a foundation year MSW course. Advanced training in the recognition of cultural patterning and histories of diverse social identity groups in the US and the differential impacts of past and present attitudes, beliefs, practices and policies on the lives of individuals, families, groups and communities. Analysis of stereotyping, distortions and myths of various ethnic groups are examined. The degree to which social structure and values may oppress, marginalize, alienate or enhance privilege and power are analyzed.

This is the first part of the MSW foundation year practicum experience. Students are required to complete a 280 hour, hands on social work internship in an approved agency under the supervision of a professional social worker. Participation in the guided seminar class assists the student to assimilate course content with the community based learning. The seminar provides further integration of practice with the skills, knowledge, and values and ethics of the field. Illustration from the students’ work in the agency setting is included through various assignments. The seminar is an additional 10 hours.

This is the second course of the MSW foundation practicum experience. Students are required to complete a 240 hour, hands on social work internship in an approved agency under the supervision of a professional social worker. Participation in the guided seminar class assists the student to assimilate course content with the community based learning. This seminar provides further integration of practice with the skills, knowledge, and values and ethics of the field. Illustration from the students’ work in the agency setting is included through various assignments. The seminar is an additional 10 hours.

This course is an Advanced MSW course designed to gain the knowledge, values and skills necessary for leadership and advanced policy advocacy. The course emphasizes the role of policy advocacy for social workers in clinical practice, evaluation of social policy and methods for policy change, and development of effective policy with emphasis on political processes. Students will also identify their individual leadership styles and gain knowledge and skills for effective leadership.

This course is an Advanced MSW course. This course focuses on intervention and individual change groups, with particular attention to the recruitment and composition of group members, leadership structure of small groups, phases of group development, and group processes such as decision making, tension reduction, conflict resolution, goal setting, contracting and evaluation. A variety of group strategies and techniques will be explored. Theories and methods consistent with the achievement of social justice and individual change through group work will be explored. The course will also consider how gender, ethnicity, race, social class, sexual orientation and different abilities impact various aspects of group functioning. Group facilitation will be practiced as a critical component of the course. Due to the nature of this course, the course will be limited to 12 students.

This course is an advanced year MSW course. The course focus is on clinical practice with individuals and families. Micro and mezzo practice skills through individual and family counseling are emphasized, with specific focus related to obtaining competency associated with interventions for children, adolescents and adults while incorporating issues of diversity as it relates to the global community, trauma and empowerment.

This course is an elective advanced year MSW course. The course focuses on the specifics of the evidence based practice of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The focus of the course is specific to the key components and practice techniques of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with introduction to Trauma Focused CBT and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy.

This course is an advanced year MSW course designed to gain the knowledge, values and skills necessary for advanced clinical skills and supervision in a clinical setting. Student will learn advanced clinical skills and supervisory models through simulation and role-play. This course focuses on the core practice theories, conceptual frameworks and intervention skills necessary for social work practice.

This course builds on the research methods course Scwk 550. In this course students will deepen knowledge and skills necessary to complete quantitative and qualitative research. Students will learn how to critically think about and apply research to social work practice. Specifically, Students will learn how to design and implement Single Subject Design research, design and implement program evaluation research and learn how to evaluate existing research for its usefulness to social work practice.

This course is designed as an intensive survey of the spectrum of the bio-psychosocial diagnoses. It examines concepts from the social work perspective of the person-in-environment to explore psychosocial disorders from different cultural perspectives, including gender, age, and minority status. It will provide students with advanced exposure to issues in the area of child and adult diagnosis utilizing the DSM system of classification with a focus on the impact of trauma on diagnoses and how to complete assessments within this system.

This is the first Advanced MSW practicum experience. Students are required to complete a 160 hour, hands on social work internship in an approved agency under the supervision of a professional social worker. Participation in the guided seminar class assists the student to assimilate course content with the community based learning. This seminar provides further integration of practice with the skills, knowledge, and values and ethics of the field. Illustration from the students’ work in the agency setting is included through various assignments. This seminar is an additional 10 hours.

This is the second part of the MSW Advanced practicum experience. Students are required to complete a 240 hour, hands on social work internship in an approved agency under the supervision of a profession social worker. Participation in the guided seminar class assists the student to assimilate course content with the community based learning. This seminar provides further integration of practice with the skills, knowledge, and values and ethics of the field. Illustration from the students’ work in the agency setting is included through various assignments. This seminar is an additional 10 hours.

This is the last of the MSW Advanced practicum experience. Students are required to complete a 240 hour, hands on social work internship in an approved agency under the supervision of a profession social worker. Participation in the guided seminar class assists the student to assimilate course content with the community based learning. This seminar provides further integration of practice with the skills, knowledge, and values and ethics of the field. Illustration from the students’ work in the agency setting is included through various assignments. This seminar is an additional 10 hours.

This course is an Advanced MSW Course, the final capstone course of the curriculum. The course is an extension of the Applied Social Work Research (SCWK 650) course in which students have written a proposal for research, program development, clinical development or outcome research. The course is taught as a Learner Centered Teaching course, in which students have written a proposal and identified a faculty mentor to assist in conducting some type of research or program development and an implementation plan. Students will develop individual learning outcomes, assessment of outcomes and implementation plan as a part of the learner centered course. The end product will be an article ready for publication, a grant for program development.