Master of Social Work (MSW) Course Description

Year 1:

MSW 501 Social Work Perspectives on Human Behavior I (3):
Prerequisites: Admission to MSW program.  Overview of ecological systems theory used in the social work profession for clinical and policy-oriented assessments of human functioning and needs during infancy, childhood, and adolescence.  Emphasis is on the reciprocal relationships between human behavior and the social environment.

MSW 502 Social Work Perspectives on Human Behavior II (3):
Prerequisites: MSW 501.  Overview of ecological model used in the social work profession for clinical and policy oriented assessments of human functioning and needs from young adulthood through old age. Emphasis is on the reciprocal relationships between human behavior and the social environment.

MSW 510  Social Work Practice I (3):
Prerequisites: Admission to MSW program.  Critical analysis and examination of social work roles and integration of those roles within a person-environment perspective. Focuses on an integrative framework combining direct practice with individuals, families, groups, and communities with a commitment to organizational and social change.

MSW 511  Social Work Practice II (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 510.   Further deepens students’ knowledge and skills essential for social work practice, including individual, family, group, community, and organizational interventions. Focus on cultural responsiveness, commitment to professional competence and ethics, interprofessional development, social and economics justice, and client empowerment.

MSW 520 Social Welfare Policy and Services I (3):
Prerequisites: Admission to MSW program.   Comprehensive overview of the history of social welfare and the social work profession, the evolution of social work values and ethics, and a broad array of U.S. social welfare services including income maintenance, health care, mental health, and child welfare.

MSW 521: Social Welfare Policy and Services II (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 520.   Fulfills Graduate Writing Requirement.  Course builds policy practice knowledge, skills, advocacy strategies, values and ethics regarding the political processes underlying social welfare policy development and practice.  Course also examines diverse methods of policy analysis and addresses policy issues that are important to multicultural populations.

MSW 530 Applied Social Work Research Methods I (3):
Prerequisites: Admission to MSW program.  Evaluation, appraisal, and application of the concepts, design, and process of applied research in social work, focusing on foundation skills in conducting empirical research within the context of theory, literature review, research design and measurement, research ethics, and professional practice. 

MSW 540: Social Work Field Instruction I (2):
Prerequisites: Admission to MSW program.  Fieldwork experience in a social services agency under the supervision of professional social workers. Course introduces students to the range of professional roles, social services infrastructure and policies, professional ethical standards, case management principles, and social work intervention modalities.

MSW 541: Social Work Field Instruction II (2):
Prerequisite: MSW 540.  Continued and advanced supervised social work practice experience in a community agency utilizing direct social service practice skills. Greater in-depth focus on collaborative client case management to prepare students for professional employment with emphasis on effective practice with diverse populations.

MSW 550: Social Work Practice with Diverse Populations (3):
Prerequisites: Admission to MSW program.  Prepares future social workers to examine social work case management issues related to disadvantaged client groups based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, and disability status. Focus is on ecological diversity-sensitive practice, advocacy, and empowerment of vulnerable clients.

Year 2:

MSW 503 Social Work Perspectives on Human Behavior III (3):
Prerequisites: MSW 502.  Advanced social work theory and application regarding development of human psychopathology across the life span, including understanding and diagnosing dysfunctional behaviors with the DSM-IV TR. 

MSW 512  Child Welfare: Advanced Practice I (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 511.  Designed for students preparing for careers in public child welfare.  Examines continuum of services, impact of chemical dependency and domestic violence, intervention models, and the practice of social work within the legal context of the dependency court.

MSW 513  Child Welfare: Advanced Practice II (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 512.  Integration of theory and practice pertaining to social workers’ roles in child welfare settings.  Application of direct intervention models and development of advanced specialized skills for addressing the behavioral, emotional, and situational problems of children and families. 

MSW 514  Community Mental Health: Advanced Practice I (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 511.  Application of theory and practice with diverse populations utilizing a multicultural framework and case materials to analyze treatment issues and empowerment strategies in community mental health.  Emphasis on individual, family and group strategies.

MSW 515  Community Mental Health: Advanced Practice II (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 514.  Analysis of the psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery as the dominant treatment model in contemporary community mental health programs.  Focus on the use of psychoeducation to address chronic mental illness, substance abuse, depression, anxiety and family violence.

MSW 522  Child Welfare Policy and Social Work (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 521. Students examine and analyze the conceptual and pragmatic underpinnings of federal, state, and local policies as well as specific laws and regulations influencing social work practice with children, youth, and their caregivers.

MSW 523  Mental Health Policy and Social Work (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 521.  Overview of social welfare policy issues in the understanding and treatment of mental disorders at the national, state, and local levels.  Focus on major factors influencing the provision of mental health services such as managed care.

MSW 531  Applied Social Work Research Methods II (3):
Prerequisite: MSW 530.  Application of research concepts and principles to the actual conduct of studies addressing questions relevant to direct practice with individuals, families, and groups.  The course prepares students for active roles in social work practice and program evaluation.

MSW 542  Advanced Social Work Field Instruction I (2):
Prerequisite: MSW 541.  Advanced supervised social work practice in a community agency with focus on the range of professional social work roles in child welfare or community mental health settings.  Requires 2 hrs/wk seminar and 20 hrs/wk agency placement. 

MSW 543  Advanced Social Work Field Instruction II (2):
Prerequisite: MSW 542.  Continuation and intensification of supervised social work practice in a community agency with focus on advanced practice skills in community mental health  or child welfare settings. Requires 2 hrs/wk. seminar and 20 hrs/wk agency placement.

MSW 564  Professional Issues in Social Work: Supervision, Grants, and Finance (3):
Prerequisite:  Second year MSW student in good standing.  This course is designed to give students a working knowledge and skill set that will enable them to provide supervision, resource development, and financial leadership in the modern human services organization.

MSW 561 Social Work Practice and the Law (3):
Survey of major legal issues, policies, and resources relevant to social workers.  Focus on issues such as abortion, adoption, child custody, right to treatment, mental health commitment procedures, children’s rights, rights of the elderly, marriage, and divorce. 

MSW 570  Social Work Practice in Substance Abuse Treatment (3):
Theories and methods in the diagnosis and treatment of substance abuse disorders focusing on the role of social workers in the prevention/intervention of substance abusers and their families.  Emphases on dual diagnoses, prenatal drug/alcohol exposure, and challenges for special group.

MSW 580  Social Work Practice with the Poor and the Homeless (3):
Analysis of homelessness in the context of social responsibility for the poor. Focus on legal, social, and economic context of homelessness; examines the diversity of the homeless, their special needs and behaviors, and assesses systems of care and treatment.

MSW 596 Master’s Project Development (3) and MSW 597  Master’s Project (3):
Pre-requisites:  MSW 530, MSW 531.  Under the direction and approval of a faculty advisor, a student, over two semesters, selects and develops a project that integrates knowledge of cross-cultural practice, human behavior and research in the context of identifying solutions to social problems.