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Professors: E. Wayne Busby, Bradley Cameron
Assistant Professor: Kristen Humphrey
Instructor: Paty Magee
The primary objective of this program is to prepare students who enter social work practice at the beginning professional level upon graduation. The program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education and graduates from it are eligible to be licensed social workers in Kansas. Completion of this program will also provide students with the foundation for advanced education in social work at graduate schools of social work. Finally, this program will prepare students for informed, responsible citizenship in a society in which social welfare plays a major role.
To this end, the program provides content in the areas of:
- social work practice,
- social welfare policy and services,
- human behavior in the social environment,
- social research, and
- includes 480 clock hours of educationally directed practicum in social work.
The social work program builds on and is integrated with the liberal arts 46-54 hour general education base common to all Bachelor of Science degrees at this institution.
Admission:
Students may apply for admission to the Social Work Program when they meet the following criteria:
- have accumulated at least 110 grade points and have not less than an overall grade point average of 2.00.
- completion of SWK 201 Introduction to Social Work; SWK 204 Fundamentals of Social Work Practice; and SWK 221 Basic Helping Skills. (A grade of not less than "C" must have been earned in each of the above courses.)
Students may apply for admission to the social work program during the semester that will result in their eligibility for admission under the above criteria. Admission will be contingent upon successful completion of that semester's enrollment. Transfer students may apply for provisional admission if they meet the criteria outlined under "1" above. They will be expected to satisfactorily complete the criteria outlined under "2" above during their first year of provisional admission status, following which they will be granted full admission to the social work program.
The admission process includes:
- the submission of an application for admission to the social work program,
- a written self-evaluation dealing with motivation for and commitment to professional social work education,
- two letters of reference, and
- a personal interview with the Admissions Committee after the committee has reviewed the applicant's written materials. The Admissions Committee is composed of at least two full-time social work faculty members and a representative from the Social Work Advisory Committee. (Application forms may be obtained from the practicum coordinator or the director of the social work program.)
An applicant who has been denied admission to the program may request an appearance before the Admissions Committee in order to show cause why the application should not be rejected. Only students possessing full admission or provisional admission status may enroll in advanced practice social work courses. A grade of "C" or above in all required courses for the social work major is required for continuation in the program.
Major Requirements
The social work major consists of not less than 60 hours distributed as follows:
Pre-Admission Courses |
Hours |
| SWK 201 Introduction to Social Work |
3 |
| SWK 204 Fundamentals of Social Work Practice |
3 |
| SWK 221 Basic Helping Skills |
3 |
Post-Admission Courses |
|
| SWK 340 Social Work with Families and Children |
3 |
| SWK 344 Mental Health Theory and Practice |
3 |
| SWK 365 Social Process and Social Policy |
3 |
| SWK 375 Multiculturalism and Diversity in Social Work Practice or |
|
| SOC 443 Race and Ethnic Relations or |
|
| PSYCH 720 Multicultural Issues in Psychology and counseling |
3 |
| SWK 380 Human Behavior in the Social Environment: The Systemic Perspective |
3 |
| SWK 383 Fundamentals of Research in Social Work or |
3 |
| SOSCI 387 Social Research Design or |
4 |
| PSYCH 389 Research methods in Psychology I and |
|
| PSYCH 392 Research Methods in Psychology II |
3 |
| SWK 420 Advanced Social Work Practice I |
3 |
| SWK 465 Social Welfare Policy Analysis |
3 |
| SWK 580 Human Behavior in the Social Environment:Individual and Family Functioning |
3 |
| SWK 620 Advanced Social Work Practice II* |
3 |
| SWK 621 Practicum in Social Work** |
9 |
| SWK 622 Integrative Seminar in Social Work** |
3 |
| SWK 641 Social Work and the Law |
3 |
Electives (choose 6 hours) |
6 |
| SWK 341 Social Work and the Aged |
3 |
| SWK 342 Health Care and Social Work |
3 |
| SWK 345 Topics in Social Work (____) |
3 |
| SOSCI 388 Social Research Analysis |
4 |
| PSYCH 389 Research Methods in Psychology I |
3 |
| SWK 399 Social Work and the Court Process |
3 |
| GEOG 401 Urban and Regional Planning |
3 |
| SOC 443 Race and Ethnic Relations |
3 |
| JUST 500 Criminal Law and Society |
3 |
| JUST 501 Criminal Procedure |
3 |
| POLS 517 U.S. Congress |
3 |
| SOC 527 Correctional Systems |
3 |
| SOC 536 The Family and Society |
3 |
| SOC 547 Criminology |
3 |
| SOC 548 Juvenile Delinquency |
3 |
| PSYCH 571 Abnormal Psychology |
3 |
| SWK 598 Chemical Abuse Treatment and Services |
3 |
| POLS 662 Constitutional Law II |
3 |
| PSYCH 685 Psychology of Personality |
3 |
| TOTAL |
60 |
* Semester prior to or concurrent with Professional Semester.
**Professional Semester.
Additional Considerations
Social work majors must include a minimum of 3 hours in the area of human biological sciences when meeting the natural science general education requirement (BIOL 113 Environmental Life Science meets this requirement). Social Work majors must also fulfill the 3 hour general education requirement in the economy and society component by taking ECON 191 Issues in Today's Economy. (In this and in other areas of general education requirements, certain courses are more relevant to the social work major than others; hence, it is urged that students consult carefully with social work faculty advisors in the choice of all general education courses.)
Specialization in certain fields is being increasingly emphasized in social work practice, and students may wish to gain some insight into and greater knowledge in specific fields that are of particular interest to them, such as group and recreational work, family services, child welfare, probation and correctional work, medical and mental health services, school social work and aging services. Approximately 21 hours of general electives available to the student with a social work major may be used for this purpose through careful selection of courses in the appropriate disciplines in consultation with social work faculty advisors. It should be emphasized, however, that the primary objective of the social work program is the preparation of generalist practitioners, and specialty preparation is secondary to the above objective. |
