BSW Curriculum
The department offers a distributive major in social work. This means students are not required to have a minor. One hundred twenty (120) semester hours credit are required for the B.S. degree with a major in social work. The social work curriculum encompasses:
- 41 semester hours of specified Liberal Arts requirements
- 1 semester hour of university-wide Freshman Seminar requirement
- 49 semester hours of Professional Social Work courses
- 9 semester hours of Social Work electives
- 20 semester hours of additional courses
Sequencing of Courses
The curriculum is designed to unfold in a particular way in order to ensure continuity
and facilitate integration of content. Students follow a specific sequence of courses
and prerequisites. The following provides an overview of when courses are taken as
well as the prescribed order for taking courses.
- Pre/Corequisites and Liberal Arts Foundation Courses
SOC 1010 Introduction to Sociology
PSY 1010 General Psychology
BIOL 1040/1041 Human Biology (recommended) or BIOL 1010/1011 - Required Social Work Courses in First Year
SW 2110 Intro to Social Work - Required Social Work Courses in Second Year
SW 3410 Values, Ethics, and Diversity - Required Social Work Courses in Third Year
SW 3420 Human Behavior in Social Environment
SW 3400 Generalist Practice
SW 3450 Human Behavior in the Macro Environment
SW 3770 Research Methods
SW 4430 Social Policy - Required Social Work Courses in Fourth Year
SW 3620 Micro Social Work Practice
SW 3630 Macro Social Work Practice
SW 4400 Seminar for Field Instruction
SW 4440 Law and Social Work
SW 4410 Field Instruction
SW 4411 Field Instruction Concurrent Seminar
SW 4720 Senior Seminar - Social Work Electives (must choose three)
SW 3430 Elements of Rural Practice
SW 3440 Crisis Intervention
SW 3460 Community Mental Health Policy and Practice
SW 3470 Techniques of Social Work with Groups
SW 3480 Living with HIV
SW 3490 Social Work and Aging
SW 3495 Social Work and Addictions
SW 3500 Youth Gangs and Juvenile Delinquency
SW 3520 Professional Writing for Social Work
SW 3550 Medical Social Work
SW 3680 Child Welfare I
SW 3700 Child Welfare II
SW 3710 School Social Work
SW 4020 Human Sexuality
SW 4030 Child and Adolescent Mental Health
SW 4035 Social Work with Children and Families
SW 4040 Social Work and Family Violence
SW 4045 Spirituality and Social Work - SW 4050 International Social Work
- SW 4900 Selected Topics
Organization of the Social Work Foundation
|
Foundation Area |
Social Work Courses |
Term/ Academic Year |
| Human Behavior & the Social Environment | SW 3420 Human Behavior in the Social Environment (3 hrs) SW 3450 Human Behavior in the Macro Environment (3 hrs) |
Fall/Junior Spring/Junior |
| Social Policy/Welfare | SW 4440 Law and Social Work (3 hrs)
SW 4430 Social Policy (3 hrs) |
Fall/Senior
|
| Social Work Practice | SW 3400 Generalist Practice (3 hrs) SW 3620 Micro Social Work Practice (3 hrs) SW 3630 Macro Social Work Practice (3 hrs) |
Spring/Junior Fall/Senior Fall/Senior |
| Research | SW 3770 Research Methods (3 hrs) | Spring/Junior |
| Field Practicum | SW 4400 Seminar for Field Instruction (1 hr)
SW 4410 Field Instruction (12 hrs) SW 4411 Concurrent Seminar (3 hrs) |
Fall or Spring/Junior Fall or Spring/ Senior Fall or Spring/Senior |
| *SW 4720 Senior Seminar (3 hrs) | Fall or Spring/Senior | |
|
Total Hours: 43 |
*SW 4720 Senior Seminar addresses each of the foundation areas
Suggested Program of Study
| Fall/Freshman | 13 Hours | Spring/Freshman | 16 Hours |
|
APSU 1000 |
(1) |
ENGL 1020 |
(3) |
| Fall/Sophomore | 16 Hours | Spring/Sophomore | 15 Hours |
| COMM 1010 ENGL 2030 BIOL 1040/1041 Humanities Elective Elective |
(3) (3) (4) (3) (3) |
MATH 1530 |
(3) |
| Fall/Junior | 15 Hours | Spring/Junior | 15 Hours |
| SW 3420 SW Elective Electives |
(3) |
SW 3400 |
(3) |
| Fall/Senior | 13 Hours | Spring/Senior | 18 Hours |
| SW 3620 SW 3630 SW 4400 SW 4440 SW Elective |
(3) (3) (1) (3) (3) |
SW 4410 |
(12) (3) (3) |
Suggested Social Work Three Year Plan to Graduation
Option A
| Fall/First Year | 18 Hours |
Spring/First Year | 22 Hours |
| APSU 1000 COMM 1010 ENGL 1010 HIST 2010 SW 2110 Humanities/Fine Arts Free Elective |
(1) |
ENGL 1020 PSY 1010 SOC 2012 BIOL 1040/1041 SW 3410 SW 3420 Humanities/Fine Arts |
(3) (3) (4) (3) (3) (3) (3) |
| Fall/Second Year | 22 Hours | Spring/Second Year | 21 Hours |
| ENGL 2030 Other Science/Lab SW 3400 SW 3450 SW Elective HIST 2020/2030 Free Elective |
(3) (4) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) |
SW 3620 SW 4430 SW Elective MATH 1530 Free Elective Free Elective Free Elective |
(3) |
| Fall/Third Year | 19 Hours | Spring/Third Year | 18 Hours |
| SW 3630 SW 4440 SW 4400 SW 3770 Free Elective Free Elective |
(3) (3) (1) (3) (3) (3) |
SW 4410 SW 4411 SW 4720 |
(12) (3) (3) |
Field Practicum
The Field Practicum is an integral part of the social work curriculum. It provides
an educationally-directed, coordinated and monitored field experience for students.
Students engage in supervised, direct service activities to build on knowledge and
skills and apply theory from all foundation areas. Barbara Beswick, MSSW coordinates
the field practicum. For more information email: beswickb@apsu.edu.
The field practicum is offered both fall and spring semesters. Students who are admitted to the program are eligible for admission to the field practicum upon successful completion of SW 4400-Seminar for Field Instruction and all courses in:
- the social work practice sequence
- the human behavior and social environment sequence
- the social welfare policy and services sequence
- research methods
The field practicum is a transforming experience for students. It is an exciting time of integrating and applying knowledge, values, and skills of social work and developing the competencies for entry-level generalist practice. Students move from "knowing" and "understanding" to actual "doing." Field instruction engages students in experiencing, testing out, applying and integrating knowledge from the classroom.
The Field Practicum component consists of two courses:
- SW 4410 Field Instruction
Students receive 12 semester hours credit for the supervised field teaching-learning component within an approved agency setting. Students do a one semester block placement for a total of 480 clock hours. - SW 4411 Field Instruction Concurrent Seminar
Students receive 3 semester hours credit for this classroom seminar. The seminar focuses on integrating learning and skill development. Students meet in class for three hours once a week on campus.
The Department proudly offers a wide variety of practicum settings in rural and urban
locations. The Field Practicum Coordinator is able to work closely with students
and field instructors in social service agencies to create a good match between students'
interests and capacities and the field setting. Placements are available in mental
health, health care, home health, hospice, child welfare, alcohol and substance abuse,
hospital social work, sexual abuse, domestic violence, corrections, juvenile delinquency,
behavioral health services for adolescents and adults, day care, aging, HIV/AIDS;
and school social work.