Department Head: Dr. Maureen Newton, mnewton@jsu.edu
MSW Program Coordinator: Dr. Kimberly Wickersham, kwickersham@jsu.edu
The Department of Social Work offers courses leading to the Master of Social Work (MSW) degree with Advanced Generalist Specialization. This degree prepares graduates to engage in independent social work practice to address local, regional, and national workforce needs for social work services, with emphasis placed on rural and non-urban communities. The program aims to provide professionals with advanced, ethical, evidence-based social work practice and professional leadership skills at all practice levels with the goal of improving individual and societal well-being.
The Master of Social Work (MSW) program is offered in a hybrid/blended format. This design gives students a combination of learning formats, including, but not limited to, online and lecture learning. The program emphasizes a full range of high quality experiences throughout the curriculum in terms of innovative courses, creative practicums/internships, relevant research, service-learning activities, and dynamic faculty-student, student-student, and community-student relationships that will prepare graduates for successful social work careers.
The program is guided by the institutional mission, program mission, professional purpose, the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards, and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics.
Two graduate degree plans exist for the Master of Social Work:
- Traditional Two-Year MSW Degree Program (60 hours). This program is for students who do not have an undergraduate degree in social work from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) or who do not meet the academic admissions criteria to be eligible for the One-Year Advanced Standing MSW Degree Program.
- One-Year Advanced Standing MSW Degree Program (39 hours). This program is for students who have graduated with an undergraduate degree in social work from an academic program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) and meet the admission/eligibility criteria set forth by the JSU social work program.
For more information specific to the MSW program, please contact the Department of Social Work, (256) 782-8208 or visit the Social Work program website.