Our MA Social Work course will help you become a highly effective social worker through a combination of teaching and practice placements.
Our course meets the requirements of the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) for social work practice globally, the Knowledge and Skills Statements for children, adult and mental health social workers, and the regulatory requirements of Social Work.
You will be eligible to apply to register as a qualified social worker with Social Work Associations upon completion of the course. Our generic qualification enables you to work in all areas of social work practice.
You will learn in small cohorts with a supportive and inclusive teaching ethos and benefit from innovative and effective teaching and learning methods, including the use of simulation suites to improve your practice skills.
Each student is allocated an individual Academic Adviser who offers academic and pastoral support across the two years of the programme.
Overseas students will, in addition to the support above, receive support from the language centre and our well established international student services. The course proactively supports overseas students.
You will have the opportunity to work on an MA dissertation in a social work area you are most interested in with support from an allocated individual supervisor
Both placements and taught elements will help you learn how to work with a variety of user groups in a range of settings
Aims
The course aims to:
- qualify you as a registered social worker;
- prepare you to work safely and effectively with service users and carers;
- prepare you to promote social justice in your practice and uphold social work values;
- produce social work practitioners who are intellectually inquisitive and motivated to pursue further learning and research and professional development throughout their career.
Courses in Social Work
- Introduction to Social Work
- Applied Statistics
- Community Intervention and Entrepreneurship Development
- Corporate Social Responsibility
- Database Managment System
- Project Management
- Computer Hardware and Software
- Gender and Development
- Social Work Ethics
- Information Security Risk Management
- Social work with Adults
- Social work with Children and Families
- Law for Social Workers
- Rural Development
- Social Work Field Education
- Social Work Administration
- Community Based Particiapatory Action Research
Research Project in Social Work:
Master Thesis Project
MBM300 Thesis Proposal
MBM302 Master Thesis (5,000 words)
Publication: All students are encouraged to publish their research papers either online in the public domain or through professional journals and periodicals worldwide.
Social Work Specializations
Social work administration involves working with budgets, designing and evaluating programs, working on policies, and managing a community or department strategy. Furthermore, social work administrators are required to possess an understanding of social policy, the delivery process of social services, human behavior, social problems, and business. They must also possess leadership and decision-making skills in order to effectively manage programs. They have access to job opportunities across a variety of settings, such as family service agencies, social service agencies, employee assistance programs, health care organizations, public welfare agencies, and probation departments.
Contrary to popular belief, a community is not restricted by borders or city lines, allowing community social workers to work with individuals belonging to various socio-economic classes, cultures, religions, and ages. They may travel abroad to work with poverty-stricken populations across developing countries or work within their local communities. Community social workers can work alongside existing nonprofit organizations, concerned citizens, advocacy groups, or government agencies. They may fight against a toxic landfill placement, apply for grants, take part in establishing a charter school, or create programs benefiting a local community.
Child, family, and school social workers can be involved with supporting children who have been abused, have serious mental or physical illnesses, are being targeted by bullies, are exhibiting behavioral problems, or are experiencing significant stress. These professionals assist parents in securing resources for their children, conduct trainings, serve on interdisciplinary teams, testify in court, address teenage pregnancy and school truancy, and provide therapy. Work settings can include government agencies, schools, residential care facilities, social service agencies, or adoption agencies.
With a master’s in social work, professionals specializing in mental health and substance abuse can provide psychosocial assessments, diagnose clinical disorders, develop individualized goals and plans, supplement with outside resources, and conduct ongoing counseling. They can provide therapy on a one-on-one basis or in group settings, including couples and family counseling. This specialization requires a commitment to work with clients over a long period of time, critical thinking skills, and the ability to form close relationships with clients while maintaining a professional distance. Social workers in this specialization can provide counseling for issues such as suicidal thoughts, incarceration, substance abuse, and running away or other behavioral problems. They may obtain employment in nonprofit organizations as well as private practice settings.
Disaster, Crisis, and Intervention
An online doctor of social work (DSW) degree with a disaster, crisis, and intervention specialization gives you the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills and learn strategies for addressing societal challenges, disasters, and crises. Whether it’s a gunman opening fire on shoppers in a mall or a Category 5 hurricane heading straight for a coastal city, professionals with DSW degrees are on the front lines of implementing action plans to help residents cope with the resulting trauma. Doctoral students develop action-driven research projects to address real-world problems in their own communities, and interact with faculty and fellow students through in-person residencies. This specialization prepares you for top management positions such as agency or organizational leader, program director, emergency management director, and supervisor in social work organizations.
Career Opportunities for Social worker
Professional social work positions in hospitals, community health care, child protection, justice, community development, local government, government policy, social research, advocacy and many more.