Social Work (Bachelor of Social Work, B.S.W.)

The Social Work Program's Mission Statement

The mission of the MWSU Social Work Program is to prepare undergraduate students for ethical and effective generalist social work practice with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities in Northwest Missouri and surrounding areas. Social work graduates will value human dignity, social and economic justice, and human and cultural diversity. They will competently serve individuals from diverse backgrounds including persons who are poor, vulnerable, and oppressed, and living in rural areas. They will work to reduce poverty, oppression, and discrimination by making government and social service agencies more just and responsive to consumer needs. In addition to preparing competent social workers, MWSU's Social Work Program is dedicated to offering its professional expertise and academic resources to support community efforts to enhance human well-being.

General Studies
Students must complete General Studies courses42-47
Major Requirements
SOC 230Social Problems3
SWK 250Introduction to Social Work4
SWK 320Philosophy and Policy in Social Services I3
SWK 330Human Behavior and the Social Environment I3
SWK 340Human Behavior and the Social Environment II3
SWK 350Social Work Practice I4
SWK 360Social Work Practice II3
SWK 415Social Work Practice III4
SWK 420Philosophy and Policy in Social Services II3
SWK 480Practicum in Social Work10
SWK 485Social Work Practicum Seminar2
Applied Learning Research Requirement
GBA 210Business Statistics I3
or MAT 111 Introductory Statistics
or MAT 111E Introductory Statistics
or NUR 314 Quantitative Analysis for Health Care Research
or PSY 300 Introductory Psychological Statistics
SOC 460Methods of Social Research3
or LAW 325 Understanding Research in Criminal Justice
SWK 470Program Evaluation3
Diversity Requirement
SOC 400Racial and Ethnic Relations3
Select three credit hours from the following:3
EDU 308
Multicultural Education
PED 222
Human Sexuality
PSC 317
Gender and Politics
PSY 222
Psychology of Gender
REL 250
Religions of East Asia and Oceania
REL 251
Religions of the West
REL 252
Religions of South Asia and Africa
SOC 325
World of Islam: People, Cultures & Societies
SOC 330
The Family
Restricted Electives
Select nine credit hours from the following:9
LAT 335
Interpersonal Conflict Resolution
SWK 260
Introduction to Aging Studies
SWK 280
Mental Health and Social Work
SWK 270
Selected Topics in Social Work
SWK 325
Family and Child Welfare
SWK 345
Substance Use and Disorders
SWK 365
Death And Dying
SWK 425
Bridge to Practicum
SWK 450
Independent Research/Project
SWK 465
Advanced Research Project

NOTE: Students are expected to meet the professional and academic standards of conduct.

Program Graduation Requirements 

  1. Earn a grade of C or higher in all SWK prefix coursework in the major.
  2. Earn an overall GPA of at least 2.5 and a major GPA of at least 2.0.

University Graduation Requirements 

  1. Earn a minimum of 120 credit hours (100 level and higher, maximum of 6 CED credit hours applicable).
  2. Earn a minimum of 30 credit hours in upper-division courses.  Lower-division transfer courses accepted as meeting upper-division departmental course requirements cannot be used to fulfill this requirement.
  3. Earn 30 of the last 45 credit hours at MWSU in institutional coursework (exclusive of credit by examination).
  4. Participate in required departmental and campus wide assessments. 
  5. Fulfill the Missouri Constitution requirement.
  6. Successfully pass the Missouri Higher Education Civics Achievement exam.