Social Work

Major and Minor Requirments

The undergraduate major in social work prepares students for beginning professional social work practice and is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.

Social Work Major
The social work major consists of ten core courses: Introduction to Social Work 200; History of Social Welfare Policy and Programs 210; Human Behavior in the Social Environment 240; Social Welfare Research 300; Social Welfare Policy Analysis 310; Social Work Practice I 320; Social Work Practice II 330; Social Work Practice III 420; Integrative Seminar in Social Work 430; and Field Placement in Social Work 461 and 462. In addition, four supporting courses are required: SOCI 141, PSYC 150, SOCS 233, ECON 324, or ECON 325.

Recommended:
To meet CSWE guidelines, BIOL 260 Human Anatomy or PSYC 310 Introduction to Behavioral Neuroscience can fulfill Natural Science distributional requirements. CSWE further recommends POLS 240 American Government to meet Social Science distribution requirements, and SOCW 220 Child Welfare.

Senior Thesis
All students will complete a senior project.

Admission to Social Work Program
Students may apply for admission after completion of SOCW 200 with a grade of "B" or better and should submit the Social Work Admission Form and three references to department chair Ruth Fangmeier. All forms are found in the Student Social Work Handbook. Students must maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 2.50 on a 4.0 scale at the time of admission and throughout their academic career. In addition, they must obtain grades no lower than "C-" in required courses for the social work major.

Students must complete a declaration of major form (from the Registrar's office) and be assigned to a social work department faculty advisor; obtain a copy of current transcript (unofficial copy is available at no charge in the Registrar's Office); complete the Writing Skills Assessment administered by the Writing Center; and schedule an admissions interview with a committee of the social work faculty.

Prior to acceptance into senior level courses, faculty will review students' evaluations and commitment to pursue Senior Field Placement. To enroll in senior classes, students must demonstrate social work skills, values, and ethics in supervisory practice and academic settings. Academic and non-academic performance requirements are defined in the Student Social Work Handbook. Non-academic standards measure a student's "likely performance as a social work generalist practitioner." Termination from the program is based on the student's failure to demonstrate professional conduct and behavior consistent with the values and ethics of the profession. However, knowledge, skill, and value expectations are all academic in a professional program.

**It is very important that all transfer students see the department chair immediately upon acceptance to Carthage.

Social Work Major Requirements
The social work major consists of 11 social work courses and 4 supporting courses:

SOCW 200Introduction to Social Work2 cr.
SOCW 210History of Social Welfare Policy and Programs2 cr.
SOCW 240Human Behavior in the Social Environment4 cr.
SOCW 300Social Welfare Research4 cr.
SOCW 310Social Welfare Policy Analysis4 cr.
SOCW 320Social Work Practice I4 cr.
SOCW 330Social Work Practice II4 cr.
SOCW 420Social Work Practice III4 cr.
SOCW 430Integrative Seminar4 cr.
SOCW 461Field Placement in Social Work4 cr.
SOCW 462Field Placement in Social Work4 cr.

Four Supporting Courses (Required)

SOCI 141Principles of Sociology4 cr.
PSYC 150Intro to Psychology4 cr.
SOCS 233Behavioral Research Statistics4 cr.

Choice of one:

ECON 324Public Finance4 cr.
ECON 325Economics of Poverty and Inequality4 cr.

Honors in the Major
Please see department chair for details. Basic requirements are listed under All-College Programs in the catalog.