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Master of Social Work
The Master of Social Work (MSW) program at Texas A&M University-Texarkana is designed to educate and prepare students for rewarding careers as generalist social work practitioners and therapists who provide direct intervention at the individual, group, community, and organizational levels. Graduates will be able to become independently licensed as Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW), qualifying them for a wide range of employment opportunities working with a variety of populations (children, adolescents, adults, elderly, people with disabilities, etc.).
The MSW program includes a specialization in mental health, but will also include emphases in trauma-informed care and substance abuse. Program electives will prepare students to work in a variety of settings which are projected to be significant areas of growth within the social work field over the next decade and beyond as the population ages and the need for medical and social services increases. The MSW will include 60 semester credit hours.
Faculty contact: Dr. Kris Yells at kyells@tamut.edu
Admission Requirements
- Hold an earned baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university
- Have achieved a grade point average of 2.8 overall or in the last 60 hours of academic course work
- Provide three professional letters of reference from employers, professors, or a combination of both. If an applicant has been in college within the last five years, at least one letter must be from a faculty member. No personal references will be accepted. Letters must be on professional letterhead with a signature.
- Submit a resume that details work and/or volunteer experience. (While not required, paid and/or volunteer experience in the human services is highly valued and will be seriously considered in the application evaluation process.)
- Pay a non-refundable $30 application fee
- Write a clear and concise critical thinking essay. This narrative should answer the following questions:
- Describe your interest in pursuing a Master of Social Work degree at Texas A&M University-Texarkana and why it is a good fit for your educational and professional goals. Please include any relevant information from current or previous experiences (e.g. employment, volunteer, academic, and/or personal) that have influenced your decision.
- Define a social problem affecting a population of specific interest to you that you would want to work with in the future. Please examine the relevance of the problem to the field of social work, how you came to identify and understand it as a social problem, societal factors that have contributed to the problem, and specific ways that you, as a social worker, could address the problem.
- Social workers are expected to work with individuals, families, groups, and communities from diverse backgrounds in a caring and respectful fashion. Using a specific experience you’ve had with an individual or group different than you (in terms of race, socioeconomic background, gender, disability, religion, sexual orientation, culture, age, etc.), discuss what challenges and lessons you learned from this situation. How did the interaction affect your personal views about this individual/group and your overall perspective on diversity?
Accreditation
The MSW program is in candidacy status for initial accreditation from the Council on Social Work Education Commission on Accreditation. Students entering the program beginning Fall 2020, will be considered having graduated from an accredited program retroactively once the program receives full accreditation.
Degree Requirements
Students should refer to their DegreeWorks degree audit in their Web for Students account for more information regarding their degree requirements.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| SOCW 501 | Practice I: Social Work with Individuals | 3 |
| SOCW 510 | Human Behavior and the Social Environment | 3 |
| SOCW 520 | Social Welfare Policy | 3 |
| SOCW 530 | Diversity and Social Justice | 3 |
| SOCW 551 | Generalist Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 502 | Practice II: Social Work with Families and Groups | 3 |
| SOCW 540 | Research Methods in Social Work | 3 |
| SOCW 552 | Generalist Field Practicum II | 4 |
| SOCW 521 | Practice III: Advanced Macro Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 541 | Practice and Program Evaluation | 3 |
| SOCW 560 | Trauma-Informed Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 553 | Specialization Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 562 | Mental Health Assessment and Diagnosis | 3 |
| SOCW 563 | Advanced Clinical Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 564 | Clinical Issues in Addiction | 3 |
| SOCW 554 | Specialization Field Practicum II | 4 |
| SOCW 500 | Writing, Documentation, and Interviewing Skills in Social Work | 3 |
| Social Work Elective-select 5 semester credit hours from: | 5 | |
| Crisis Intervention | ||
| Gerontology | ||
| Social Work Practice with Children and Adolescents | ||
| Spirituality in Social Work | ||
| Special Topics in Social Work | ||
| Child Welfare | ||
| Counseling Theories | ||
| Advanced Psychological Statistics | ||
| Marriage and Family Therapy | ||
| Psychopharmacology for Counselors | ||
| Total hours for Degree | 60 | |
2 Year Plan - Full Time
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
First Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 501 | Practice I: Social Work with Individuals | 3 |
| SOCW 510 | Human Behavior and the Social Environment | 3 |
| SOCW 520 | Social Welfare Policy | 3 |
| SOCW 530 | Diversity and Social Justice | 3 |
| SOCW 551 | Generalist Field Practicum I | 4 |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 16 | |
First Year-Spring | ||
| SOCW 502 | Practice II: Social Work with Families and Groups | 3 |
| SOCW 540 | Research Methods in Social Work | 3 |
| SOCW 500 | Writing, Documentation, and Interviewing Skills in Social Work | 3 |
| SOCW 552 | Generalist Field Practicum II | 4 |
| SOCW 562 | Mental Health Assessment and Diagnosis | 3 |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 16 | |
Second Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 521 | Practice III: Advanced Macro Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 553 | Specialization Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 560 | Trauma-Informed Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 563 | Advanced Clinical Practice | 3 |
| Social Work Elective | 3 | |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 16 | |
Second Year-Spring | ||
| SOCW 541 | Practice and Program Evaluation | 3 |
| SOCW 554 | Specialization Field Practicum II | 4 |
| SOCW 564 | Clinical Issues in Addiction | 3 |
| Social Work Elective | 3 | |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 13 | |
| Total Semester Credit Hours Required for Degree | 60 | |
2 Year Plan - Part Time
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
First Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 501 | Practice I: Social Work with Individuals | 3 |
| SOCW 510 | Human Behavior and the Social Environment | 3 |
| SOCW 520 | Social Welfare Policy | 3 |
| SOCW 530 | Diversity and Social Justice | 3 |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
First Year-Spring | ||
| SOCW 502 | Practice II: Social Work with Families and Groups | 3 |
| SOCW 540 | Research Methods in Social Work | 3 |
| SOCW 500 | Writing, Documentation, and Interviewing Skills in Social Work | 3 |
| SOCW 562 | Mental Health Assessment and Diagnosis | 3 |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
First Year-Summer | ||
| SOCW 551 | Generalist Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 552 | Generalist Field Practicum II | 4 |
| Summer Total Semester Credit Hours | 8 | |
Second Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 521 | Practice III: Advanced Macro Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 560 | Trauma-Informed Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 563 | Advanced Clinical Practice | 3 |
| Social Work Elective | 3 | |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
Second Year-Spring | ||
| SOCW 541 | Practice and Program Evaluation | 3 |
| SOCW 564 | Clinical Issues in Addiction | 3 |
| Social Work Elective | 3 | |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 9 | |
Second Year-Summer | ||
| SOCW 553 | Specialization Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 554 | Specialization Field Practicum II | 4 |
| Summer Total Semester Credit Hours | 8 | |
| Total Semester Credit Hours Required for Degree | 60 | |
4 Year Plan
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
First Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 510 | Human Behavior and the Social Environment | 3 |
| SOCW 530 | Diversity and Social Justice | 3 |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
First Year-Spring | ||
| SOCW 540 | Research Methods in Social Work | 3 |
| SOCW 500 | Writing, Documentation, and Interviewing Skills in Social Work | 3 |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
Second Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 501 | Practice I: Social Work with Individuals | 3 |
| SOCW 520 | Social Welfare Policy | 3 |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
Second Year-Spring | ||
| SOCW 502 | Practice II: Social Work with Families and Groups | 3 |
| SOCW 562 | Mental Health Assessment and Diagnosis | 3 |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
Second Year-Summer | ||
| SOCW 551 | Generalist Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 552 | Generalist Field Practicum II | 4 |
| Summer Total Semester Credit Hours | 8 | |
Third Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 521 | Practice III: Advanced Macro Practice | 3 |
| SOCW 560 | Trauma-Informed Practice | 3 |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
Third Year- Spring | ||
| SOCW 541 | Practice and Program Evaluation | 3 |
| SOCW 564 | Clinical Issues in Addiction | 3 |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
Fourth Year-Fall | ||
| SOCW 563 | Advanced Clinical Practice | 3 |
| Social Work Elective | 3 | |
| Fall Total Semester Credit Hours | 6 | |
Fourth Year-Spring | ||
| Social Work Elective | 3 | |
| Spring Total Semester Credit Hours | 3 | |
Fourth Year-Summer | ||
| SOCW 553 | Specialization Field Practicum I | 4 |
| SOCW 554 | Specialization Field Practicum II | 4 |
| Summer Total Semester Credit Hours | 8 | |
| Total Semester Credit Hours Required for Degree | 60 | |
