SOCIAL WORK MAJOR
A new major in Social Work, a Bachelor of
Social Work Degree Program, and program accreditation candidacy have been
approved by Central Michigan University, the State of Michigan, and the Council
on Social Work Education and is being implemented. This web site is being
re-designed to detail these program changes.
The major in Social Work consists of 47 hours of course work. As a prerequisite to signing a major in Social Work, a student must have completed 100 hours of volunteer or paid experience in a social work setting approved by the social work advisor, and must provide a satisfactory letter of reference from his/her supervisor. Completion of SWK 300, Crisis Intervention Experience, with a reference letter from the agency, satisfies this requirement.
A major in social work consists of the following:
Social Work (SWK)
Sociology (SOC)
Required Courses (hours)
While not yet an accredited program, as of
2/12/01, our redesigned major in Social Work (previously a concentration within
Sociology) has been accepted into candidacy
for accreditation by the Council on Social Work Education. Questions occasionally arise regarding the consequences
of graduating from a non-accredited social work program. The issues to consider are:
Employment: Most potential employers require, at the baccalaureate level,
completion of a major in social work, sociology, psychology, or related field. Graduation
from an accredited social work program is usually not specified.
In Michigan, Community Mental Health and agencies receiving funding from Medicare require
state certification for employment. State certification standards can be met by either (1)
graduating from an accredited social work program, or (2) completing a social work program
that includes 15 semester hours of social work courses and an internship of no less than
350 contact hours. CMU's Social Work Concentration meets or exceeds both of the
requirements under (2), with two semesters of internship totaling 400 hours effective with
the 1994-95 Bulletin.
Graduate School Admission: Graduate schools of social work do not require an
undergraduate degree or major in social work. Many MSW (Master's of Social Work) programs
do offer an abbreviated MSW program to students with undergraduate degrees from accredited
programs, allowing certain requirements to be waived. Requirements vary by institution,
and direct inquiry should be made to graduate programs for detailed information.
Accreditation: Once full accreditation has been achieved, those in
the program and meeting all of the criteria and requirements for graduation with
the B.S.W. and Social Work major will be identified as having an accredited
degree.
Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
Anspach Hall 144
Central Michigan University
Mt. Pleasant, Michigan 48859
(517) 774-3160
(517) 774-3241
Fax: (517) 774-1844
CMU (an AA/EO institution) encourages diversity and resolves to provide
equal opportunity regardless of race, sex, disability, sexual orientation, or other
irrelevant criteria.
The information on this page is maintained by Rod
Kirk.
Other questions should be directed to: webmeister@chsbs.cmich.edu
Document Revision Date: May 21 21, 2001