Social Work B.S.W.
Jayashree Nimmagadda
Interim Dean, School of Social Work
B.S.W. Program Chair: Wendy Becker
B.S.W. Program Faculty: Associate Professors Becker, Battle, Diem; Assistant Professors Capece, Donaldson, Diem, Miller, Paliotta Mueller, Watson.
The B.S.W. program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.
Students must consult with their assigned academic advisor before they will be able to register for courses.
The social work major prepares students for bachelors-level social work practice. Students will graduate having completed sixteen months of internship in an agency recruited and approved by the faculty and staff and having learned the knowledge, values, and skills necessary for employment or graduate school. Students will focus on direct services and advocacy with a variety of populations including the elderly, children and families, people with developmental disabilities, people with mental illness and/or substance use challenges, survivors of trauma, people who are experiencing poverty or homelessness, and people in marginalized groups in our society based on their race, class, gender identity, nationality, religion, and sexual orientation.
This is the largest social work program in the state, large enough to ensure that the resources are there to support your success and small enough to ensure that you will know each of the faculty and each of the students in your graduating class.
College is not without its stress and pressure, and so we make an effort to create supports that encourage our students to describe the program as feeling “like a family.” We have high expectations and we are prepared to provide the support necessary to help you meet them.
Admission Requirements for the B.S.W. Program
- Enrollment in SWRK 326.
- Evidence of a combination of personal qualities considered essential to professional social work practice. Students must be capable of working with clients and communities with populations different from themselves, with people of different faiths, sexual orientations, and cultural norms. We seek students who can demonstrate responsiveness and sensitivity in relationships, commitment to improving social conditions, and the ability to function both independently and collectively with others.
- A completed application during the first semester of the junior year, while enrolled in SWRK 326.
- A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 on a 4.00 scale in undergraduate course work, and a minimum GPA of 2.67 in 300-level social work courses.
Students will apply with support from their instructor while enrolled in SWRK 326. Applications and support materials will be distributed during the meetings for this course. All students planning to proceed in the social work major and planning to enter the internship during the spring semester must complete an application. The application is a noncompetitive process. Students are not competing against other students for a limited number of seats. Rather, students are asked to demonstrate that they meet the selection criteria listed above. Additional information and materials are available from the chair of the department.
Admission Requirements for the 5 year B.S.W./M.S.W. Admission
Undergraduate students matriculated at Rhode Island College can apply for conditional admission to the Master’s in Social Work program after completing at least 65 credits, and admitted to the B.S.W. program. If conditionally admitted to the M.S.W. program, students will be required to take two 400 level practice courses in their senior year. In addition, conditionally admitted students are required to earn at least a C in each social work course and maintain an overall G.P.A. of 3.0. Students applying for the 5 year program must also submit an additional reference from a B.S.W. faculty member.
Retention Requirements
- A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 on a 4.00 scale in undergraduate course work, and a minimum GPA of 2.67 in all 300-level social work courses. No student will be allowed to enter a subsequent semester if their GPA falls below these standards.
- Students who receive a grade of C- or below in any required social work course must retake that course and receive at least a grade of C in order to proceed in the major. Students who receive a C- or below twice in the same course will be dismissed from the major. For additional information, see the School of Social Work B.S.W. Academic Manual available at the B.S.W. Office or on the School of Social Work Web site: www.ric.edu/socialwork/Pages/Bachelor-of-Social-Work-Program.aspx.
- Students who receive an F in any required social work course or an initial grade of C- or below in any two required social work courses will be dismissed from the major.
- Student performance and behavior must be in conformity with the school’s policy on professional behavior and the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics. The policy is available in the B.S.W. Academic Manual and the B.S.W. Field Manual (www.ric.edu/socialwork/Pages/Field-Education.aspx). The Code of Ethics is also discussed in courses. A copy of the B.S.W. Academic Standing Policy, including appeal procedures, is made available to students in the B.S.W. Academic Manual and the B.S.W. Field Manual.
Fieldwork
Social work majors enroll in fieldwork in both the junior and senior years. The first B.S.W. fieldwork experience takes place during the spring semester of the junior year. In the senior year, students may fulfill their 448-hour field requirement in one of the following ways:
- Students may take SWRK 436 in the fall semester (minimum of 4 credit hours) and SWRK 437 in the spring semester (minimum of 4 credit hours). Credits are calculated on the basis of 4 hours per week for each credit hour; hence, students are in the field for 16 hours per week over the two semesters (total 448 hours).
- Students may take the “extended field option”: SWRK 445 in the summer (120 hours of fieldwork plus 16 hours of seminar, for 3 credit hours), SWRK 446 in the fall semester (180 hours of fieldwork at 12 hours per week for 3 credit hours), and SWRK 447 in the spring semester (180 hours of fieldwork at 12 hours per week for 3 credit hours).
- Students may take the “extended field option”: SWRK 445, SWRK 446, and SWRK 447 at the discretion of the department.
Honors
A Departmental Honors program is offered in social work. See Honors and Awards.
Course Requirements
First through Third Semesters
| POL 202 | American Government | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| PSYC 215 | Social Psychology | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| PSYC 230 | Human Development | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| SWRK 200 | Introduction to Social Work | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| SWRK 306 | Biopsychosocial Perspectives for Social Workers | 2 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| | ONE COURSE in sociology at the 200-level | 4 | |
Third through Fifth Semesters
| SWRK 324 | Diversity and Oppression I | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| SWRK 325 | Diversity and Oppression II | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
Fifth Semester
| SWRK 326 | Generalist Social Work Practice | 4 | Fall, Spring. |
Fifth or Sixth Semester
| SWRK 301 | Policy Analysis and Practice | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| SWRK 302 | Social Work Research Methods I | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
Sixth Semester
| SWRK 303 | Social Work Research Methods II | 4 | Fall, Spring, Summer. |
| SWRK 327 | Group and Community Practice | 4 | Spring, Summer. |
| SWRK 338 | Introduction to Fieldwork | 2 | Spring, Summer. |
Summer Semester
| SWRK 445 | Summer Extended Fieldwork | 4 | Summer. |
Seventh Semester
Eighth Semester
| SWRK 437 | Advanced Fieldwork | 4-7 | Spring. |
| | -Or- | | |
| SWRK 447 | Spring Extended Fieldwork | 3 | Spring. |
| | | | |
| SWRK 464 | Senior Seminar in Social Work | 3 | Spring. |
| Total Credit Hours: | 68-80 | |
Note: SWRK 303: Fulfills the Advanced Quantitative Scientific Reasoning category of General Education and other required courses will satisfy the Social and Behavioral Sciences distribution.
5 year B.S.W.\M.S.W. Students
Students in the 5 year B.S.W.\M.S.W. program follow the course sequence below during their seventh and eighth semesters.
Seventh Semester
Eighth Semester
| SWRK 433/SWRK 533 | Generalist Foundation and Skills: Direct Practice II | 3 | Spring. |
| | | | |
| SWRK 437 | Advanced Fieldwork | 4-7 | Spring. |
| | -Or- | | |
| SWRK 447 | Spring Extended Fieldwork | 3 | Spring. |
| | | | |
| SWRK 464 | Senior Seminar in Social Work | 3 | Spring. |
| Total Credit Hours: | 74-86 | |