M.S.W. - Master of Social Work

The MSW provides the opportunity to serve others beyond the BSW level. All social workers are passionate with regard to social justice. With the MSW degree, social workers can carry that passion to the classroom through teaching, as well as, positions in school social work, the mental health community, and positions with the criminal justice field.

Since 1985 the Bachelor of Social Work Program has been fully committed to the essential beliefs and values representative of Limestone University as a liberal arts institution. This heritage is the foundation for the Master of Social Work (MSW) degree program at Limestone University. This program is accredited with the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). The MSW program will have as a specialization, Advanced Generalist Practice in Mental Health. Students are required to develop competency in areas specific to the nine core competencies cited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Students are expected to excel in written and oral presentations, to demonstrate competency in the development of professional and ethical practice, to engage in effective practice with differences and diversity, and to promote social and economic justice through client advocacy. Further, the program’s mission is to prepare students who can demonstrate, through practice, knowledge of the professional self, appropriate social work values, ethics, and interpersonal skills to improve quality of life and affect social change. These practice skills and competencies will be applied especially in practice with those members of society identified as marginalized, at risk, or forgotten. Lastly, the program promotes and supports the organizational belief and value of intellectual maturity, respect for the individual’s culture and professional self-awareness.

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THE GOALS OF THE SOCIAL WORK PROGRAM ARE:

1. To prepare students with a (BSW) Degree in Social Work from a CSWE accredited college or university program, for employment as an advanced generalist social worker. The mission of the MSW Program is to educate students to become competent advanced practice social workers. Further, to train students to utilize critical thinking skills to assess the influence of multiple and interlocking personal, structural, and societal systems of power on marginalized populations while in the process of treatment planning. The program incorporates the use of advanced social work theories and methodologies for culturally relevant assessment, intervention, and evaluation at multiple levels of complexity. Theories are examined across these systems and tested in field placement in order to promote human and social wellbeing. The use of an empowerment practice affirms the strengths and capabilities of people, values human diversity, and promotes social justice.

2. To provide access to graduate-level social work education to diverse individuals and groups of students. Especially for those who for economic, social, or geographical reasons would not be able to pursue a social work education elsewhere and through this process promote cultural diversity.

3. To prepare students who are aware of their responsibility to continue their professional growth and development by providing up-to-date content about social work practice with client systems of various sizes and types. The program seeks to provide the most current content regarding the social contexts of practice, the changing nature of those contexts, the behavior of organizations, and the dynamics of change at all environmental levels.

4. To integrate throughout the curriculum the values and ethics that guide professional social workers in their practice, with special emphasis on social and economic justice. Further, the program employs a global overview of the use of best practices in various practice environments.

Related Occupations

• Social Services 
• Health Care 
• Mental  Health 
• Criminal Justice 
• Psychology 
• School Social Work 

Fast Facts

• Social Work in general is a growing field with the MSW as the Terminal Degree.
• The degree opens a world of career options with higher pay and benefits.
• Specialized areas of study in Mental Health
• If you already have a Bachelor of Social Work degree from a CSWE Accredited college or university, you are eligible for advanced standing (fast track, twelve months) for the MSW.
• If you do not have a Bachelor of Social Work degree, you will be able to obtain your MSW as a Generalist in under 2 years full-time.

Related Faculty

Jackie Puckett

Associate Professor of Social Work|Director of MSW|Program Coordinator of M.S.W.

jpuckett@limestone.edu

8644884585

Kertrina Graham

Associate Professor of Social Work/MSW Field Director

kgraham@limestone.edu

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Ronald Dickerson

Associate Professor of Social Work

rdickerson@limestone.edu

8644884026

Zakevia Lewis-Kendrick

Assistant Professor of Social Work

zlewis@limestone.edu

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Jessica Houston

Assistant Professor of Social Work

jmhouston@limestone.edu