About the Social Work Program

The Department of Social Work at the UW-Whitewater offers a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work (BSW).The social work program is professional education training program that is designed to meet the needs of our society through preparation of professionally educated social work practitioners. A social worker with baccalaureate level training is a generalist practitioner. The generalist practitioner possesses a wide range of knowledge and competencies in order to respond to a wide range of social problems. Thus the focus is not on providing specialists in any one methodology, such as casework or group work, but rather on developing a social worker who responds on the basis of the problem to be solved.

Accreditation

The Social Work Department is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). The College of Letters and Sciences is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools

Mission Statement of the Social Work Department

The Baccalaureate Social Work Program at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater seeks to prepare social work students to obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for beginning generalist social work practice. This training includes preparing students be competent and effective professionals in urban and rural areas. The program has an emphasis on the strengths of client systems.  Recognizing that people are an integral part of their environment, the program utilizes an ecological model of human behavior.  Another emphasis of the program is on preparing social work professionals who are committed to services to the poor and oppressed, and who are committed to promoting social and economic justice for populations at risk. The social work program also has a commitment to developing social work knowledge and providing leadership in the development of social delivery systems.

Specified Objectives of Program

Graduates of the baccalaureate social work program will be able to:

• Apply critical thinking skills within the context of professional social work practice.
• Practice within the values and ethics of the social work profession and with an understanding of and respect for the positive value of diversity.
• Demonstrate the professional use of self.
• Understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination and the strategies of change that advance social and economic justice.
• Understand the history of the social work profession and its current structures and issues.
• Apply the knowledge and skills of generalist social work to practice with systems of all sizes.
• Apply knowledge of biopsychosocial variables that affect individual development and behavior, and use theoretical frameworks to understand the interactions among individuals and between individuals and social systems (i.e., families, groups, organizations, and communities).
• Analyze the impacts of social policies on client systems, workers, and agencies.
• Evaluate research studies and apply findings to practice. And, under supervision, evaluate their practice interventions and those of other relevant systems.
• Use communication skills differentially with a variety of client populations, colleagues, and members of the community.
• Use supervision appropriate to generalist practice.
• Function within the structure of organizations and service delivery systems, and under supervision, seek necessary organizational change.
• Demonstrate effective writing skills for social work practice.

Social Work Student Handbook

Procedures and matters relevant to current, future, and potential Social Work students can be found in the Social Work Student Handbook. Also included in the handbook is information pertaining to course requirements, sequencing of courses, expectations, requirements, and social work certification. Download a PDF copy of the manual here.