Social Work, B.A.
The social work program at Millersville University leads to a Bachelor of Arts degree in social work. Millersville’s social work baccalaureate program is professionally accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. Based on the general education curriculum, the social work curriculum is designed to prepare students for beginning professional practice in social agencies and other settings where social workers are employed. The program educates the general practitioner; therefore, it is built on basic required courses. However, it also allows students to explore areas of interest through elective courses and practicum instruction assignments.
Social Work Program Mission
The mission of the Millersville University Baccalaureate Social Work Program is to promote human and community well-being by providing a generalist social work education rooted in the values of the social work profession. This education prepares students to be competent social workers who advocate and practice with individuals, families, groups, communities, and organizations utilizing the person-in-environment framework. Our graduates will be contemporary social workers committed to social, racial, economic, and environmental justice, human rights, the elimination of poverty, and globally responsive scientific inquiry.
Social Work Program Goals
To meet the purpose of the social work profession and the mission of Millersville University and the Social Work Baccalaureate Program, faculty seek to prepare students/graduates to:
Goal 1: Promote human and community well-being
Goal 2: Advance justice and human rights
Goal 3: Think globally; act locally
The curriculum is designed to help students integrate knowledge and theories from many academic disciplines with social work concepts, values and practice skills. Courses in the social work program attempt to develop an understanding of the human condition and human diversity. The social work major needs to understand biological, psychological and sociocultural aspects of human development; characteristics of human interaction with the social environment; the role, structure and function of social welfare policies and programs; social work intervention methods; and social work research findings and methods.
In addition to theoretical instruction, students are given ample opportunity for practical experience. The experiential requirements begin in the introductory courses and carry through to formal work in advanced courses. The culmination is 400 hours of supervised practicum during the student’s final semester, wherein the student can integrate knowledge and skills in a social agency or other social service setting in the community.
A formal Professional Readiness Assessment process takes place for each student prior to placement in a social service setting for field instruction. Qualifications are based on academic performance, oral and written communication skills, and demonstrated ethical behavior, values and commitment to social work as a career. The social work faculty has the right to dismiss from the program, at any time, students found not qualified for social work practice. Overall, the purpose of the Professional Readiness process is to enhance the growth and development of students, to assist them in self-evaluation and correction, and to prepare them for practice in professional social work settings. In the event that a student’s professional performance warrants a formal review and the potential outcome of termination from the major, the College of Education and Human Services Professionalism Policy and Process will be followed.
