Social work deals with a variety of conditions that limit people's ability to function. Professional social workers try to help individuals and groups overcome these limitations and become well-adjusted, contributing members of society.
Program Offerings at Grand Valley
The Bachelor of Social Work (B.S.W.) requires 120 semester hours of credits. The program is built on a liberal arts foundation plus 34 hours of cognate and international courses. The required courses complement 45 credit hours of professional social work courses, which emphasize CSWE core competencies and foundation practice behaviors. Topics include: social work practice, human behavior in context, values and ethics, social and economic justice, diversity, policy, research, and critical thinking.
Coursework
Coursework includes the following:
Professional development in social work
Generalist practice
Interviewing in social work
Social work field education
Human needs in complex societies
Social work research
Human behavior and the social environment
Career Options
Social workers have careers that service a wide range of needs:
Children's centers
Hospital social services
Juvenile courts
Life consultation centers
Mental health programs
Probation and parole
Protective services
Senior citizen programs
Why Study Social Work at Grand Valley?
The social work program provides a foundation curriculum in a high-quality learning environment that prepares students for success in the community social work concentration. Graduates:
Exhibit a commitment to enhancing social justice, promoting human rights, ensuring the dignity and worth of all individuals, practicing with integrity, upholding ethics, incorporating diversity into their practice, and advancing the profession's reputation and knowledge base.
Possess the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to create and/or identify and acquire new information about professional social work practice as such information becomes available throughout their careers.
Are competent users of technologies and proficient consumers of training opportunities that support their lifelong professional development.
The School of Social Work at Grand Valley State University is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.