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Social Work Program*

Social Work Competencies (Student Learning Outcomes)

The broad goals of the Social Work Program are to prepare students for beginning generalist social work practice and for graduate study. These goals may be expressed as follows: a.) Be competent in the knowledge base of the discipline of social work, b.) Demonstrate competency in skills for beginning social work practice, c.) Be prepared for beginning level social work practice or graduate studies in social work, d.) Demonstrate commitment to the basic values and ethics that shape social work practice from a Christian perspective, e.) Recognize and appreciate cultural and social diversity including patterns and consequences of discrimination and oppression.

Specifically, the program aims for each graduate to fulfill each of the following core competencies and practice behaviors based on the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) 2015 Educational Policies and Accreditation Standards (EPAS).

  1. Students will demonstrate ethical and professional behavior.
  2. Students will engage in diversity and difference in practice.
  3. Students will advance human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice.
  4. Students will engage in practice-informed research and research-informed practice.
  5. Students will engage in policy practice.
  6. Students will engage with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
  7. Students will assess individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
  8. Students will intervene with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
  9. Students will evaluate practice with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.

Admission Requirements

Requirements for formal admission to the social work program are as follows:

  1. Identified potential and suitability for the social work profession as determined by the social work faculty, references, and interview conversation. Indicators for suitability are: academic performance including consistent class attendance and meeting deadlines, professional skills, relationship skills including the ability to non-judgmentally relate to people with complex challenges (ability to relate well to faculty and other students is taken into consideration for this), emotional regulation including the ability to progress toward the growth necessary for self-awareness in social work practice, and values consistent with the standards of the Social Work Program and the University.
  2. Successful completion of 30 semester hours including SWK 1200, PSY 2175, SWK 2300, SOC 2010, PSY 2010, (each with a C- or better). If a student has not completed all courses at the time of application, they can still apply and then full admission will be considered upon completion of the courses.
  3. A minimum overall GPA of 2.2.
  4. Agreement to abide by the Social Work Program policies as described in the social work student handbook and the NASW Code of Ethics.
  5. Interview by a minimum of two social work faculty.
  6. Be in “good standing” with the University as determined by the Center for Student Development.

Applying for the Social Work Program

The Program Director’s office will send out an email each spring inviting those students who have completed 30 semester hours including SWK 1200, PSY 2175, SWK 2300, SOC 2010, and PSY 2010 (each with a C- or better) to apply for acceptance into the Social Work Program (this typically happens during the student’s sophomore or junior year). The admission process involves an application and interview. Students can access their application and forms in the Appendices of the Social Work Program Student Handbook (which students can access on the TNU Social Work webpage).

Students must complete the application form, write an essay, gather all required documents, and solicit two references to complete a Reference Form. All forms must be submitted to the Program Director no less than 72 hours before the student’s program admission interview. Interviews with the Social Work Program faculty will be conducted in person and will be scheduled during the spring semester prior to spring advising.

During the interviews, students share with the Social Work Program faculty about their desire to be a social work major, strengths and personality, growth areas, social work interests, and future career goals. The faculty provide immediate feedback on areas of strength and improvement along with suggestions for continued growth.

Conditional Acceptance

If a student is determined to have fallen below any of the criteria established for granting final acceptance into the program, a contingency plan will be established with the student. The plan can include:

  1. Completing additional coursework if the GPA is too low.
  2. Completing counseling to resolve personal issues that are interfering with the ability to effectively communicate and relate interpersonally with others.
  3. Additional items based on student’s needs.
  4. Completing required courses for admission.

After the interview, the Program Director and the Field Director will meet together to discuss the interview, review the admission materials, discuss observations and recommendations, and make a decision regarding admission. Students will then be informed in writing, through campus mail or U.S. mail, of one of the following:

  1. Full admission to the BSSW major
  2. Provisional admission with the specific conditions identified in the letter to the student. Progress will be reviewed by the Program Director each semester until full admission is achieved.  Students cannot be admitted to pursue Senior Field Practicum until full admission is achieved.
  3. Denial of admission with specific reason identified in a letter to the student as per BSSW academic admission criteria.

If students are not satisfied with their denial into the major, they may appeal the decision (by email, phone, campus mail, or U.S. mail) within two weeks of receipt of notification of their denial by requesting a meeting with the BSSW Director. The reason for the appeal must be specified clearly in a typewritten letter submitted by email, campus mail, U.S. mail, or given to the Program Director in person at the meeting. The meeting time will be established, ideally within 2 weeks of the request for meeting. The Program Director will make a decision and submit the decision to the student within two weeks after their meeting. After meeting with the Program Director and receiving notification of the Program Director’s decision, if the student is still not satisfied with the decision, then the student can appeal (within two weeks of receiving the Program Director’s decision) in writing by email, campus mail, or U.S. mail to the Chair of the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, clearly stating their reasons for the appeal. The Chair will respond within two weeks of the appeal letter and the Chair’s decision is final. 

Continuance in the Social Work Program is not guaranteed. Students must maintain an acceptable level of performance according to community, academic, and professional social work standards. Reviews of student performance are held prior to Senior Field Practicum and prior to graduation, or other times as required by circumstances. Probationary status or dismissal may be assigned to a student not meeting program criteria.

Termination from the  Social Work major

Because the students are working toward a professional generalist degree in social work, students’ academic progress and professional development is monitored during advising of each semester. Social work faculty and the Registrar notify the BSSW Director of their academic and professionalism concerns about students. The following are academic and non-academic concerns which could result in eventual dismissal from the BSSW major and students may be considered for termination from the Social Work Program if they:

  1. Have an overall grade point average below 2.2. They must have no less than a C- in any course required for the social work major.
  2. Fail to maintain high standards of professional conduct as explained in the program handbook and admission criteria. This includes poor class attendance, tardiness to class, and inappropriate class behavior.
  3. Violate the NASW Code of Ethics.
  4. Exhibit emotional instability and/or cannot manage personal challenges, which significantly impede successful completion of program objectives and learning goals.
  5. Demonstrate academic dishonesty.
  6. Display inadequate interpersonal relationship skills and boundaries needed for a helping profession.
  7. Fail to maintain status of “good standing” with the University.

No student will be denied the opportunity to major in social work without efforts first being made to assist the student toward their professional goal, however, the social work profession is not appropriate for everyone who wants to pursue it, and the program has an obligation to monitor its students’ readiness for the field.

The BSSW Program uses the following procedure for responding to academic and non-academic concerns:

  1. Concern with any of the criteria listed above will be a signal to the student’s advisor that the student is in need of assistance. The advisor will meet with the student to discuss the concern.
  2. If conditions do not improve after a specified and agreed upon period of time, two social work faculty members will meet with the student to discuss the concerns again and establish a remedial plan. The remedial plan must clearly specify a beginning and ending time for the needed changes to take place.
  3. After the specified time, if the remedial plan has not worked, upon discussion with the social work faculty member working with the student, the BSSW Director may approve a recommendation to place the student on probation with specific areas needing improvement identified to the student by the social work faculty in writing. Beginning and ending probationary times will be clearly specified.
  4. If a student does not agree this course of action, they will need to follow the grievance procedures for “Academic Grievance Policy for Classes in Process” on p. 12 of Student Handbook. Within 15 days of being given the remedial plan/probationary terms, the student should appeal to the Social Work Program’s Department Chair in writing requesting a review of the Program Director's decision.
  5. Students failing to make adequate progress will be notified by the social work faculty that they either will not be accepted into the major or their former acceptance has been denied and they are terminated from the Program.

A student terminated from the BSSW Program can reapply for admission to the program following two semesters of withdrawal. Re-admittance can be approved if the student can demonstrate that issues that resulted in their dismissal have been resolved. The BSSW Director has overall responsibility for insuring this policy is enacted. The student will submit to the BSSW Director a newly completed application and a written request to be admitted to the Social Work Program. The BSSW Director will notify the student of their acceptance or denial of readmission into the Program within two weeks of the student’s written request. The written request must be typed and a hard copy submitted to the Social Work Program Director.

Students who are not in agreement with the program’s re-admittance denial decision may appeal the decision by requesting a meeting with the BSSW Director. During the face-to-face meeting, the student will be invited to verbalize the reasons why they should be readmitted to the Social Work Program and why they disagree with the BSSW Director’s denial. The student may then prepare a typed, hard copy of their appeal, which should be submitted within two weeks of the meeting with the director to the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. The Dean must respond to the student’s appeal within two weeks of receiving a typed, hard copy of the appeal. The appeal must clearly state why they believe they should be readmitted to the Social Work Program and why they feel the refusal was not justified. The decision of the Dean is final. Dismissal from the major does not equate with dismissal from the University.

Transfer Credits

Students who wish to transfer credits from other social work programs must meet the following criteria:

  1. Transfer credits from a CSWE accredited program or, if from an unaccredited program, that student will be asked to present comprehensive course syllabi to his/her social work academic advisor. The advisor will initially determine if the course meets the criteria for a required course in Trevecca’s program based on whether it addresses the same competencies and practice behaviors.  If the desired transfer course competencies and practice behaviors are deemed comparable, the student must complete the necessary course substitution forms and deliver them to the BSSW Program Director to be sent to Academic records. It is the student’s responsibility to complete the transfer credit discernment process. Note: Senior Field Practicum and Senior Seminar credits cannot be transferred into the Trevecca Program and must both be taken at Trevecca through the Social Work Program. 
  2. Have the approval of the Social Work Program Director.
  3. Meet the transfer admission requirements of Trevecca.

Note

*The Social Work Program at Trevecca Nazarene University is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE).

* Students can access the full Social Work Program Student Handbook on the Trevecca Nazarene University Social Work web page under the references tab.