MSW Foundation Program
Our foundation program is for individuals whose baccalaureate degree is not in social work. At this time, we are only able to offer our foundation program online. We hope to reinstate our on-campus foundation program in the future.
The program attracts people from various backgrounds and experiences, including individuals who have worked within the field of social work and are now looking to to advance in the field as well as individuals who are wholly new to the field of social work. Some of our foundation students come into the program with degrees in related fields, such as psychology, family services, or sociology, whereas other students come into our program from completely different professions.
We realize that frequently people don't have a full understanding of what social work is, so we've provided more information below to help you decide if pursing social work is a good fit for you. More information on the program specifics can be found by following the Online Program link below.
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At the most basic level, social work involves helping people address struggles in their lives.
Social work is a vast field, which means there are numerous opportunities based on your interests or passions. Some people enter social work already drawn to a specific population or issue, whereas others develop an interest through their coursework and field experiences. Social workers can help with difficulties, transitions or struggles from birth to death and at any point in between.
Some areas of social work practice include (but are not limited to):
- Aging Services/Gerontological SW
- Children and Families
- Child Welfare
- Criminal Justice System (i.e. probation, parole, corrections, public safety, juvenile justice)
- Crisis Intervention
- Disability Advocacy & Support Services
- Domestic Violence
- Education (early childhood, K-12 schools, colleges, and universities)
- Employment/Vocational Services
- Housing Access & Services
- Human Rights
- LGBTQ+ Services
- Lobbying & Policy Advocacy
- Medical SW (including hospitals, clinics, midwifery services, etc.)
- Mental Health Treatment
- Military/Veteran Services
- Non-profit Management and Administration
- Program Evaluation
- SW Research
- Substance Use and Addictions Treatment
- Victim Support Services
Not only are social workers employed in a variety of settings, but they work at different levels of practice, including:
- Micro level (direct practice): Micro level practice involves direct interaction with clients to cope and address their problems. This is the most common type of social work practice and is offered in a variety of settings.
- Mezzo level: Mezzo level social work involves working with groups, which runs the scale from working with family units, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers frequently work across both the micro and mezzo levels within the same job.
- Macro level: Macro level social work is larger scale, and involves interventions, policy work, and advocacy at larger scale levels, including communities, states, and countries. Macro social work can include activities such as grant-writing, activism, and crafting policies or laws.
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A Master’s Degree in Social Work (MSW) is an extremely versatile degree option. An MSW offers a much broader range of job options in addition to providing therapy services. Because of that, MSWs tend to receive a higher salary compared to people in the field with an undergraduate degree.
Some people choose to get an MSW in order to be able to practice as a mental health therapist, or what is known as clinical social work. Similar disciplines (e.g. mental health counseling, marriage and family therapy, and psychology) also offer graduate programs that allow the practitioner to provide mental health therapy services. Disciplines differ in their perspective of what causes the problems that people face and how to address those issues. An MSW from UNI allows our graduates to sit for the licensure exam to become a Licensed Master's level Social Worker (LMSW).
People who obtain an MSW have the ability to practice clinical social work. Similar disciplines (e.g. mental health counseling, marriage and family therapy, and psychology) also offer graduate programs that allow the practitioner to provide mental health therapy services. Doing so requires licensure by the Iowa Board of Social Workers. See here for more information on licensure requirements. Non-clinical opportunities for MSWs include (but are not limited to) advocacy, program development and management, agency and non-profit administration, and policy makers.
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