Master of Social Work

MSW Program Overview

(Accredited by the Council on Social Work Education from 2011-2018)

The M.S.W. degree is offered by the College of Arts and Humanities to prepare students for clinical practice with vulnerable children, families, and adults throughout the lifespan. Students can take additional courses that will prepare them academically for the state clinical licensure examination for social workers (LCSW).

Social Work Mission and Competencies

The mission of the Master of Social Work program is to advance social and economic justice by preparing students for competent, empowering clinical practice with vulnerable children, adults, and families from diverse backgrounds. In its efforts to enhance the dignity and rights of all people, particularly of historically oppressed populations, the MSW Program seeks to partner with diverse individuals, groups and organizations at university, local, state, national and international levels. Degree Concentration The MSW program is designed to prepare students for responsible, professional social work practice with children and families across the lifespan. Coursework prepares students to assume practice and leadership roles and responsibilities in clinical social work practice, public child and family welfare programs, the protection of abused and neglected children, home-based services, foster care, adoption, school-based services, group and residential care settings, child guidance, parent education, family courts, family violence programs, military social work, adult protective services, child and family advocacy, as well as in major social service systems that include mental health, physical health, and corrections.

MSW Application Procedure

MSW Application Procedure Applicant materials are sent to individuals requesting information regarding the MSW Program at Albany State University. Applicants must apply to both the Albany State University “Office of Recruitment, Admission and Financial Aid” and to the Department of Social Work’s Master of Social Work [MSW] Program. Two application packages, therefore, must be completed:

The “ASU Application for Admission into Graduate Studies,” and the Master of Social Work Application packet.

MSW Advanced Credit Policy

A student may be eligible to receive credit for generalist-level social work courses taken from a CSWE-accredited BSW or MSW program of social work if the following criteria are met. The following criteria must be met for advanced waiver credit to be considered:

• You must have earned a grade of “B” or better in the course (3.0 on a 4.0 scale)
• The course must have been taken in the past five years

Students are asked to attach the syllabus for each course that a waiver credit is applied for in order to determine if the course offered in the MSW program at Albany State University is comparable. Courses most frequently granted advanced or waiver credit includes generalist social work courses, including Human Behavior and the Social Environment, Social Welfare Policies and Programs, Social Work Practice, Social Work Research, and generalist-level field courses.

Application Process

A student who is applying for an advance waiver credit must complete the “MSW Advanced Credit Approval Form.” The application and supporting documents are to be sent to the MSW Program, 504 College Drive, CMH 317, Albany, GA 31705. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. The MSW Admissions Committee requires applications to be submitted with the MSW Application packet.

Albany State University will be a world-class comprehensive university and a powerful catalyst for the economic growth and development of Southwest Georgia. ASU will be recognized for its innovative and creative delivery of excellent educational programs, broad-based community engagement and public service, and creative scholarship and applied research, all of which enrich the lives of the diverse constituencies served by the University.

Albany State University, a proud member institution of the University System of Georgia, elevates its community and region by offering a broad array of graduate, baccalaureate, associate, and certificate programs at its main campuses in Albany as well as at strategically-placed branch sites and online. Committed to excellence in teaching and learning, the University prepares students to be effective contributors to a globally diverse society, where knowledge and technology create opportunities for personal and professional success. ASU respects and builds on the historical roots of its institutional predecessors with its commitment to access and a strong liberal arts heritage that respects diversity in all its forms and gives all students the foundation they need to succeed. Through creative scholarship, research, and public service, the University’s faculty, staff, students, and administrators form strategic alliances internally and externally to promote community and economic development, resulting in an improved quality of life for the citizens of southwest Georgia and beyond.