Curriculum: Bachelor of Social Work

This course is designed to provide an overview of the field of substance abuse counseling and its graduate level academic trajectories (counseling, social work, psychology, etc.). Students will be oriented to the learning expectations of the program and the University consistent with UC’s baccalaureate competencies.

Through the lens of critical theory, the overarching goal of this course is to study the diversity of American families from a multigenerational developmental perspective. The family will be examined as a social system moving through time, with a focus on the challenges the family faces as they go through the family life cycle from courtship to old age. Because families are embedded within a social environment, we will explore how culture and societal forces affect the family life, and how certain policies, structures, attitudes, and behaviors marginalize and discriminate against non-traditional families. This course focuses on the ways in which the social work profession responds to contemporary families under stress, and how the values and ethics of the profession guide social work practice. In order to understand family processes that enable the family to meet the needs of its members, students will learn the importance of the person-in-environment fit, specifically examining how diversity, equity and inclusion issues impact family from a systems perspective. Students will learn about the major theoretical models that help us understand how family’s function such as systems, role, feminist, intergenerational, social learning, conflict, and ecological theories.

This is the first course of a two-semester sequence required of all social work majors. Its biopsychosocial systems approach focuses on the life stages of infancy, childhood and adolescence. The course utilizes a general systems theoretical approach that incorporates concepts from both the ecosystems and family life cycle perspectives. It seeks to provide the student with a broad understanding of human behavior and developmental theories such as Erikson, Piaget, Bowlby and other psycho-social theories as well as the research evidence that supports these theories. The primary goal of this course is the enhancement of the generalist’s ability to apply these theoretical frameworks for direct practice, and to critically analyze policies and programs that affect both individual and family development.

This course is the first in a series designed to prepare students for entry-level professional social work practice. In this course, a conceptual framework for practice at multiple levels of the client system is introduced. The framework uses ecological and systems theory to focus on the person-in-environment and a perspective to understand human development, behavior and needs. The framework incorporates a planned process of change through a problem-solving model that also considers the clients’ strengths, resources and goals. Students learn the steps in this framework and acquire a beginning understanding of how to adapt it to work with individuals, families, groups, communities and organizations.

Students are taught the skills needed for effective generalist practice. Basic interviewing skills are emphasized along with skills for development of a professional relationship that reflects the values of the profession and demonstrates appropriate use of self in service to clients. Emphasis is placed on communicating with clients of differing backgrounds than the students’ own. Students learn basic assessment and intervention methods for work with clients. These may include the solution-focused approach, crisis intervention, case management and brokering and advocacy.

This course builds upon the Introduction to Generalist Social Work Practice by using ecological and systems theories and the problem-solving framework for generalist social work practice with groups. The main focus of this course is on the steps of group development including planning a group, clarifying purpose, group composition, group cohesion, assessing group process and member goal achievement and termination processes. Students develop leadership skills including communication, engagement, facilitation of group process and self-awareness in the role of group leader. This course provides opportunities for students’ skill development through discussion and learner-led groups. Students learn both task and treatment modalities and the appropriate selection of specific interventions based on research evidence for effective and ethical group practice. Issues of human diversity and their impact on group development are emphasized.

This course provides students with concepts in pharmacology explored through the lens of substance use disorders. Students gain an understanding of the human nervous system, learning how it reacts to addictive drugs and the physiological reasons one becomes dependent.

This course will focus on social work with individuals who suffer from mental illness. It will include an overview of the systems of the service that are currently in place and interact with individuals and families who suffer from the effects of mental illness and mental disorders. Issues for clients and families will be explored and the history of mental illness will be examined in relation to progress that has been made in the service system. Social justice, ethical issues, and the elimination of stigma for persons with mental disorders will be focused on. Human diversity will be examined in relation to treatment issues. The course focuses on approaches that enhance problem-solving and coping strategies and are empowering and supportive to clients, both individually and in groups and families.

This course is designed to prepare students to recognize and address issues of diversity in Social Work practice through the acquisition of knowledge and skills for cultural competence. Cultural competence "refers to the process by which individuals and systems respond respectfully and effectively to people of all cultures, languages, classes, races, ethnic backgrounds, religions, and other diversity factors in a manner that recognizes, affirms, and values the worth of individuals, families, and communities..." (NASW, 2006). In addition, this course distinguishes implications for culturally competent practice with diverse groups at the micro, mezzo, and macrolevels. As students gain greater understanding of the strengths, values, family structure, and communication styles of various groups within our society, they will demonstrate the ability to establish a working relationship across lines of difference. Human suffering, oppression, and discrimination result from social and economic injustice. With this in mind, this course also includes an emphasis upon identifying and eradicating forms of institutionalized oppression and discrimination.

This course provides the student with an in-depth examination of research methodologies employed in social work practice. In particular, investigation methods used at the micro- and macro-levels of practice are explored. In addition, the influence of personal values, the organizational context and human diversity on the formulation and research implementation are a primary focus. Students utilize information technology for the purposes of (1) data collection, analysis and presentation; (2) information management; and (3) information retrieval, as they revise and carry out the research project developed in Research I.

This course builds on Introduction to Generalist Social Work Practice and Generalist Social Work Practice with Groups by applying ecological and systems theory and the problem-solving framework to generalist social work practice with macro systems. Students will examine social work theory and methods for practice with communities and organizations. Skills for analyzing organizations, identifying needs for change, and planning and implementing interventions for changing organizational policies and procedures will be emphasized. The definitions of community will be examined, and skills for assessing communities' needs as well as planning and implementing interventions to improve community well-being will be highlighted. Attention is focused on the ways issues of human diversity affect organizations and communities, and on enhancing the ways organizations can promote social and economic justice for groups experiencing oppression and discrimination. SW4050 is to be taken concurrently with SW4060, SW4070 and SW4080.

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to clinical assessment and diagnostic processes in substance abuse counseling. Students learn the key elements of the multidimensional assessment process, which include the use of various screening and assessment tools, proper interviewing techniques and impediments to the assessment process.

This course is designed to provide an overview of the field of substance abuse counseling and its graduate level academic trajectories (counseling, social work, psychology, etc.) Students will be oriented to the learning expectations of the program and the university consistent with UC's baccalaureate competencies. Students will develop a portfolio, including a career plan and personal learning contract, which will be supplemented throughout the course of the substance abuse counseling program.

This course provides students with concepts in pharmacology explored through the lens of substance use disorders. Students will gain an understanding of the human nervous system, learning how it reacts to addictive drugs and the physiological reasons one becomes dependent. In addition, students will learn about clinical trials and the research designs used to test the safety and efficacy of prescription medications. Finally, students will explore the role of drug therapies, including opioid replacement therapies, in substance abuse treatment settings.

In this course, students will review the individual, family, and societal factors that are associated with individual substance use. In addition, this course will explore the biochemical and predisposition variables of chemical dependency, as well as the psychological and behavioral effects on the dependent person and the family system. Primary therapeutic and relapse interventions are presented as well as an overview on prevention models.

This course covers the basic concepts and methodologies used in empirical investigations of social work problems, in particular, the philosophic bases of scientific inquiry, techniques and principles of measurement, research designs, data collection, and descriptive data analysis. Experimental, single system, survey, longitudinal, and cross sectional designs are discussed in relation to knowledge generation, practice and program evaluation, and knowledge utilization in social work. Students will use knowledge gained to develop a proposal for a research project to be carried out in Research II. In addition, the influence that personal values have on the conceptualization of research questions will be examined as well as the need to appreciate human diversity when conducting research. The profession's Code of Ethics will be explored to ensure students understand and follow ethical guidelines when conducting research (e.g., protection of human subjects, informed consent, confidentiality), and mechanisms for compliance (e.g., Institutional Review Boards) will be examined.

Field Learning I is the first semester of the year-long internship designed to give senior BSW students opportunities to apply social work knowledge, values and skills to practice situations. In this placement, the fundamental principles of generalist social work practice will be carried out through engagement, assessment, intervention, or prevention activities with individuals, small groups, families, communities, and organizations. Students will develop their ability to identify the ways that contexts impact the client's circumstances with special attention to the ramifications of diversity matters as well as social and economic justice concerns. Critical thinking skills will be called upon to analyze the ethical aspects of client situations and students will be required to use available research to inform practice.

This is the first semester of the year-long senior Field Seminar designed to promote the integration of social work knowledge, values, and skills learned in the classroom with the experiences gained through the concurrent agency-based field placement. In this course, students will consider common experiences and concerns encountered in beginning fieldwork as they develop an understanding of the organization, take on the role of social worker, and initiate the helping process with clients using the person-in-environment perspective. By reflecting on their own practice, students will begin the transition to professional social worker.

Field Learning II is the second semester of the year-long internship designed to give senior BSW students opportunities to apply social work knowledge, values and skills to practice situations. In this placement, the fundamental principles of generalist social work practice will be carried out through engagement, assessment, intervention, or prevention activities with individuals, small groups, families, communities, and organizations. Students will be able to identify the ways that contexts impact the client's circumstances with special attention to the ramifications of diversity matters as well as social and economic justice concerns. Critical thinking skills will be called upon to determine optimal ethical intervention strategies and students will be required to use available research to inform practice.

This is the second semester of the year-long senior Field Seminar designed to promote the integration of social work knowledge, values, and skills learned in the classroom with the experiences gained through the concurrent agency-based field placement. In this semester, students will consider common experiences and concerns encountered in fieldwork as they integrate theory and knowledge with the person-in-environment perspective to assess and intervene in client situations, reason through ethical dilemmas, use research to inform their practice, and identify ways to advocate for human rights and social and economic justice. By reflecting on their own practice, students will continue the transition to professional social worker.