Program Concentration

Direct Practice with Individuals and Families is an approach to social work grounded in human rights and social and economic justice. Graduates of the MSW Program at West Chester University are trained to work with individuals and families using strengths-based, research-informed, and community-oriented assessment, intervention and evaluation skills to enhance resiliency, support recovery, and mitigate the effects of trauma to build capacity.

• Recovery: "A process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live a self-directed life, and strive to reach their full potential." ¹

  ¹ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Leading Change 2.0: Advancing the Behavioral Health of the Nation, 2015-2018. HHS Publication No. (PEP) 14-LEADCHANGE2. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Health Services Administration, 2014.

  • Guiding principles of recovery:
    • Recovery emerges from hope.
    • Recovery is person-driven.
    • Recovery occurs via many pathways.
    • Recovery is holistic.
    • Recovery is supported by peers and allies.
    • Recovery is supported through relationship and social networks.
    • Recovery is culturally-biased and influenced.
    • Recovery is supported by addressing trauma.
    • Recovery involves individual, family, and community strengths and responsibility.
    • Recovery is based on respect.
• Resiliency: "Resilience, as a concept and construct, is the context-specific ability to respond to stress, anxiety, trauma, crisis, or disaster. Resilience develops over time and is the culmination of multiple internal and external factors." ²

² SAMHSA's Partners for Recovery Initiative. (2013, March 1). Retrieved November 25, 2014, from http://www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/resiliency-annotated-bibliography.pdf

• Capacity Building: "Capacity refers to the various types and levels of resources available to establish and maintain a community prevention system that can identify and respond to community needs." ³

  ³ Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration. (n.d.). Retrieved November 25, 2014, from http://captus.samhsa.gov/prevention-practice/strategic-prevention-framework/build-capacity

  • Students graduate with training in the most cutting-edge, evidence-based practices in social work, including:
    • Integrative treatment of complex trauma for adolescents
    • Cognitive Processing Therapy
    • Motivational Interviewing
    • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
    • Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
    • Mind/body integrative health approaches
    • Mindfulness and self-care
    • Community-based interventions
    • Policy advocacy and analysis

Program Goals

The goals of the Program at West Chester University are to:

• Provide a quality Master of Social Work program in accord with the standards of the Council on Social Work Education and the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
• Prepare graduates to practice competently and ethically with individuals, families, and communities.
• Prepare graduates to think critically, communicate effectively, and engage research in the practice of social work.
• Prepare graduates to practice social work with a commitment to human rights and social and economic justice.

Program Mission Statement

The Graduate Social Work Department provides a quality, affordable and accessible Master of Social Work degree in preparation for a career in an evolving, complex, technological, and global society. It prepares graduates who can think critically, communicate effectively, embrace diversity, practice ethically, respond to the needs of vulnerable and oppressed populations, are committed to human rights and social and economic justice, and are competent to practice with individuals and families.

Students in the Master of Social Work program at West Chester University can also earn graduate certificates from several graduate departments within the university. Many graduate certificates at West Chester University require 18 credit hours. Most MSW students can use nine of these credits as their three elective courses required to complete an MSW degree. This means it's possible for MSW students to earn a graduate certificate along with their MSW with only three additional classes.

Graduate certificates help students and professionals looking for specialization in a field without the time and cost of obtaining another degree. This specialization is helpful for professional growth and is attractive to employers looking for individuals with additional skills.

MSW students at West Chester University have the opportunity to obtain these certificates:

• Certificate in Gerontology
• Certificate in Health Care Ethics
• Certificate in Non-Profit Administration
• Certificate in Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Certificate in Health Care Management
• Certificate in Emergency Preparedness in Public Health
• Certificate in Urban and Regional Planning

• Academic Integrity Policy
• Code of Conduct
• Sexual Misconduct
• West Chester University Counseling Center

The WCU Academic Integrity Policy states that, "under some circumstances, if a student is found to have violated their professional code, that violation may be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy." It is the expectation of West Chester University's Graduate Social Work Department that all MSW students consistently and routinely demonstrate professional behavior in accordance with the NASW Code of Ethics and the expectations listed below.

• Performance
  • Meet attendance expectations of classes, field placement, and other meetings with regularity and reliability
  • Notify professors, field instructors, and colleagues prior to any absences or late arrivals
  • Arrive for class, field placement, and other meetings prepared to participate
  • Meet course expectations
• Conduct
  • Demonstrate integrity and honesty in all matters
  • Demonstrate willingness to work collaboratively with others
  • Show respect for others' opinions
  • Remain open to positive and constructive feedback from peers, faculty, staff, and field instructors
  • Demonstrate a willingness to understand and engage difference and diversity
  • Maintain attire and appearance in accord with the expectations and standards for the setting
• Communication Skills
  • Demonstrate effective and respectful verbal and non-verbal communication, such as eye contact and personal space
  • Demonstrate the ability to discuss and process information
  • Clearly articulate ideas, thoughts, and concepts
  • Self-awareness and self-control
  • Communicate effectively and respectfully
  • Demonstrate an awareness of personal strengths and challenges
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the appropriate use of self-disclosure
  • Demonstrate emotional regulation
  • Demonstrate unimpaired judgment and decision-making
• Use of Technology
  • Demonstrate basic competency in word processing, use of email, and use of Internet
  • Use public and private technology, including but not limited to social networking, texting or emailing, voicemail, and data storage, in a professional and respectful manner
  • Abide by specific classroom and field policies regarding use of all technologies
  • Follow the ethical and legal standards for privacy and confidentiality in accordance with state, federal, agency, and institutional standards

In accord with the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards of the Council on Social Work Education, the MSW Program at West Chester University measures and reports student learning outcomes. Students are assessed on their mastery of 10 core competencies (EP 2.1.1 through 2.1.10), representing dimensions of social work practice that all social workers are expected to master during their professional training. A measurement benchmark is set by the social work programs for each competency. An assessment score at or above that benchmark is considered by the program to represent mastery of that particular competency. The MSW Program benchmark for the attainment of competency in each of the CSWE Core Competencies is for 85 percent of students to have scored at least 84 (equivalent to grade of B) on each measurement of each Competency and associated Advanced Practice Behaviors.

To assist the CSWE Commission on Accreditation in the evaluation of the program's compliance with the Accreditation Standards listed below, the MSW Program publishes competency benchmark information for each core competency.

Educational Policy 4.0 - Assessment

4.0.2: The program provides summary data and outcomes for the assessment of each of its competencies, identifying the percentage of students achieving the benchmark.

4.0.4: The program uses Form AS4 (M) to report assessment outcomes to its constituents and the public on its website and routinely updates (minimally every 2 years) these postings.

Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes

Academic Year 2013-2014

• Competency: EP 2.1.1:Identify as a Professional Social Worker
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 98 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.2:Apply Ethical Principles
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 99.2 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.3:Apply Critical Thinking
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 98.2 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.4:Engage Diversity in Practice
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 99.6 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.5:Advance Human Rights/Social & Economic Justice
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 98.8 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.6:Engage Research Informed Practice/Practice Informed Research
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 98.6 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.7:Knowledge of Human Behavior in Social Environment
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 99.5 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.8:Engage Policy Practice to Advance Well-Being and Deliver Services
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 97 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.9:Respond to Practice Contexts
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 99.5 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.10 (a):Engagement
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 99.5 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.10 (b):Assessment
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 99 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.10 (c):Practice Intervention
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 98.2 percent
• Competency: EP 2.1.10 (d):Practice Evaluation
  Competency Benchmark: 84 percent
  Percentage of Assessments Achieving Benchmark: 98.1 percent