Master of Social Work Program Mission
The MSW Program prepares graduates for advanced generalist social work practice, advocacy, research, and leadership. The MSW program strives to center anti-oppressive and collaborative practice.
Master of Social Work Program Goals
Through experiential learning, in the pursuit of social, economic, and environmental justice, the goals of the Advanced Generalist MSW program are to prepare graduates who:
- Are equipped for generalist and advanced generalist practice with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
- Serve as skilled practitioners who engage in ethical, autonomous, and multi-disciplinary practice across system levels utilizing a Person-in-Environment perspective.
- Serve as leaders who advance social, economic, and environmental justice, promote human rights, and engage in social action to eliminate oppressive conditions for all people.
- Serve as leaders that value and appreciate human relationships, access, and success, and who model and advocate for practices that enhance cultural humility.
- Practice life-long learning, engage in scientific inquiry, and utilize critical thinking to inform practice at all system levels.
- Critically apply relevant theories and social work values to engage, assess, intervene, and evaluate practice within changing contexts at all systems levels.
Master of Social Work Program Information
Curriculum
Overview
The School of Social Work is dedicated to the values and ethics of the profession of social work:
- The welfare of humankind
- The disciplined use of a recognized body of knowledge about people and their interactions
- The marshaling of community resources to promote the well-being of all
The School’s educational programs prepare graduate students for generalist practice in social work. Generalist social work is regarded both as a perspective and a practical approach because the social worker is taught to recognize the impact, influence, and potential resources available from the context where practice occurs. The intent is to assist students in developing an ongoing responsibility to address their continuing needs for professional development and to become contributors to the social work profession.
The MSW program at Colorado State University builds upon the foundation generalist perspective and is developed around the advanced generalist model of practice. MSW students will master a generic core through prerequisite admission requirements and demonstrate successful mastery of generalist competencies by completing foundation classroom and field learning experiences before reaching the advanced portion of the curriculum.
The generalist perspective in social work:
- Is informed by socio-behavioral and ecosystems knowledge
- Incorporates ideologies that include democracy, humanism, human rights, and empowerment
- Requires a worker to be theoretically and methodologically open when approaching practice situations
- Is client-centered and problem-focused while recognizing and building on strengths
- Involves assessment and intervention at all system levels
- Is research-based
MSW Program Curriculum
MSW Curriculum
The School of Social Work is dedicated to the values and ethics of the profession of social work: the welfare of humankind, the disciplined use of a recognized body of knowledge about people and their interactions, and the marshaling of community resources to promote the well-being of all.
The School’s educational programs prepare graduate students for generalist practice in social work. Generalist social work is regarded both as a perspective and a practical approach because the social worker is taught to recognize the impact, influence, and potential resources available from the context where practice occurs. The intent is to assist students in developing an ongoing responsibility to address their continuing needs for professional development and to become contributors to the social work profession.
The MSW program at Colorado State University builds upon the foundation generalist perspective and is developed around the advanced generalist model of practice. MSW students will demonstrate generalist (foundation) competencies through completion of prerequisite admission requirements and either successfully completing a BSW from an accredited program or by successfully completing foundation classroom and field learning experiences before reaching the advanced portion of the curriculum. The generalist perspective in social work: (1) is informed by socio-behavioral and ecosystems knowledge; (2) incorporates ideologies that include democracy, humanism, human rights, and empowerment; (3) requires a worker to be theoretically and methodologically open when approaching practice situations; (4) is client-centered and problem-focused while recognizing and building on strengths; (5) involves assessment and intervention at all system levels; (6) is research-based; and (7) requires the demonstration of ten competencies and corresponding practice behaviors as specified below.
Generalist / Advanced Generalist Curriculum
The MSW program is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education in compliance with their Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. As such, it assumes two levels of professional preparation: foundation level generalist social work and advanced generalist social work practice. Both levels of education include the study of the curriculum areas as defined by EPAS: the advanced generalist level is distinguished by increased complexity, depth, and range of knowledge, and advanced practice skills reflected in preparation for advanced practice competencies. The demonstration of 54 practice behaviors at both the foundation and advanced levels requires paying constant attention and adherence to the ethical standards stated in the NASW Code of Ethics; an understanding of human differences and cultural competence, human rights, and social and economic justice especially as it applies to vulnerable populations; and research-affirmed practice. (See the CSWE website for the EPAS.)
Program Competencies
MSW Program competencies reflect the knowledge, values, and skills that are expected of advanced social work practitioners. The MSW program provides a wide range of educational opportunities that enable students to become advanced generalist social work practitioners.
The School of Social Work at CSU conceptualizes generalist and advanced generalist practice as a set of competencies (skills, knowledge, values, and behaviors), in alignment with accreditation standards as outlined by the Council on Social Work Education. The MSW curriculum is designed and delivered such that graduates will demonstrate competency in the following ten areas:
- Competency 1: Demonstrate Ethical and Professional Behavior
- Competency 2: Advance Human Rights and Social, Racial, Economic, and Environmental Justice
- Competency 3: Engage Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ADEI) in Practice
- Competency 4: Engage In Practice-informed Research and Research-informed Practice
- Competency 5: Engage in Policy Practice
- Competency 6: Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities
- Competency 7: Assess Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities
- Competency 8: Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities
- Competency 9: Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities