School of Social Work
Educating for Change
Mission Statement and Goals
The Boston University School of Social Work is committed to education which furthers social and economic justice in the urban environment and strives to incorporate this commitment into its programs and activities. The School is especially concerned with empowerment of all oppressed groups. BUSSW recognizes the ever-changing demands on the profession and strives to meet them through the highest quality of teaching, scholarship, research, practice, and political action.
BUSSW’s aim is to educate professional social workers who will become leaders in a complex, diverse, and multicultural society. They will possess the knowledge and skills to address the needs and potentials of individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. The School offers an integrated program of study, including clinical and macro social work methods. It emphasizes the engagement of personal and community strengths as fundamental to the understanding, treatment, and prevention of individual and social problems.
BUSSW has five goals that are derived from this mission. Student learning objectives are grounded in these goals and are incorporated into course and field instruction. Multiple outcome measures ensure program effectiveness.
In accord with the School’s mission, the major goals of BUSSW are to:
- Educate outstanding social work practitioners in an intellectually rigorous environment so they can integrate and apply clinical and macro practice methods in urban settings and diverse communities.
- Provide professional opportunities for MSW students in a variety of sectors and settings.
- Engage in faculty research, scholarship, and service which will advance theory, policy, and practice in the profession of social work and in the field of social welfare more generally.
- Apply faculty expertise and leadership toward strengthening urban communities, particularly in relation to the greater Boston metropolitan area and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
- Offer lifelong learning opportunities for social workers and other helping professionals, particularly those in public and private nonprofit agencies.
For those with a different vision of the world.
History of the School
The Boston University School of Social Work is located on the Charles River Campus in Boston, with off-campus, part-time weekend program sites in northeastern Massachusetts (Chelmsford) and southeastern Massachusetts (Fall River and Barnstable/Cape Cod). The School had its beginnings in the School of Education in 1918–19 and was later called the School of Religious and Social Work.
In 1937 the Division of Social Work inaugurated a two-year graduate program. In 1939 it was accredited provisionally as a school of social work, and in 1940 became a separate entity as the School of Social Work. Since 1942 it has offered only the graduate program, and since 1943 it has had full accreditation as a school of social work.
The Boston University School of Social Work developed its off-campus programs to provide access to professional education for people living and working in educationally underserved areas of Massachusetts. The southeastern Massachusetts program was established in 1982; the northeastern Massachusetts program was established in 1985; and in 2002 an off-campus program site was established on Cape Cod. With off-campus program sites located in Fall River, Chelmsford, and Barnstable, students who live at a distance from Boston have the opportunity to pursue a Master of Social Work degree in a part-time format on weekends.
Greetings from the Dean
Welcome to the Boston University School of Social Work, where we are educating for change in a complex world.
Our School specializes in training master’s and doctoral students for social work in urban environments. Our faculty are in the forefront of practice, research, and training with diverse populations in such areas as:
- Aging and disability
- Substance abuse
- Children and adolescents
- Mental health and public health
- Trauma
- Refugees and immigrants
Our MSW students have an opportunity to develop excellent practice skills at all system levels in a range of social justice settings in Boston and in other parts of New England. After taking basic foundation courses, students choose electives of interest to acquire special knowledge and skills related to working with vulnerable populations. These include children and adults who have experienced serious trauma, those in the child welfare system, adolescents transitioning to adulthood, family caregivers, older adults and their families, immigrants and refugees, and many others.
Students learn skills for practice with those experiencing substance abuse and serious physical and mental health problems. Specialized practice skills include family systems, cognitive-behavioral, and psychodynamic methods, as well as macro practice skills relevant to communities and organizations, including human service management. Recent employment surveys tell us that our graduates are primarily employed in the fields of health, child welfare, and family services, and a number of our clinical MSW graduates maintain private practices.
The learning environment at BUSSW is accepting, inclusive, and supportive in the development of individual student talents. Our educational program is flexible and enables students to take courses on a full-time or part-time basis on the main BU campus located on the Charles River in Boston (on-campus weekdays), as well as on a part-time weekend basis at our off-campus sites located to the north in Chelmsford and to the south in Fall River and on Cape Cod.
For nine decades, Boston University has prepared helping professionals for a range of roles in a diverse and constantly changing society. Since its inception, the Boston University School of Social Work has viewed differences among people as enriching the quality of life for us all. We acknowledge the value of varying perspectives provided by race, ethnicity, class, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion and spirituality, physical ability, and other characteristics. Effective professional practice requires social workers to have skills in delivering a broad and flexible array of culturally relevant services. We encourage interdisciplinary learning opportunities through a rich offering of program options including dual degree programs in education, public health, and theology, and specialization and certificate programs in trauma, gerontology, group work, family therapy, human services management, and clinical social work and behavioral medicine.
Our Interdisciplinary PhD Program in Sociology and Social Work is designed primarily for master’s-level social work professionals who wish to prepare themselves for careers in research, academia, public policy, and related leadership positions. The program includes three semesters of coursework to gain skills in quantitative and qualitative research, social science theory, and specialized knowledge in areas selected by the student. Following coursework, students take qualifying exams and other preparatory steps leading to their dissertation. Graduates of the doctoral program have obtained positions in universities, research centers, and nonprofit and governmental agencies both in the United States and abroad.
We invite you to continue browsing here and to visit our website at www.bu.edu/ssw to learn more about our School and the opportunities we offer in a social work career. We look forward to hearing from you!
Gail Steketee, PhD
Dean and Professor
Boston University School of Social Work
You see the world differently. You have to if you’re thinking of pursuing a degree in social work. It takes a certain kind of person to succeed in this field: someone whose optimism is infused with a down-to-earth understanding of the way the world works—and the way it doesn’t—and who wants to use that optimism to help others. At the Boston University School of Social Work, we want those talented students who are ready to tackle the problems and issues of the 21st-century world in a way that’s compassionate yet practical.
A practicum that’s right outside your door.
As the seventh-largest metropolitan area in the country, Boston and its environs present almost unlimited opportunities for urban social work practice and research. Along with BU’s own Center for Addictions Research & Services and Institute for Geriatric Social Work, the School of Social Work is affiliated with more than 500 agencies in New England, giving students many ways to broaden their experience outside the classroom.
Transforming optimists into social workers since 1918.
Boston University has a long heritage of graduating talented, focused, intelligent, and committed men and women who have become professional social workers. Our students have been using their knowledge to shape the world on both micro and macro levels since 1918, when social work courses were first offered through the School of Education. We invite you to learn more about how our graduates have changed the world by visiting www.bu.edu/ssw.
What do you see?
A Quick Look at BUSSW
The Boston University School of Social Work (BUSSW) education program is organized in full- and part-time options consisting of classes and fieldwork leading to the advanced practice degree of Master of Social Work.
The BU School of Social Work is located on the Charles River Campus in Boston. The School has full- and part-time programs in Boston, and off- campus, part-time weekend program sites in northeastern Massachusetts (Chelmsford) and southeastern Massachusetts (Fall River and Barnstable/Cape Cod). These off-campus programs give students who live at a distance from Boston the opportunity to pursue a Master of Social Work degree in a part-time format by taking classes on the weekends.
The School’s curriculum emphasizes a broad approach to social and personal problems and the differential use of social work methods. During the first year of graduate study, the student is introduced to social work knowledge, values, and practice areas through a series of foundation courses.
Subsequently, students take advanced coursework to develop and deepen their competence according to their special interests and talents, and specialize in a single method of social work:
- Clinical Social Work Practice (with individuals, families, and groups)
- Macro Social Work Practice (community organization, management, and planning)
In the last semester, students are required to take a social work practice ethics course.
The School also offers a rich array of program options, including dual degree programs in education, public health, and theology, and specialization and certificate programs in trauma, family therapy, gerontology, group work, human services management, and clinical social work and behavioral medicine.
Details on the School’s curriculum and special and dual degree programs may be found in the programs section of this site.
Urban practice is our priority
For many years, BUSSW has maintained a mission that emphasizes social work practice in urban settings and in standard metropolitan statistical areas. Student learning objectives focus on intervention with the urban poor and other disadvantaged groups. There are a number of opportunities for creative enhancement of links between community agencies and organizations and the School.
In addition, many faculty and administrators are actively involved in urban social work practice, consultation, research, and scholarship. The School provides fertile ground both for those with a long-standing interest in the urban environment and for those new to the field who wish to explore the dynamic realm of urban social work practice.
Our distinguishing characteristics . . .
- Nationally recognized faculty
- Personalized instruction
- Full-time program and part-time program in Boston
- Part-time weekend programs in northeastern Massachusetts (Chelmsford) and southeastern Massachusetts (Fall River and Cape Cod)
- Career services office
- Advanced standing program
- Dual degree programs in public health, education, and theology
- Certificate programs in family therapy, trauma, gerontology, human services management, and clinical social work and behavioral medicine
- Specialization in group work
- An interdisciplinary PhD program in social work and sociology
- Continuing professional education programs
Diversity in student population
BUSSW has a strong commitment to diversity in its student population. For this reason the School’s composition reflects the changing face of the urban environment and attracts students with diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, and economic backgrounds; students with disabilities; gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered students; and students of various ages and life experience.
A particular emphasis is placed on the recruitment of ALANA students (African Americans/Blacks, Latinos, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, and Native Americans). Scholarships earmarked for ALANA students have provided important support for these efforts.
There is also a special scholarship for students with disabilities—the Wendy Carol Byers Memorial Scholarship. To assist with its recruitment programs for students with disabilities, all of the School’s sites are wheelchair accessible, and a TTY/TTD machine is available for deaf and hearing-impaired students by calling 617-353-3765. The staff also works closely with the Boston University Disability Services Office to provide support for students.
Optimists wanted to:
- Provide child and adolescent services
- Relieve the pain of trauma
- Assist couples and families
- Treat clients with addictions
- Lead therapeutic groups
- Deliver services for older adults
- Provide short-term treatment and crisis intervention
- Organize community groups
- Manage human service agencies
- Develop and plan programs
- Help change the world at every level
Accreditation
Boston University is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc., one of the six nationally recognized accrediting agencies. The individual schools and colleges at BU carry additional accreditation in their fields. The MSW degree program at the Boston University School of Social Work and its satellite programs in northeastern and southeastern Massachusetts are fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.
Discover the Art of Making a Difference at the Boston University School of Social Work
The Boston University School of Social Work is an urban-focused graduate program that prepares and develops highly trained, flexible practitioners to respond to contemporary problems. Meaningful careers in social work include:
- School Social Worker
- Substance Abuse Social Worker
- AIDS Advocate
- Medical Social Worker
- Gerontological Social Worker
- Pubic Health Social Worker
- Crisis Intervention Specialist
- Occupational Social Worker
- Family and Couples Therapist
- Private Practitioner
- Policy Analyst
- Community Organizer… and more transforming specialties
