Fordham University Online Master of Social Work
Program Options: Full-Time/Part-Time
Tuition: $32,160
Acceptance Rate: 45%
GRE Required: No
1-Year/Accelerated Option: Yes
Campus Visits Required: No
Fieldwork Hours: 1,200 (600 for Advanced Standing)
CSWE Accredited: Yes, through 2022
Application Deadline: June 25th
Overview
Established by Bishop John Hughes as St. John’s College in 1841, Fordham University is a private, nonprofit Jesuit RU/H institution of the Atlantic 10 that’s endowed for $728 million to educate 15,582 Rams either online or at its Rose Hill, Lincoln Center, and Westchester campuses. Fordham was declared America’s 100th best research university in Forbes, 175th best value by PayScale, and 168th top college in Washington Monthly with the 127th best faculty on Niche. The Graduate School of Social Service ranks in the top 10 percent for eight competency-based programs, including the Online Master of Social Work. Flexible MSW online study prepares ethical, integrated practitioners for righting community wrongs.
Strengths
The U.S. News & World Report recognized Fordham University for the 22nd best post-grad social work education. Celebrating over 100 years of excellence, the Graduate School of Social Service conveniently admits online cohorts each January, May, and September for bold, forward-thinking MSW training. Online MSW students are assigned 1:1 field advisers and given 24/7 technical support. Synchronous courses are combined with live-streamed events from the NASW Chapter. Fordham is renowned for cutting-edge research facilities, including the National Center for Social Work Trauma Education and Workforce Development. Emphasizing Jesuit values for human rights advocacy, the Fordham MSW program has notable alums like Michael Dowling, Dennis Walcott, Rosa Gil, and Ruth Sanchez-Way.
Concentrations
Online MSW post-grads begin with the Generalist Phase to nurture foundational, master’s-level skills before shifting into four advanced practice specializations. The Individuals and Families option covers the direct practice methods used in therapeutic settings to enhance human welfare. The Organizations and Community track guides MSW students toward large-scale efforts enhancing social functioning in groups. The Evaluation concentration trains nonprofit leaders for supervising the effectiveness of social work programs. Lastly, the Policy Practice and Advocacy MSW outlines the steps to obtain grant funding for systemic changes to community strategy.
Program Requirements
At Fordham University, the Online Master of Social Work has four plans of study to complete the 66-credit, CSWE-accredited curriculum. The Standard or Extended MSW will require 48 credits of coursework with 18 credits of fieldwork. Social workers with 3+ years of experience can enter the 66-credit MSW Employed Practitioner track with 61 didactic credits and 15 fieldwork credits. Completing a Bachelor of Social Work will waive 33 credits, so Advanced Standing majors need only 24 class credits and nine fieldwork credits. The non-thesis, practice-based curriculum ends with a micro or macro capstone project. Courses fulfill requirements for the Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) exam in New York and most other states.
Related resource: Top 10 Affordable Master of Social Work Online (MSW) Degrees
Admission Requirements
Acceptance letters to Fordham University’s Online MSW are reserved for students who’ve finished at least 18 liberal arts credits during their accredited, four-year bachelor’s. The Advanced Standing track necessitates a BSW major or one year of transferred master’s courses from CSWE-accredited schools. It’s recommended that aspiring Fordham Rams carry a cumulative 3.0 GPA with major grades of “B” or higher. Although voluntary, the average GRE scores are 160 (verbal) and 157 (quantitative) for matriculated graduates. Non-native English speakers must score at least 7.0 on the IELTS or 600 on the TOEFL. Prospective Master of Social Work entrants should submit the $60 Graduate School application online with:
• Unofficial undergraduate college transcripts
• At least one faculty/supervisor recommendation
• Mid-year and final field assignment evaluations
• Current resume or CV of social work experience
• Three-page, APA-style personal narrative essay
• English language proficiency tests if applicable
Faculty
Fordham University has a student-faculty ratio of 14:1, and the Online Master of Social Work has an average cohort size of 20. Since 2013, Dr. Debra McPhee has welcomed incoming classes of over 550 as the Graduate School of Social Service’s dean. Dr. Janna Heyman, the Director of the Children and Families Institute, received a 2015 APHSA Academic Excellence Award. The Nicholas J. Langenfeld Chair, Dr. Amy Horowitz, was honored with the NIMH National Research Service Award. Other PhD-trained professors are fellows for the Brookdale Center on Aging, New York Academy of Medicine, Gerontological Society of America, Asian American Mental Health Coalition, and more. Fordham faculty are also well-published in journals like Social Work in Mental Health and Psychiatric Services.
Online Courses
Fordham’s Online MSW students receive a Cisco WebEX account for accessing live, seminar-style courses weekly. Small cohorts interact via webcam and microphone to discuss social work practice methodologies over 16-week semesters. Advanced Standing students skip the generalist phase for completion in 12 months. Traditional MSW majors spend 24 months full-time or 32 months part-time with the following courses available online:
• Human Rights and Social Justice
• Human Behavior and the Social Environment
• Social Work Practice in Research
• Social Policy and the Profession
• General Social Work Practice
• Human Rights Policy Analysis and Advocacy
• Program and Proposal Development
• Empowerment Practice with Immigrants/Refugees
• Community Organization and Capacity Building
• Advanced Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis
• Comparative International Social Welfare
• Philanthropy and Resource Development
• Human Service Leadership and Macro Practice
Internships
The Online Master of Social Work at Fordham University typically includes one generalist and one specialist field placement for 1,200 internship hours total. Over four terms, there will be 20 two-hour Integrative Seminars to track field progress. The Advanced Standing MSW requires just 600 clock hours at one year-long placement. Students should expect to spend 14-21 hours per week in fieldwork from September to August. The Graduate School of Social Service has 450+ partners nationwide to assign field agencies near students’ off-campus locations. Potential sites include the Ravazzin Center, Children FIRST, Brooke Glen Behavioral Hospital, Fordham-Tremont Community Mental, United Way, Jane Addams Place, Women Against Abuse, Red Cross House, and New York Presbyterian.
Contact
Fordham Graduate School of Social Service
113 West 60th Street, Suite 608
New York, NY 10023
(212) 636-6600
gssadmissions@fordham.edu.
Funding like the $2,000 Connolly Scholarship and $1,500 Edward Ferdinand Kane Trust can help Fordham Graduate School of Social Service students afford training for an in-demand field expecting 15 percent growth this decade. Besides the Online MSW, Fordham University also confers a Master of Science in Nonprofit Leadership, Joint MSW-MPH, and Ph.D. in Social Work.