University of Louisville Master of Science in Social Work
Program Options: Full-Time, Part-Time
Tuition: $12,246
Acceptance Rate: 72%
GRE Required: No
1-Year/Accelerated Option: No
Campus Visits Required: No
Field Hours: 950
CSWE Accredited: Yes (1937)
Application Deadline: December 15
See our ranking of the Top 10 Affordable Master of Social Work Online (MSW) Degrees.
Overview
The University of Louisville offers a Master of Science in Social Work through its Kent School of Social Work. Located just a short drive from major cities in southeastern Indiana, the University welcomes students from that state to apply. Its online social work program is open to students from any state. Established in 1798, the University of Louisville is one of the oldest public schools in the south. U of L has an enrollment of more than 5,900 graduate and doctoral students.
Strengths
Enrolling in the U of L online social work program gives students the freedom to work full-time as they finish their studies. Unlike other programs that have residency requirements, U of L students can finish their degrees while living hours away from Kentucky and without ever taking a single trip to its urban campus. The regular version of the program starts each fall and requires that students take 60 credits of classes. Some of the credits they earn come from their fieldwork too. An advanced standing program is open to those who earn a Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) from an accredited school within the last seven years. Students in this program will take fewer classes and do less field work.
Concentrations
U of L understands that students have different career goals, which is why it offers multiple concentrations that allow students to change what they study. It is one of the only schools with a concentration in military social work, which prepares students for working with clients on active duty status and veterans. The alcohol and drug counseling concentration focuses more on the challenges of working with addicts and the issues that those clients face.
The mental health concentration that the university offers helps students learn how to work with those diagnosed with mental conditions, while the oncology concentration provides students with tips on working with cancer patients. There is also a concentration available in gerontology. While students will declare a concentration in one of these fields, they can also take classes relating to the other concentrations.
Program Requirements
This online MSW program features both practical fieldwork and online classes. Students will complete their fieldwork during the spring and fall semesters at the same time that they take some practice classes. Regular students take 60 credits, while advanced standing students take just 30. Advanced standing must show proof that they graduated from an accredited social work degree program in the recent past. These students must have an undergrad GPA of 3.25 or higher in all social work classes and a 3.0 GPA in all other classes. Advanced standing students do only 500 hours of fieldwork instead of the 950 fieldwork hours that regular students do.
Admissions Requirements
Students applying to the U of L will find a helpful checklist that shows them everything they must do and all the items they must submit to the university as part of the admissions process. The deadline for regular students is December 15, but the deadline for advanced standing students is February 28. U of L has other deadlines for students who want to start at different points during the school year and those who already did some practicum work. The university requires that students submit all documents and a completed application by one of its deadlines.
U of L has admissions requirements such as the payment of a $65 application fee and the online application. Students must list the names and email addresses of three references on the application. The university will contact those individuals and ask for letters of recommendation. Though U of L asks for at least one letter from a former professor, those who graduated more than five years before applying can submit professional references only. Students must also submit two writing samples, sign an agreement packet and provide a score from either the MAT or the GRE.
Faculty
Louisville is a major metropolitan area that has a population of more than 760,000 residents. While some people think of the city in terms of neighborhoods like downtown and Old Louisville, it also has a number of small suburbs around its borders. The faculty working for the university have experience working in both those rural areas and in urban settings. Many of its professors also have experience working in Indiana and can help students understand how laws differ from one state to the next.
Online Courses
The online MSW that U of L offers is a 100% online program, which means that all courses take place online. Students take 30 credits of social work foundation classes, 21 credits of advanced level courses and nine credits of electives. Foundation classes in this program include Human Behavior & the Social Environment, Issues in Policy and Service Delivery, Social Work Practice and Social Work Justice. The electives that students take will apply to their concentrations. They can take courses such as Introduction to Epidemiology, Introduction to Family Therapy Practice, Social Work with Older Persons and Advanced Issues in Social Work Treatment. Students may need to take some prerequisites before taking some of the advanced electives.
Internships
U of L encourages students to think of their internships in the same way they would think about new jobs. The university requires that students do their fieldwork hours between 8 am and 5 pm because these are the same hours that social workers traditionally work. Students spend 16 hours a week working in the field during the fall and spring semesters to complete the foundation practicum. They will then spend two semesters working 18 hours a week during the advanced practicum year. The university rarely allows students to do their practicums in the same places where they work because their employers may have a difficult time distinguishing between their full-time work and their practicums.
Contact
2217 S 3rd St.
Louisville, KY 40292
(502) 852-7418
online@Louisville.edu