MSW Focal Areas
Each focus area consists of a course cluster that students can choose from to develop knowledge and skill in working in a practice area or population of clients. Focus areas offer opportunities for development of skills and expertise in a practice or social problem area. Each of the advanced policy options (students will be required to take one) will be affiliated with one or more focal areas. Most courses in the focus areas will cross levels of practice. Note: It is not required that students have a focus area in order to graduate.
Focus areas will enable students to choose electives that fit their current interests and career goals. Students may choose electives from one or multiple focus areas. Descriptions of courses may be viewed on the WSU Graduate Bulletin.
Complete list of MSW Elective options
Integrated Health, Behavioral Health, and Substance Use
Affiliated faculty: J. Lloyd Allen, Suzanne Brown, Viktor Burlaka, Jason Carbone, Lauree Emery, Megan Hicks, Luisa Kcomt, Michael Kral, Anwar Najor-Durack, Lisa O'Donnell, Stella Resko, Heather Walter-McCabe
Increasingly systems of care and social work best practices are identifying the importance of integration between physical, behavioral health, and substance use treatment service systems and interventions. Research supports better treatment outcomes across physical, behavioral and substance use domains when treatment for all three are integrated and when problems across all three areas are considered together. This focus area offers courses that help students integrate knowledge about physical and mental health and substance use. These courses span the micro-macro continuum and offer perspectives on the impact of health disparities, poverty, oppression, and the urban context on physical health, behavioral health, and substance use outcomes and services. The Certificate on Alcohol and Drug Abuse Studies and then joint master's degree in Social Work and Public Health are included in this focus area, as are the student training programs in Behavioral Health integration and Opioid Use Disorder integration in primary care (BHWET/OWET).
Related programs:
- Certificate on Alcohol and Drug Abuse Studies
- MSW/MPH Joint Degree
- BHWET and OWEP Training Grants
| Existing Electives |
|---|
| SW 6810 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) Health and Well-Being |
| SW 6815 Mind-Body-Spirit Approaches and Social Work Practice |
| SW 6540 Effects of Drugs and Alcohol on Physical and Social Functioning |
| SW 6551 Behavioral Health and the Criminal/Legal System |
| SW 6991 Social Justice & Health |
| SW 6620 Understanding Suicide |
| SW 7115 Interprofessional Education |
| SW 7140 Biomedical Components of Substance Use and Addiction |
| SW 7150 Health Disparities and Substance Use |
| SW 7885 Professionalism and Ethics |
| SW 8690 Interpersonal Practice in Substance Use |
| SW 7880 Infant/Family Mental Health Assessment |
| SW 8381 Interpersonal Practice with Children and Adolescent |
| SW 8550 Social Functioning: Human Sexuality |
| SW 8580 Impact of Health and Disease on Social Functioning |
Trauma, Stress, and Violence
Affiliated faculty: Suzanne Brown, Jason Carbone, Carolyn Dayton, Joy Ernst, Shantalea Johns, Poco Kernsmith, Athena Kheibari, Kristina Nikolova, Lisa Panisch, Debra Patterson, Rebecca Sokol, Shirley Thomas, Bryan Victor
Trauma, stress, and violence are ever present in the lives of individuals who seek assistance from social workers; and these experiences have far-reaching implications for children, adults, older adults, and families across the lifespan. The courses in this focus area examine the impact of exposure to violence and toxic stress on individuals across the lifespan and across bio-psycho-social-spiritual domains. Courses such as SW 7700, SW 6575, SW 8991, and Models for Crisis Stabilization incorporate interventions across the micro-macro continuum and all courses examine the impact of oppression as an additional stressor that magnifies the impact of violence and other potentially traumatic stressors on human functioning. Interventions that reduce the potential impact of violence and traumatic stressors on human development and functioning as well as resilience and protective factors are included in this focus area.
| Existing Courses |
|---|
| SW 6575Violence Prevention and Intervention |
| SW 6991 Understanding Suicide |
| SW 7700 Trauma Informed Child Welfare |
| SW 7885 Professionalism and Ethics |
| SW 8570 Dynamics and Intervention in Family Violence |
| SW 8585 Advanced Interpersonal Practice in Trauma and PTSD |
Social Work in Criminal Legal Settings
Affiliated faculty: Erin Comartin, Susan Lebold, Athena Kheibari, Poco Kernsmith, Sheryl Kubiak
The criminal/legal focal area will prepare students to work in multidisciplinary teams at each intercept of the criminal/legal system (police, courts, jails, prisons, probation/parole). Courses give a foundation on criminological theory and current policy responses, while providing practical tools for assessing the risk and needs of individuals (both adults and youth) charged and/or sentenced with criminal offences. Importantly, the needs of victims of crime and communities affected by violence. Special populations considered in this focal area include individuals with behavioral health needs, individuals convicted of sex crimes, and hate crimes towards vulnerable racial and LGBTQI populations. All courses use a social justice lens when assessing the needs of individuals, organizations, and communities impacted by violence. The restorative justice course offers both Interpersonal Practice and I-CPL students a necessary foundation for interventions that directly addresses violence in a way that repairs harm.
Related programs:
| Existing Courses |
|---|
| SW 6500 Social Work and the Law |
| SW 6535 Youth, Delinquency, and Juvenile Justice |
| SW 6551 Behavioral Health and the Criminal/Legal System |
| SW 6575 Violence Prevention and Intervention |
| SW 7885 Professionalism and Ethics |
| SW 8570 Dynamics and Intervention in Family Violence |
| SW 6991 Seminar in Holistic Defense |
Social Work with Older Adults
Affiliated faculty: Faith Hopp, Luisa Kcomt, Fay Keys, Tam Perry, Joy Ernst
This focus area will equip students with knowledge and skills needed to work in a variety of settings that serve older adults and their families. The population of older adults is increasing and people over the age of 65 will comprise 20% of the population by 2030. While we celebrate increasing life expectancy and the diversity of older adults, the aging process is often accompanied by increased needs and challenges even as we recognize the resilience and strengths of older adults. Students who focus in aging gain important perspectives, knowledge, and skills that will be valuable to a variety of settings including housing, senior centers, hospitals, nursing homes, multiservice agencies, and community-based organizations.
Affiliated program:
- Gerontology Certificate (includes courses from other units on campus)
| Existing Courses |
|---|
| SW 5720 Social Services for Older Adults |
| SW 7115 Interprofessional Education |
| SW 7995 Introduction to Gerontology |
| SW 7770 Palliative Care and Elder Law |
| SW 7885 Professionalism and Ethics |
| SW 8860 Grief and Loss Issues in Social Work Practice |
Children and Families
Affiliated faculty: Ballentine, Brown, Burlaka, Dayton, Emery, Hong, Love, Schropshire, Nikolova,Panisch, Victor, Weiner
Since the beginning of the profession of Social Work Children and families in context have been a primary focus. This area incorporates three substantive areas related to children and families. Courses in the Child Welfare focal area cross the micro-macro continuum and offer perspectives on intervention for both policy and interpersonal practice. These courses are also requisites for students in the Child Welfare Certificate Program. The courses offered for School Social Work also cross the micro-macro continuum and offer perspectives on system level interventions as well as psychosocial assessment of children and youth. These courses are part of the requirements for credentialing in School Social Work. Courses in the Infant Mental health focus area take a developmental and attachment-based perspective on children and families and examine assessment and intervention with very young children and their caregivers. Courses in this area are also required for the dual title in Social Work and Infant Mental Health.
Affiliated programs:
Existing courses and focus areas:
| Child Welfare |
|---|
| SW 5755 Intro to Child Welfare |
| SW 6100 Child Welfare and Social Systems: Context for Case Management Practice |
| SW 6535 Youth, Delinquency, and Juvenile Justice |
| SW 7700 Trauma Informed Child Welfare |
| School Social Work |
|---|
| SW 8180 Social Services in the Schools |
| SW 8330 Psychosocial Assessment of Children and Youth |
| Infant Mental Health |
|---|
| SW 6010 Family Centered Collaboration in Early Childhood Intervention and Special Ed |
| SW 6883 Social Work Practice with Very Young Children and Families |
| SW 7880 Infant/Family Mental Health Assessment |
| SW 8880 Infant Mental Health Practice |
| SW 8883, 8884 Infant Mental Health Seminar(IMH Dual-Title Students Only) |
| Practice |
|---|
| SW 7885 Professionalism and Ethics |
| SW 8381 Interpersonal Practice with Children and Adolescents |
| SW 8620 Interpersonal Practice with Couples |
Research and Evaluation
Affiliated faculty: J. Lloyd Allen, Megan Hicks, Faith Hopp, Kristina Nikolova, Tam Perry, Stella Resko, Rebecca Sokol, Richard Smith
Social Workers engage in research informed practice and practice informed research. These courses provide opportunities to practice these skills and prepare for a career in assessment, program evaluation, and research. Many public organizations as well as private agencies and foundations hire full time program evaluators at the master's level. This focal area is good preparation for the Graduate Certificate in Research and Evaluation as well as a doctoral program.
Related Program:
| Existing Courses |
|---|
| SW 7830 Research Methods for Social Work |
| SW 7850 Evaluation Research |
| SW 8025 Community Assessment & Evaluation |
| SW 8035 Techniques of Quantitative Data Analysis |
| SW 8045 Techniques of Data Interpretation and Presentation |
| SW 8048 Social Action Research & Evaluation |
Community Change, Social Entrepreneurship, and Social Justice
Affiliated faculty: Kess Ballentine, Jason Carbone, Lauree Emery, Joy Ernst, Michael Kral, Richard Smith, Judith Wineman
Social Workers advance human rights, social, economic, and environmental justice. This focal area provides opportunities to learn more about how to do that. Interpersonal social workers can get exposure on what skills they will work towards in their career path as they become supervisors and leaders in their organizations working in interprofessional teams. Students can also build skills on how to start their own organization. This focal area pairs well with the Graduate Certificate in Entrepreneurship hosted by the Mike Ilitch School of Business.
| Existing Courses |
|---|
| SW 6585 Introduction to International Social Work |
| SW 7085 Social Work Leadership Strategies |
| SW 7095 Social Entrepreneurship |
| SW 7115 Special Topics: Interprofessional Education |
| SW 8015 Intervention/Program Planning and Grant Writing |