Social Work, MSW, Exclusively Online

Location(s): Exclusively Online Program

Social work is built upon a strong foundation of social justice advocacy, activism, and a commitment to the worth and dignity of all. The mission of the Binghamton University Master of Social Work program is to contribute proudly to the profession as leaders in our work for equity, justice and inclusion. We do this by educating and empowering advanced generalist social work practitioners to promote social, economic, and environmental justice and support for individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities.

Binghamton University MSW students:

Will become reflective, autonomous, and critical thinkers and practitioners;
Understand, appraise, and apply social science knowledge grounded in a variety of research paradigms;
Appreciate the complexity of the social world and understand how context shapes the lives of clients at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels;
Learn about social inequality and oppression from a variety of perspectives (e.g., liberal equality, critical, and anti-racist paradigms) in order to promote client wellbeing and social justice in practice;
Integrate research into practice while respecting the wisdom, culture, and perspectives of clients; and,
Develop social work practice and intervention skills informed by ecological systems, developmental, strengths, empowerment, trauma recovery, cognitive, behavioral and relational theories and perspectives.

This program may be completed on either a full or part-time basis. The full-time program can be completed in two traditional academic years (four semesters) and is offered in both exclusively online and brick & mortar formats. The exclusively online part-time program is completed in three and a half academic years and requires summer enrollment.

Program Admission Requirements

The information below is the same for both the exclusively online and brick and mortar MSW program options.

To be eligible for graduate study, the requirements are::

A bachelor’s degree (or its equivalent) from a nationally or regionally accredited college or university;
A cumulative undergraduate grade-point average of at least a B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale);
A personal statement following the program’s personal statement guidelines;
Two letters of recommendation from individuals who can attest to the potential for graduate study;
Résumé or curriculum vitae showing paid or volunteer human services experience; and,
A completed copy of the Social Work Contract.

Applicants will also be required to participate in group or individual interviews.

Program Requirements

Students pursuing the MSW must complete 64 credits of graduate level coursework. Academic and degree planning is available through the Department of Social Work.

Full-time: The MSW program is 64 credits and full-time students typically complete coursework in two years.

Part-time: The MSW program is 64 credits and part-time students typically complete the MSW program in 3.5 years.

Advanced Standing MSW Program

Binghamton offers an advanced standing option for students with a BSW degree from a Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) accredited BSW program. The BSW degree must have been received within five years of beginning the MSW program. Advanced standing students will be given credit for up to 32 hours of coursework, if they can demonstrate that they received comparable educational content in BSW courses for which they received a grade of “B” or better. The courses for which students may apply for advanced standing credit are:

Human Behavior in the Social Environment
Foundations of Scientific Inquiry with Social Systems
Social Work Generalist Practice I, II, III
Social Welfare Policy and Programs
Diversity and Oppression
Field Instruction I, II

Students requesting advanced standing status need to submit class syllabi, for the courses which they believe provided them with similar content to that found in the above listed courses, to their assigned MSW program advisor. The MSW Program Director and the student’s assigned MSW program advisor will then review the syllabi for comparability to Binghamton University MSW courses and make a decision as to how many hours of advanced standing credit will be granted. In addition, students seeking credit for Field Instruction I and Field Instruction II must submit copies of their hour logs and field evaluations to the Binghamton University Social Work Field Office. All offers of advanced standing admission are contingent upon a B or better in all BSW social work courses from the student’s undergraduate institution. Students are required to provide their final semester’s grades to their assigned MSW program advisor in order to receive a final offer of advanced standing admission and to process credit waivers.

All non-Binghamton BSW advanced standing students must participate in the Advanced Standing Seminar the summer prior to beginning the program.

Students who graduated from Binghamton University’s BSW program, and applied for advanced standing MSW admission, do not have to take the Advanced Standing Seminar and can count Psychopathology & Pharmacology as their Spring term elective.

The Advanced Standing MSW program is 35 credits. Full-time students typically complete the program in 1 year and part-time students in 1.5 years Academic and degree planning is available through the Department of Social Work. Advanced Standing MSW courses include:

Field Practicum Requirement

Field instruction is a pivotal and integral part of the MSW curriculum. In the field, students acquire practice experience, developing competence in the skills that will help them attain their personal and professional goals within a framework of social work values and ethics.

Field instruction is offered in two levels that correspond with the curriculum of the Brick and Mortar and Exclusively Online MSW Programs. The first is in the generalist year, in which students learn to recognize and utilize multiple methods of strength-based interventions that can be implemented within a variety of systems that intersect with the client. They learn about the role of social workers and incorporate professional social work values and ethics within their field placement.

Field Instruction I and II are completed in the generalist year. Students must successfully pass Field Instruction I to move forward in the program. Sequential completion with a passing grade for each level of Field Instruction must occur before moving to the next level. If a student does not successfully complete Field Instruction II, they will be required to repeat Field Instruction I if they remain in or return to the program. If a student does not successfully complete Field Instruction IV, they will be required to repeat Field Instruction III. In the Generalist year, students spend 510 hours in the field and earn 8 academic credits for field. Students spend 16 hours per week for 34 weeks, spanning 2 semesters, at an organization within their region.

In the advanced generalist year of the curriculum, students become more deeply involved in the application of skills and specific interventions within the field site. Field Instruction III and IV are completed in the advanced generalist year of the program. Field Instructions III and IV generally take place in a different agency than Field Instruction I and II. Students again spend 510 hours in their second field placement, 16 hours per week for 34 weeks (two semesters), completing a total of 1,020 hours of field education over four semesters.

Students complete two different placements while in the MSW Program and field education coursework occurs over two consecutive semesters. When a student accepts a field placement, they are committing to completing two consecutive semesters at that field placement. Consult the relevant MSW Field Education Manual and/ or MSW Program Field Manual for additional policies and procedures that govern student internship experiences.

Advancement Policy

The faculty and staff of the Binghamton University Department of Social Work are responsible for creating an educational environment that fosters student growth, academic success and professional development. When students apply to the program, they sign an academic contract agreeing to advance their professional development and to have it assessed by social work faculty and staff throughout their time in the program. The Department of Social Work Advancement Policy supports this responsibility by addressing criteria including academic, professional and ethical conduct (e.g., being respectful; displaying integrity and honesty; addressing concerns in a clear and constructive manner; and responding to evaluation and criticism with appropriate self-reflection and modification of behavior) to ensure that graduates of the program have the necessary professional conduct to effectively serve clients. When there are concerns about a student’s academic/professional conduct, the Department Social Work may institute the Advancement Policy as a way to address such behavior.

The nature of the social work profession demands that practitioners use sound professional judgment and exercise professional and ethical conduct in all aspects of their work. Any student who, at any time in the program, is determined by members from the Department of Social Work to have engaged in unprofessional behavior may be required to participate in the Social Work Advancement Process to assess and support their professional readiness for social work practice. Students will not be approved for graduation if they have unexecuted/unresolved concern(s) in relation to the Advancement Policy on file. If concerns are not resolved the Department of Social Work has the right and responsibility to recommend severance from the program to the Graduate School.

For more information about the Advancement Policy and Process, please see the current MSW Student Handbook.

Capstone Project

The capstone project will offer students the opportunity to integrate and apply learning in order to demonstrate mastery of social work knowledge, skills, practice behaviors, ethics and values necessary for competency-based advanced generalist practice. The capstone project is required coursework embedded within the advanced generalist practice curriculum.

Additional Information about the Program

Changing Between Program Options and Tracks

MSW students who wish to change program options and tracks (e.g., brick and mortar to exclusively online; part-time to full-time) should make their request known to their assigned MSW program advisor at least one semester prior to the intended transition. Students may also need to follow specific policies and procedures outlined within the current MSW Student Handbook. Decisions on whether to approve such requests are determined on a first-come, first-serve basis and whether there is space available in the desired cohort. Students may only change program modality one time (e.g., move from brick and mortar to exclusively online or vice versa).

Transfer Credit

Graduate courses successfully completed at another institution’s CSWE-accredited MSW program may be accepted for credit toward the MSW degree, in lieu of any of the required courses, provided such courses covered content similar to that taught in Binghamton University’s required courses. A minimum grade of B is required for transfer credit. Graduate courses for which transfer credit is sought must have been taken within the last five years in order to be considered. A maximum of 29 credits can be counted as waived requirements toward the MSW degree.

Students requesting the transfer of credit need to submit class syllabi for the courses which they believe provided them with content similar to that found in the Binghamton University MSW curriculum. The MSW Program Director, in conjunction with Student Services Staff , will review the syllabi for comparability to Binghamton University MSW courses and make a decision as to how many credits can be transferred. A member of the Student Services Staff will then facilitate the waiver of courses for which a transfer of credit has been approved.

Academic credit is not given for life experience or previous work experience, as per the CSWE accreditation requirements.

Withdrawal

It is the policy of the Department of Social Work that students who are considering withdrawing from a specific course and/or the program must first meet their assigned MSW program advisor to discuss the challenges they are facing and explore options that may help support their continuation.

For more information on the University’s withdrawal policies, see Academic Policies and Procedures for All Students .

For more additional information on the MSW program, refer to the Department of Social Work website. To apply to the Social Work MSW program, please visit the University Admissions website.