Admission Requirements
The M.S.W. program is governed by the policies of the College of Graduate Studies and the School of Social Work. Students applying to the Advanced One-Year Track of the program must hold a Bachelor of Social Work degree, from an institution accredited by the Canadian Associate for Social Work Education (CASWE) or the Council of Social Work Education (CSWE). Individuals without such a degree cannot be admitted into the Advanced One-Year M.S.W. Applicants must have:
- In 300-level courses and above, a minimum overall grade average equivalent to a UBC B+ (76-79%) or higher;
- completed an approved course in statistics (see list of approved courses on the School of Social Work website);
- completed a Statement of Purpose;
- submitted a resumé or curriculum vitae;
- provided three letters of reference; and
- immediately upon acceptance of an admission offer, submitted an acceptable criminal record check for relevant and specified offenses as defined under the Criminal Records Review Act of British Columbia (see the School of Social Work website regarding the criminal record check submission process).
If applicable, applicants from a university at which English is not the primary language of instruction must present evidence of competency to pursue studies in the English language prior to being extended an offer of admission. The Master of Social Work program is a professional program which requires language proficiency test scores that are beyond the College of Graduate Studies’ required minimum overall scores. Acceptable English language proficiency tests, and minimum test scores, for applicants to the Master of Social Work program are:
- a minimum overall score of 100 on the Internet-based TOEFL (iBT) with no individual section score lower than 22, beyond the College of Graduate Studies required minimum overall score of 90;
or - a minimum overall score of 7 on the ACADEMIC IELTS with no individual section score lower than 6.5, beyond the College of Graduate Studies required minimum overall score of 6.5;
or - a minimum final score of 90 with a minimum of 3+ in the speaking test on MELAB, beyond the College of Graduate Studies required minimum overall score of 85.
The College of Graduate Studies administers the entire application process and applications are forwarded to the School of Social Work once they are complete. Admission procedures can be found at College of Graduate Studies.
Applicants are encouraged to review the Frequently-Asked-Questions (FAQs) on the School of Social Work.
Degree Requirements
The M.S.W. Advanced One-Year track requires the completion of 30 credits including one 6-credit practicum.
Completion of the program normally requires up to 12 months of study. Students are expected to be continuously enrolled in a maximum of 12 credits (and a minimum of 3 credits), unless otherwise permitted by the Program Coordinator of the School of Social Work.
| Students choosing the course-based option are required to complete the following 30 credits: | |
|---|---|
| SOCW_O 551 | Advanced Clinical Social Work Theory and Practice (3 credits) |
| SOCW_O 553 | Research Knowledge and Evidence in Clinical Social Work (3 credits) |
| SOCW_O 554 | Mental Health and Mental Illness (3 credits) |
| SOCW_O 555 | Organizations and Leadership (3 credits) |
| SOCW_O 558 | Advanced Integrative Seminar for Field Education (3 credits) |
| SOCW_O 559 | Social Work Field Education II (6 credits) |
| One of: | |
| (1) SOCW_O 598 Graduating Paper (3 credits) and 2 approved electives (6 credits); or | |
| (2) 3 approved electives (9 credits) | |
| Students choosing the thesis option are required to complete the following 30 credits: | |
|---|---|
| SOCW_O 553, Research Knowledge and Evidence in Clinical Social Work (3 credits); | |
| One of SOCW_O 551, SOCW_O 554, or SOCW_O 555 (3 credits); | |
| 1 approved electives (3 credits); | |
| One additional graduate-level research methods course approved by the Program Coordinator of the School of Social Work (3 credits); | |
| SOCW_O 558, Advanced Integrative Seminar for Field Education (3 credits) | |
| SOCW_O 559, Social Work Field Education II (6 credits); | |
| SOCW_O 599, Thesis (9 credits) | |
Approved Electives
Approved electives consist of offerings from the School of Social Work, Okanagan Campus (SOCW) and Health-Interprofessional (HINT) 500-level courses, offered by the Faculty of Health and Social Development. These HINT courses encourage effective interprofessional collaboration and understanding among students of health and human service programs, and between the external community and the University.
Note: Additional electives may be possible with the approval of the Program Coordinator of the School of Social Work.