<p>Hi. I'm going to be a senior in high school this year, and I think I want to major in social work. I really want a job where I can help people every day, and I feel like social work is a job where I can do that. Most of the colleges I'm looking at have 5 year plans or advanced standing where you can get your master's done in a year. I was wondering if this is a good idea to get your BSW and MSW in 5 years or should you get a few years of job experience in between? I know having a master's is important for social work, so I figured the sooner you got it the better job opportunities you would have. Also, for any social work majors out there, what did you minor in? I was thinking of double majoring in social work and Spanish and then minoring in something else. I know I still have a long time to decide, but I was just wondering what other people minored in. Other areas I'm interested in are sociology, psychology, justice and peace studies, international relations, urban studies, political science, and public policy. Also, how much does a social work degree deal with public policy? I would like to work with people mostly, but I'm also really interested in how laws are made and how the government works, and I would like work on laws and policies that would help people, if that makes sense. So if you can answer any of my questions, that would be great!! Thanks!!</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s a bad idea to get the MSW while you can. It’ll be harder once you’re working. The MSW is important for independent licensure and for administrative positions in a social service agency, etc. Even with the MSW, you typicallyu will need supervised experience before you can take the licensure exam. As part of the BSW & MSW you will have various fieldwork placements so you’ll get some practical experience along the way, which will vary in the degree of supervision you get and the extent to which they are tied to other coursework requirements. The specific licensure requirements vary by state. </p>
<p>At both the BSW and MSW levels you’ll take some coursework in Social Policy, but more at the MSW level. In many MSW programs, you have some opportiunity to specialize in certain areas. A common feature is an option for either a practice track or an administrative/policy track. </p>
<p>Spanish might be a very useful additional major or minor (or just take language coursework to develop language proficiency), especially if you anticipate working with the Hispanic community. The other fields you mention would be appropriate minors too, depending on what are your areas of interest. To my way of thinking, sociology might be too similar in some respects to your SW courses so it might be good to diversify a little. At the master’s level, sometimes there is a program in nonprofit management or a joint program in public policy or law (depending on what school you attend), but it may take an additional year to complete. For those areas, business could be a good mnor. If you have an interest in working with immigrant groups or in international social work, cultural/social anthropology could be a good minor. Again depending on your interests or the type of university you attend, other areas could provide some good possibilities for minors. For example, if you attended a landgrant university with an ag school, courses in rural sociology/community development could provide a useful minor. Also if you attend a landgrant uni with a school of human ecology/home ec, courses in consumer economics could provide a useful minor. If you’re interested in medical social work, courses in public health might provide a useful minor. It really comes down to what areas interest you and what related coursework fields are available at your school.</p>
<p>These suggestions will give some things to consider, but as you mentioned, you still have lots of time to explore your interests without any pressing need to decide on these things right away.</p>
<p>What are some good social work undergrad programs to consider?</p>
<p>There are lots of accredited BSW programs, so pick a school based on its overall quality, academic and social fit, cost, location, etc. Over the years, some of the programs I’ve heard positive comments about include Wisconsin-Madison, Ohio State, Catholic U, Pittsburgh, and Georgia. For MSW programs, I heard positive comments about all those plus BC, WUStL, Berkeley, Smith, Michigan, Chicago, U Illinois-Chicago, Minnesota, and Cleveland State/Akron, and U Washington. A directory of accredited programs is here: [Membership</a> Directory](<a href=“http://portal.cswe.org/Membership/MemberDirectorySearch.aspx]Membership”>http://portal.cswe.org/Membership/MemberDirectorySearch.aspx)</p>