Introduction to the Soros Foundation Social Work Fellowship Program
Eligibility requirements
Instructions for applying
Selection process
What is social work?
Academic programs: 1. Methods of SW practice; 2. Social problem areas
Application form
Timeline
List of participants in the SWF program
Useful websites, reference

ACADEMIC PROGRAM

Graduate programs in social work begin with learning the foundations of social work to ensure that all graduates have the same knowledge base upon entering the social work profession. Foundation courses focus on studying theories, issues, and practice methods dealing with both human behavior and the social environment. After the foundation is established, students choose a practice method and a social problem area (described in detail below). For example if you are interested in developing policy on pensioner's issues you would choose social policy (the method or the way you would like to work) and gerontology (the problem area or the population you would like to work with). To receive a degree, fellows must take all of the courses required by the department and the university. In addition to coursework, most universities require that students take examinations, write papers, or conduct a research project. In Social Work, students are also required to gain practical experience working in the field - also called a practicum or internship - where the knowledge gained in the classroom is integrated into supervised social work experience. Students often do fieldwork and attend classes at the same time.

Methods of Social Work Practice
Clinical Social Work / Family Therapy (Counseling) - Emphasizes assessment, intervention, and evaluation, using individual, family, group, and case management strategies; clinical application of risk and resiliency theories and research to at-risk populations; and clinical issues with specific client populations.

Generalist - Emphasizes direct practice; community practice; movement from case to cause; development of innovative and responsive social programs and of program resources, including staffing and funding. Learn to provide direct services for clients, advocate on behalf of at-risk individuals and groups, form coalitions to influence policy and legislation, develop innovative, responsive social programs that can survive, and locate new sources of support and funding.

Social Administration / Management - Building knowledge, skills, and values in administering social service programs includes areas of program planning, program evaluation, financial management, marketing, and fundraising, staff development and training, human resource management, and management information systems.

Social Policy - Policy analysis and advocacy are the focus, including the knowledge, values, and skills to define policy issues from a social work perspective, collect and analyze relevant data, develop policy options, prepare testimony, and present recommendations.

Social Research - Emphasizes advanced social work research methods; data analysis and statistics; application of research methods to social work problems and constituencies.

Social Problem Areas (Source: www.columbia.edu/cu/ssw, www.gwbweb.wustl.edu)

Children, Youth, and Families - The economic and social status and service needs of families, youth, and children; laws, funding streams, and service organizations; family support and child care services; preventive and protective services; school-based services; teenage pregnancy/parenting services.

Gerontology - The role and status of the elderly as a population/potential client group; social problems affecting them; sociology of the family; age stratification; policies providing financial support, health, and social care for the elderly; and social service provisions for the aged.

School - Work within the population of school-aged children; legal and policy issues in public education; problems of school failure; design, administration, financing, delivery, and evaluation of child and family services that are either school-based or school-linked; and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Work - The composition, status, and needs of the labor force; conditions interfering with work roles; services for clients as workers and for their dependents; collective bargaining; discrimination and unequal opportunity; interdisciplinary initiatives; and legislation related to work and social welfare.

Contemporary Social Problems - Emerging problems (e.g. homelessness, violence, substance abuse); their etiology, epidemiology, and interconnections; relevant policies, programs, and practices; and coordination or lack of coordination among service systems that seek to address this problem.

Health, Mental Health and Disabilities - Emphasizes clinical practice with individuals, families, and groups experiencing health-related problems in a variety of settings, and management or administrative roles in health-related organizations. Identification of health factors and social stressors that affect clients; program development and evaluation; fiscal, legal, and organizational sanctions and influences; assessment of system entry points for client care and advocacy.

International Social Welfare and Services to Immigrants and Refugees - Global social problems; international trends in social policies and programs, including response to disasters; needs of immigrants and refugees; community development; and activities of major international organizations and voluntary agencies working internationally.

Social and Economic Development - Centers on the problems of underdevelopment, in the U.S. and around the world. The challenges of development include improvements in living conditions and economic opportunities in urban neighborhoods, rural areas, nations, and regions that are struggling to achieve basic necessities.