USC launched a Bachelor of Social Work program this fall, the first of its kind at an R1 private university in California, with 14 students enrolled.
The program was partially funded by a $1.5 million grant from the California Department of Health Care Access and Information, according to a press release from the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. The program was created to address a shortage in California’s behavioral health workforce, according to the press release.
The California Department of Health Care Access and Information projected in its behavioral health workforce modeling that by 2033 the statewide shortage of non-prescribing licensed clinicians in California would reach just over 42%. HCAI projected that 171,413 total providers would be needed to meet demand, nearly double the current statewide supply.
To become a licensed clinical social worker in California, applicants must earn a master’s degree in social work, among other requirements. USC’s bachelor’s program is pursuing accreditation from the Council on Social Work Education, which would allow eligible graduates to enter USC’s Master of Social Work program and complete the degree in as little as one year, rather than the standard two years, according to Umeka Franklin, director of USC’s new program and an associate teaching professor.
With a Bachelor of Social Work, students can be employed in entry-level positions such as case managers, substance abuse counselors and child welfare workers, according to CaliforniaSocialWorkEDU.org, which provides information about social work education and licensing.
“It’s been amazing and fulfilling knowing that we have developed a program that is really going to be special,” Franklin said. “The first cohort that can serve as a pipeline into our master’s of social work program, and then onward.”
Franklin said the program will be structured around an integrative model, teaching students social work skills in three phases: the micro, mezzo and macro levels. She said there are 14 courses in the degree, two of which involve practicum work that allows students to apply skills learned in the classroom to real-world settings.
“Students come back from being at their practicum site, and they’re able to process what they have experienced with faculty members and their peers as well,” Franklin said. “Students will have an opportunity to receive mentorship in peer to peer mentorship by the master students, and then also faculty to student mentorship as well.”
Sophomore Ruby Martinez, one of the 14 students in the program, said practicum work is important because it allows students to apply the skills they learn in the classroom.
“With a job like social work where you’re interacting with people and you’re involved actively in their lives, there’s no better way to learn than doing it,” Martinez said.
Sophomore Citlalli Vela, another student in the program, said students at the bachelor’s level are learning the basics and history of the profession to prepare them for success if they pursue a master’s degree in social work.
Vela, who is on the pre-law track, said the personal skills she has learned through the program have also been helpful in preparing for a career in law. She said she sees the small size of the inaugural cohort as an asset.
“I think having a small cohort makes us all closer as a class, and also I feel like Professor Franklin has just been so supportive and continuously keeps up with us,” Vela said.
Omar López, a teaching professor at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work and assistant dean of recruitment and workforce development, said that while the program can prepare students for a master’s degree in social work, students who do not plan to pursue that path can still benefit from the degree.
“This four-year program gives you the soft skills and the critical thinking to operate with other human beings across different industries,” López said. “If you are a human being that wants to help another human being, regardless of the field that you’re in, this degree will give you those skills. It forces you to look at yourself because before you could help somebody, you have to be able to help yourself.”
Edited by Nina Kremer and Zayane El Solh