The University of Southern Queensland's Bachelor of Social Work prepares students to become practice-ready graduates dedicated to social justice, inclusion, and well-being. Through coursework, industry-based placements, and residential workshops, students develop the skills to work clinically with individuals and families, address community needs, advocate for change, and contribute to policy development. Upon completion, graduates are eligible to apply for membership in the Australian Association of Social Workers.

Degree Overview:

Become a practice-ready graduate practitioner and be a catalyst for change, dedicated to achieving social justice, inclusion and wellbeing. Everyone deserves to feel supported and treated fairly. Study UniSQ’s Bachelor of Social Work online and develop the skills you need to help in a time of need - whether it be a personal crisis, concern about a child’s welfare, assisting community groups, or navigating recovery after illness. You will build the skills you need to work clinically with individuals and families; co-develop community solutions to address inequalities and structural disadvantage; and advocate for justice through policy and legislative change. Are you from a rural, remote or regional area and acknowledge a demand for social workers? Give back to your region and work with community to co-develop strategies and solutions that address that need. Create change in the regions that need it most. Within UniSQ’s social work courses you will experience two 500-hour industry-based placements. Typically taken in the later years of your degree, you will be mentored and supervised by an experienced social worker in a chosen field of practice, from domestic and family violence services to schools, or an emergency department in a hospital. Extending beyond the delivery of traditional social work, as a UniSQ graduate you will be an excellent communicator, be able to comprehensively assess individual and community needs, problem solve, advocate for human rights and social justice, navigate complex services and systems, and contribute to policy development and evaluation.

Outline:

To complete this degree students must complete 32 units. To study full-time you would usually complete 4 units per semester.

Courses to be studied

Units Core courses 22 2 x placement courses 6 4 x electives 4 Total 32

Professional experience / placements

You will be required to participate in two 500-hour industry-based placements. Typically taken in the later years of your degree, you will be mentored and supervised by an experienced social worker in a field of practice. You could be placed in a wide range of government and non-government agencies, from child and youth mental health services, emergency department in a hospital, domestic and family violence services, first nations services or child safety services.

Residential schools

You will be required to attend 5 days of residential workshops each year of the degree, totalling 20 days of face-to-face residential workshops. This is a requirement of the external accrediting body – Australian Association of Social Workers. These face-to-face workshops provide experiential learning opportunities and you will make important connections with fellow students and academics.

Careers:

Graduate with the knowledge, skills and an ethical practice framework that enables you to deliver social work services in areas such as child protection, youth justice, domestic and family violence, mental health services, disability support, hospitals and health care, sexual assault services, asylum seekers and refugee support, community services and schools. Social Work leads to careers in agencies and services that provide opportunities for working with individuals and families in the community but your degree will also enable you to work towards societal change through advocacy, policy development and evaluation, and legislative input.

Other:

Further study

After successful completion of the first two years of the Bachelor of Social Work degree, you can apply to study a Bachelor of Social Work (Honours).

Professional accreditation

The Bachelor of Social Work is accredited with the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) under the Australian Social Work Education and Accreditation Standards (ASWEAS). UniSQ graduates from the Bachelor of Social Work and Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) will be eligible to apply for membership of the AASW.

Inherent requirements

There are inherent requirements that must be met in order to successfully complete this degree. Inherent requirements are fundamental skills, capabilities and knowledge that students must be able to demonstrate in order to achieve the essential learning outcomes of the degree, while maintaining the academic integrity of the degree. Please read and understand the inherent requirements specific to the Bachelor of Social Work before applying. If you think you may experience any problems meeting inherent requirements, you can talk to a Student Equity Officer about reasonable adjustments that may be put in place to assist you.

Additional requirements for placements

All students must provide the following documents prior to commencing field education courses: Blue Card or Working with Children Check Yellow Card (if working with people with disabilities) Australian Police Certificate. You must also provide the following immunisation evidence prior to commencing placements: Hepatitis B immunisation evidence Measles, Mumps and Rubella immunisation evidence Varicella immunisation evidence Pertussis immunisation evidence Influenza immunisation evidence Tuberculosis Risk Assessment COVID-19 vaccinations as directed by health services.