Hi, I'm new here and I have a question regarding my undergrad major. So I originally started out as a nursing major at my university with hopes of being a psych RN. But I realized nursing wasn't for me and I changed my major to psychology because I still want to be in the mental health field. After some intense research of possible career paths and graduate programs, I've recently decided that I want to pursue the MSW route to become a LSW. I've only just discovered that there is a BSW but my school doesn't offer that major anyway. Will a BA in psychology be a good undergrad for pursuing the MSW or will I need the BSW? I've also noticed that jobs are similar, or the same, for BA in psych and the BSW. I'd like some feedback on this, thank you.
BA in Psychology for MSW?
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That would be a great degree for a future MSW program, especially if you are planning on going into psychiatric social work. My undergrad degrees were in psychology and criminal justice; I'm currently enrolled in an MSW program. This is pretty common around my program, there are people with undergrad degrees in Sociology, Psychology, Criminal Justice, and Social Work, and those are just the ones I know. I'm a little confused by the last part though. A licensed MSW would lead to any of the dozens of individual state licenses (every state seems to vary a little), but in general, it's referred to as the LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). The LSW in the undergrad license I believe, and the two have different scopes of practice. What were you hoping to do in the mental health field?
I recommend reading through this thread:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/the-official-msw-q-a-thread.506622/
loads of good information in there!
I recommend reading through this thread:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/the-official-msw-q-a-thread.506622/
loads of good information in there!
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I have a BS in Psych and I'm currently in a 2 year MSW program. I really enjoy the diversity that comes with a 2 year MSW program. I learned tons just from fellow students. They brought a lot of interesting experience to the table, and different perspectives from different disciplines.
On the licensing, I think a LSW is generally either an undergrad level license or a generalist license, meaning it is not clinical and not a license that would allow you to practice therapy. I'd double check your state board because there are a ton of variations, esp on the non-clinical licenses.
On the licensing, I think a LSW is generally either an undergrad level license or a generalist license, meaning it is not clinical and not a license that would allow you to practice therapy. I'd double check your state board because there are a ton of variations, esp on the non-clinical licenses.
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I second what Goobernut and Wesley Smith have said about your psych undergrad degree. You don't need a BSW. The benefit to having one is that you will be eligible for advanced staining. In case you already know what it is, I will briefly say that you can complete your MSW degree in one year instead of two. Folks in my program who are advanced standing go from Sep and end the next July or August. Another benefit would be less tuition in grad school.
Can you give examples of similar jobs that you've seen that require a BSW or BA in Psych? I'd imagine that there are case management positions available for BSW students and residential programs available for both. I've never done that job search myself so I am unaware.
Lastly, I am not sure if the LSW is the intermediate license for your independent clinical license. If there is a question about licensure I've found this website helpful.
Socialworklicensemap.com
Can you give examples of similar jobs that you've seen that require a BSW or BA in Psych? I'd imagine that there are case management positions available for BSW students and residential programs available for both. I've never done that job search myself so I am unaware.
Lastly, I am not sure if the LSW is the intermediate license for your independent clinical license. If there is a question about licensure I've found this website helpful.
Socialworklicensemap.com
Thank you for your welcoming and helpful replies.
wesleysmith -Thank you for the link. It was very helpful. I'm still exploring what exactly I'd want to do (and I'm sure I won't know for sure until I'm out there!) but I do have an interest in clinical SW, and I think my brief background in nursing might be helpful in that.
Goobernut - Interesting. I'm glad to hear you're enjoying your program! I like the idea of interacting with diverse perspectives of others. When working in a profession with people, that's important. I've heard that the MSW is a good degree with broad opportunities. How common is it to have people with academic backgrounds outside of the social sciences (i.e. english, history, languages, etc) in an MSW program?
submarine1991 - Yes, I am aware that earning a BSW can help with getting the MSW quicker, thank you. As I said, though, my school doesn't offer it. Two schools in my area do (that I've just learned) but I'm a second semester junior and transferring wasn't an option, unfortunately (I switched to psych at the beginning of this year). Although, spending less money definitely would have been the best perk!
In my area, I'm not sure how common the BSW is. The job postings I've seen for my area for case management type positions all stated, "Bachelor's Degree in psychology, sociology, human services, or a related field." BSW would count for "related area" I'd assume but it was never specifically state. This was in a variety of settings as well. But for other areas outside of mine I've also seen BSW, psych, soc, as well. Though I'm not sure if a BSW could be hired as a BA-level therapist, could it?
I'll admit that I thought LSW and LCSW were the same thing, or similar. Just a little ignorance on my part. I didn't know of the difference (still researching, ha). Thank you all for the info and correction on that.
I know most programs say they are 2 years in length, but does this include the field/practicum hours as well? How do practicums and internships fit in with the curriculum and how long it takes to complete? In short, how long should I realistically expect to spend in school? I've looked at a few programs and am just a little confused how that is structured.
Thank you again for your responses, I appreciate it!
wesleysmith -Thank you for the link. It was very helpful. I'm still exploring what exactly I'd want to do (and I'm sure I won't know for sure until I'm out there!) but I do have an interest in clinical SW, and I think my brief background in nursing might be helpful in that.
Goobernut - Interesting. I'm glad to hear you're enjoying your program! I like the idea of interacting with diverse perspectives of others. When working in a profession with people, that's important. I've heard that the MSW is a good degree with broad opportunities. How common is it to have people with academic backgrounds outside of the social sciences (i.e. english, history, languages, etc) in an MSW program?
submarine1991 - Yes, I am aware that earning a BSW can help with getting the MSW quicker, thank you. As I said, though, my school doesn't offer it. Two schools in my area do (that I've just learned) but I'm a second semester junior and transferring wasn't an option, unfortunately (I switched to psych at the beginning of this year). Although, spending less money definitely would have been the best perk!
In my area, I'm not sure how common the BSW is. The job postings I've seen for my area for case management type positions all stated, "Bachelor's Degree in psychology, sociology, human services, or a related field." BSW would count for "related area" I'd assume but it was never specifically state. This was in a variety of settings as well. But for other areas outside of mine I've also seen BSW, psych, soc, as well. Though I'm not sure if a BSW could be hired as a BA-level therapist, could it?
I'll admit that I thought LSW and LCSW were the same thing, or similar. Just a little ignorance on my part. I didn't know of the difference (still researching, ha). Thank you all for the info and correction on that.
I know most programs say they are 2 years in length, but does this include the field/practicum hours as well? How do practicums and internships fit in with the curriculum and how long it takes to complete? In short, how long should I realistically expect to spend in school? I've looked at a few programs and am just a little confused how that is structured.
Thank you again for your responses, I appreciate it!
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The internships run concurrently with your coursework. Not sure how much this varies, but as an example, I go 16 hours per week for my first two semester (first year internship) and will be going slightly more than that for my final two semesters (concentration year internship). My program runs through the summer as well, but there are no internships during the summer unless you're going for school social work as they have more hours required. So 20 months start to finish for my program I guess. Although, that too may vary from program to program. After that, you have 2-3 years, depending on which state you're in, of supervised practice before you can become fully licensed.
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Twenty consecutive months for me as well. Start in September, end May 1st. We have 24 hours ( three 8 hour days )in the field all four semesters. You can lighten your course load the second year by taking classes during your first summer break if that's feasible.
Some schools are different in how they structure their field and academic requirement. For example, Smith holds classes during the summer and the students have an intensive field experience during the traditional academic year. Goobernut can also speak to this because her program does something not quite similar but something along these lines.
I would think that a BSW would certainly be a "related" field. I've not heard of a bachelors level therapist...
Some schools are different in how they structure their field and academic requirement. For example, Smith holds classes during the summer and the students have an intensive field experience during the traditional academic year. Goobernut can also speak to this because her program does something not quite similar but something along these lines.
I would think that a BSW would certainly be a "related" field. I've not heard of a bachelors level therapist...
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This is just for my experience obviously, but we didn't have any undergrad degrees from English or History. Almost everything was social services related. Education, Human Relations, Early Intervention, Early Childhood, and Teaching just to name a few. Most of the degrees already had some type of research component, because many of these people did not have to take the research prerequisite separately before entrance. There were several of us psych degrees, and we even had one BSW degree who had been out of the field for so long that she didn't qualify for the advanced standing degree. She did have a masters degree in HR. We actually had several of those. One master's in Poli Sci too. In the two year program almost everyone is going to have something other than an social work background because everyone with a social work background goes into the advanced standing program. Does that make sense?
Yes, the 60 hours required to grad includes the practicum hours. Like Submarine mentioned, my program does the practicum hours a bit differently. My foundation year was a part time practicum, in which I attended school with a full time grad load and then a part time practicum -- I did three 8 hour days. For my concentration year, we had only 9 hours of grad hours in the fall, but I'm now in full time practicum placement for January through May graduation. I am at my practicum 40 hours a week, 8-5 as a fully integrated member of the staff. There are benefits and drawbacks to this model as I'm sure you can see haha.
Honestly, I think where you get placed is key to the goal of being a therapist.
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For what it's worth, my undergraduate degree is in philosophy. I don't think your major will affect your chances of being accepted into an MSW program, for better or for worse. The BA in psych may give you a little more foundational knowledge, but honestly any good MSW program will adequately prepare you. Most have different concentrations, for instance my concentration is in mental health so my concentration year coursework is oriented towards that. But they also have more macro oriented programs that may better prepare you do do research should you intend to pursue the Ph.D route and do more social work research.
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