Master of Social Work Program

Mission

The mission of the Master of Social Work program at Wichita State University is to prepare graduates for autonomous Advanced Generalist practice. This mission is accomplished through the preparation of advanced social workers capable of practice in complex, diverse-and ever-changing environments. Emphasis is placed on developing evidence-based knowledge and skills for ethical, culturally competent, socially just, and empowering interventions on all practice levels.

Goals

To prepare Advanced Generalist social workers:

1. For ethical, competent, autonomous advanced generalist social work practice with multiple systems and diverse populations within urban environments.
2. Who can contribute and engage the community through evidence-based knowledge, skills and ethical practice.
3. With an understanding of and a commitment to empowerment, social justice, cultural competency and multidimensional practice.

Accreditation

The WSU MSW program is accredited by the Council for Social Work Education (CSWE). This is basically who says this is a legitimate social work educational program, and most states require you to attend a CSWE accredited program to become licensed and work as a social worker. The MSW program received initial accreditation in June 2000, and received reaffirmation in June 2021 for eight years, through June 2029.

The advanced generalist is adept at direct service delivery with individuals, families, groups, and communities, and also has indirect practice capabilities in the areas of supervision, administration, program development, and evaluation.

Advanced generalist practitioners possess a broad range of practice skills. They employ an eclectic and disciplined approach, and are committed to evidence-based practice, including clinical social work.

Themes

Social work at Wichita State University builds on this understanding of Advanced Generalist Practice by advancing four educational themes:

Social Justice

Within the Wichita Metropolitan area, ethnic and racial minorities, the poor, the elderly, and the young, are the most vulnerable to experiencing difficulties arising out of economic and social change. To be just means to treat all people fairly. In its most basic meaning, pursuing social justice means to advocate for equal rights, opportunities, protection and treatment for all people. Additionally, social workers who pursue social justice can identify unfair laws and policies that affect their clients, and work to have these laws and policies changed. In order to be meaningful, social justice must apply to a wide range of social and economic circumstances, since legal justice has little meaning if not supported by more substantive forms of equality.

The MSW program focuses on social justice as one of its four themes. Students learn that social justice is a part of every social work interaction. As part of this emphasis, the curriculum seeks to develop skills in both community development and in effecting social change through the political process.

Cultural Competency

Data concerning population trends in Wichita of Sedgwick County and its surrounding counties support an advanced generalist curriculum that prepares social workers to provide culturally competent services and develop and evaluate programs that are inclusive and which seek to remove cultural barriers to service delivery. A curriculum that incorporates cultural competency will not only provide students with basic knowledge on different racial and ethnic groups, but will develop students' ability to think critically about diversity in social work assessment and practice.

Cultural competency includes the acquisition of the awareness, knowledge, sensitivity, and practice skills necessary to effectively understand and address the cultural/racial/ethnic world-views, strengths, issues, and needs of minority populations. The ultimate goal in the development of cultural competency is to actively utilize the appropriate practice methods that foster the outcome of greater development of cultural/racial ethnic identity and cultural/racial/ethnic empowerment.

Multi-dimensional Practice

Social service delivery systems in the Wichita Metropolitan area are a complex web of public, non-profit, and for-profit agencies. Agency structure, which includes its purpose, scope, size, and type of clients served, is constantly changing. Further, with the onset of privatization in the state, agency boundaries are not always clear. Social workers are serving on teams in which both public and private agencies are represented (Lewandowski & GlenMaye, in press). Most agency funding comes from a variety of private and public sources. Over the past ten years, local agencies have experienced changes in the type and scope of services provided and in the clients they served. These agencies are undergoing changes due to external and internal factors and these changes have contributed to the increasing complexity of agency services and clients served.

The multi-dimensional framework draws upon chaos and complexity theory to develop a practice model that more accurately reflects the dynamic complexity of social work practice.

The multi-dimensional perspective suggests that change and human interactions both occur and affect several levels and dimensions simultaneously. Within an individual, the dimensions consist of the multiple levels of development, including biological, social, psychological, and spiritual development. As individuals interact with their environment, multiple dimensions include the variety of levels of social organization, such as family, groups, and organizations. Rather than being either/or and linear, a multi-dimensional perspective suggests a both/and, nonlinear approach to understanding human interactions (Lewandowski, GlenMaye, & Bolin, 2001).

Empowerment

As in many urban environments, there is an unequal distribution of goods and services within the Wichita community, and discrimination and oppression may contribute to these inequalities.

Empowerment is defined as the process and goal of increasing personal, interpersonal, and political power so that people can take action to improve their life situations (Gutierrez, DeLois, & GlenMaye, 1995). As a curriculum theme, empowerment is linked to four basic processes:

1. Analysis of the social arrangements/institutional structures which create and sustain power inequalities which lead to relative advantage and disadvantage for certain groups in our society.
2. Understanding of the dynamics of oppression and discrimination which disempower people by limiting choices and confining people to low status and devalued social positions.
3. Increasing personal and group power through building on individual and group strengths and facilitating efficacy-enhancing skills, knowledge, and experiences.
4. Utilizing empowerment-oriented techniques and values in practice, including a participatory/collaborative worker/client relationship with shared power, active involvement of clients in the change process, raising awareness of structural inequalities and their relation to individual problems, advocacy and mobilization of resources, and a professional commitment to efforts to create a more just and equitable society.

These themes are woven together to develop the school's model for Advanced Generalist Practice. The model incorporates the values and multiple role capability the social worker brings to each intervention. These core values and roles help integrate the practitioner's understanding of practice within a multi-system framework.

The multi-system framework is used on the assumption that human events can best be understood in their context. Human behavior and social problems are "nested" within a hierarchical structure. Smaller systems (individuals and families) are affected by the actions of larger systems (organizations, communities and societies) in such a way that effective practice requires skills with all system levels.

Practice Roles

Whatever the setting or client, Advanced Generalist Practitioners are prepared to bring evidence-based practice skills to bear in each intervention. The complex and changing practice environments require that direct practitioners also be able to function in clinical work with individuals and across a spectrum of practice up to national policy analysis. Practice with individuals, groups, communities and society requires an ability to fulfill multiple practice roles, including:

• Administrator
• Advocate
• Broker
• Case manager
• Lobbyist
• Policy Practitioner
• Researcher
• Supervisor
• Therapist
• and more

In accordance with Kansas Law, graduates must sit for the licensure exam to practice social work and to be able to call themselves "social workers". MSW Graduates can take the LMSW exam during their last semester or after graduation. MSW graduates can also become eligible for the LSCSW exam.

To receive an application for the LSW exam, contact the Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (BSRB) in Topeka, 785-296-3240. The complete application and BSRB regulations can also be found on the BSRB website at www.ksbsrb.org.

Regular Program

The regular program, consisting of 55 credit hours, begins in the fall semester and requires two (2) years as a full-time student or four (4) years as a part-time student.

Foundational Regular Program Curriculum

Advanced Standing

The advanced standing program is for those who have a Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) degree from a social work program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). The advanced standing program, consisting of 32 credit hours, begins in the summer and requires one (1) year as a full-time student or two (2) years as a part-time student.

Advanced Standing Specialist Program Curriculum

Please note: These are the current MSW curricula. We are in the process of revising these based on student and stakeholder feedback for the 2026-2027 academic year. We will share updates as they are available.

Financial Aid

There are various ways in which a student can obtain payment for class.

Financial Aid for Social Work students

ScholarshipUniverse

Scholarship Universe is Wichita State's scholarship-matching tool for admitted and current students.

ScholarshipUniverse

Net Price Calculator

Use the Net Price Calculator to receive an estimate of your eligibility for financial aid from Wichita State, the federal government, and the state of Kansas (if applicable).

Net Price Calculator

Graduate Assistantships

The School of Social Work loves to partner with students and offer graduate assistantships when funding is available. There are two types with their own process to apply.

Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTAs)

Within the School of Social Work, GTAs support student and faculty by preparing course materials, co-lecturing, grading, curriculum refinement, among other tasks. GTAs are not expected to be ready to serve as an independent faculty member. Mentorship will be provided by faculty and staff. This is an excellent opportunity to learn, network, serve, and grow in your social work identity and community.

Competitive GTA candidates are hardworking, dependable, and invested in social work student success. They understand their strengths and areas for growth and will ask for help when something is unclear or they make a mistake. They should also be available to work approximately 20 hours during the Fall and Spring semesters during weekday business hours. Students will receive partial tuition remission and a small (emphasis on small) stipend.

To apply, email a cover letter and resume or CV to socialwork@wichita.edu with "MSW GTA application" in the subject line. Applications are accepted from February 1st to February 28th. Anything received before or after that, will not be reviewed. Students must be enrolled in the WSU MSW program or have submitted their completed application to WSU MSW to be eligible. Review of applications and interviews will occur during March and April, and all candidates will be notified of decisions in May.

If you need help with your cover letter and resume or CV, please reach out to the Shocker Career Accelerator.

Graduate Research Assistantships (GRAs)

Within the School of Social Work, most students complete a GRA through their practicum. GRAs provide assistance to faculty who are conducting research. Duties can include conducting literature reviews, recruiting participants, gathering data, data analysis, writing and presenting findings, among other responsibilities. GRAs are not expected to know how to do these things already. Mentorship will be provided by faculty and staff. This is another excellent opportunity to learn, network, serve, and grow in your social work identity and community.

Competitive GRA candidates are hardworking, dependable, and interested in systematic inquiry. They understand their strengths and areas for growth and will ask for help when something is unclear or they make a mistake. Hours depend on the level of practicum and project, but students generally need some availability to work during the weekday business hours. Students will be compensated through a scholarship or hourly wage depending on the project.

To apply, express your interest during your interview to discuss your placement with the Directors of Practicum or faculty you might want to work with.

Additional Note on Funding Your MSW

If you are selecting your MSW program based on the funding you can receive, we are unfortunately not the program for you. You may want to explore programs housed in universities that have more resources. The graduate social work rankings can help you find these universities. Higher ranked social work programs are not always better — trust us, we've attended both high-ranking and non-high-ranking programs — but they do often have more money.

Even if we aren't the right program for you right now, we wish you the best in your educational journey!