The UMBC Undergraduate Social Work Program is an integral part of the University of Maryland Baltimore, School of Social Work which provides a continuum of professional education including baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral degrees. The baccalaureate Social Work major has as its goal to prepare students for generalist Social Work practice with client groups of all sizes in a range of social service settings. Students completing the program are awarded a B. A. degree in Social Work and are entitled to take the State of Maryland Examination to become licensed as Social Work Associates. The Social Work Major consists of 40 core credits.
Students have the opportunity to work with computer and library services.
The course provides an overview of the historical development and contemporary forces that have shaped the social welfare system in the United States. The course examines the relationship between the social welfare system and the problems and issues addressed by social services, and the role of the professional social worker in areas of service such as aging, child welfare, health and mental health, income maintenance, and services to women and minorities. In addition, the course offers opportunities to meet with practitioners in the field to understand the diverse populations served. This course is a prerequisite for field instruction. Emphasis is placed on understanding the relevance and use of theory for practice, and how diversity in race, ethnicity, culture, gender, sexual orientation and socioeconomic circumstances contributes to and influences personality development as well as the systems within which this takes place.