As America's aging population continues its unprecedented expansion, there is increasing demand for trained gerontological social workers to respond to the needs of older adults and their families. A recent study by the U.S. Department of Labor named Geriatric Social Work as one of the country's five most rapidly growing occupations. The specialization in Gerontology offered by Berkeley's School of Social Welfare, one of the oldest gerontology programs in the country, prepares social workers to assume leadership roles in the delivery of services to older adults and their families, in program planning and evaluation, and in policy formulation and analysis. The Gerontology specialization includes both academic courses and varied internship opportunities leading to a Master's degree in Social Welfare.
Students also develop advanced skills through field work training in aging social service agencies.
The School of Social Welfare is affiliated with over 40 such agencies in the greater Bay Area which offer a wide array of direct and indirect gerontology internship opportunities. In addition, students in the Gerontology specialization have access to numerous elective courses offered in other departments on campus. Career Opportunities Challenging positions are available to graduates in a wide range of settings serving older persons who are frail as well as those who are in good health. Recent graduates of Berkeley's Gerontology specialization currently work in positions such as geriatric case managers, psychiatric sodial workers, long term care planning specialists, adult day and adult protective service workers. The School of Social Welfare is located on the beautiful Berkeley campus of The University of California, a colorful community in the San Francisco Bay Area.