Master of Social Work
Programme Director: Dr FUNG, Kwok Kin
The MSW is a professional master’s degree designed for those who have undergraduate training in social work and wish to advance their knowledge and skills for social services. It has both full-time and part-time modes of delivery. The length of the programme is one year (full-time) or two years (part-time) including summer term.
The outcome goals of the MSW programme are:
- To become reflective practitioners who are able to assess changing social needs and adapt their own performance accordingly;
- To become self-directed learners, recognising personal educational needs, selecting appropriate learning resources and evaluating progress;
- To develop specialised knowledge and skills at advanced level to match up with the emerging social needs and problems in all their complexity and extensiveness;
- To be able to assess critically professional activities and advocate for appropriate reforms in the system;
- To acquire the competence as a researcher-practitioner, so as to enrich one’s knowledge base for the development of new policies and interventions for emerging issues; and
- To be able to recognise, maintain and develop professional identity to ensure the contribution of the profession in the changing times.
The 30-unit programme is designed to be completed in one year by full-time study or two years by part-time study. Only under exceptional circumstances may students seek extension of the period of study. The programme emphasises student-oriented active learning, and it is geared towards developing opportunity for students to develop a concentration in either youth work or in mental health.
The structure of the curriculum is as follows:
| I) | Integrative Courses | 12 units |
| II) | Concentration Courses | 9 units |
| III) | Elective Courses | 9 units |
| 30 units |
Requirements
| I. | Integrative Courses | 12 units |
| SOWK7010 Social Work in a Changing Social Context | 3 units | |
| SOWK7030 Critical Management Practice | 3 units | |
| SOWK7040 Research and Programme Evaluation | 3 units | |
| SOWK7410 Human Diversity and Cultural Differences | 3 units | |
| II. | Concentration Courses | 9 units |
| Choose one concentration: | ||
| Mental Health Practice Concentration | ||
| SOWK7110 Mental Health, Mental Disorder and Social Work | 3 units | |
| SOWK7210 Working with Families with Mental Health Issues | 3 units | |
| SOWK7230 Crisis Management and Integrated Mental Health Practice | 3 units | |
| Youth Work Concentration | ||
| SOWK7170 Youth at the Margins: Theory and Practice | 3 units | |
| SOWK7220 Youth and Cultural Practice | 3 units | |
| SOWK7240 Critical Youth Work | 3 units | |
| III. | Elective Courses | 9 units |
| SOWK7120 Child and Adolescent Mental Health | 3 units | |
| SOWK7151 Dissertation | 3 units | |
| SOWK7152 Dissertation | 3 units | |
| SOWK7310 Globalization and Community Development Practice | 3 units | |
| SOWK7430 Narrative Approach to Counselling | 3 units | |
| SOWK7500 Family Therapy | 3 units | |
| SOWK7840 Data Methodology in Social Sciences Research | 3 units | |
| SOWK7890 Career Facilitation and Counselling | 3 units | |
| Mental Health Practice Concentration | ||
| SOWK7170 Youth at the Margins: Theory and Practice | 3 units | |
| SOWK7240 Critical Youth Work | 3 units | |
| SOWK7730 Social Work with Youth | 3 units | |
| Youth Work Concentration | ||
| SOWK7110 Mental Health, Mental Disorder and Social Work | 3 units | |
| SOWK7210 Working with Families with Mental Health Issues | 3 units | |
| SOWK7440 Narrative Practice with Specific Youth Groups | 3 units | |
| 30 units | ||