Graduate Programs

Overview

At the University of Toledo’s Master of Social Work (M.S.W.) Program, you will learn with other students and faculty who truly share your passion for social and economic justice. We are committed to helping you develop the skills to create social change at the individual, organizational, community and societal levels.

The M.S.W program offers an advanced generalist specialization. This specialization prepares students to work with diverse clients and social systems, using strengths and empowerment models. As an advanced generalist social worker, you will improve clients’ quality of life via critical thinking and innovative use of complex assessment, interventions and evaluation. You will be skilled in working in micro, mezzo and macro settings.

In your Advanced year of M.S.W. training, you will learn Advanced Generalist skills through focusing on your choice of tracks: Mental Health or Child & Family. Students in both tracks learn micro interventions appropriate to the population in a fall semester class and about macro systems of care and policies in a spring semester class.

You can earn an M.S.W. regardless of the field in which you earned your undergraduate degree.

• If you have an undergraduate Social Work degree, our 33-credit Advanced Standing M.S.W. program is a fit for you. It starts in summer, with full-time students completing their Advanced classes and 525-hour field placement (internship) that year and graduating the following May.
• If your undergraduate degree is not in Social Work, our 60-credit Regular M.S.W. program is right for you. It starts in fall, with full-time students completing their Foundation classes and 425-hour field placement (internship) in year 1 and their Advanced classes and 525-hour field placement in year 2.

Licensing

If you live in a state other than Ohio, or you are planning to move to another state after you graduate, then we strongly encourage you to review the social work licensing requirements in that state. For more information, please visit:

• Association of Social Work Boards
• Social Work Licensure Directory

Visit the MSW website for more information about the program or to set up a time to meet with the program director and discuss any questions.

Top Reasons to Study social work at UToledo

1. Full accreditation by the Council of Social Work Education.
2. Convenient for working students.

   Most of our M.S.W. courses are face to face, offered in the evenings after 5 p.m. and on Saturdays. You can attend full-time or part-time.
3. Working, professional faculty.

   UToledo M.S.W. faculty members breathe life into social work concepts. They are practitioners as well as teachers and bring real-world examples to the classroom. They have developed strong ties to community social-service agencies, which often hire our M.S.W. graduates. Small class sizes allow our faculty members to develop close relationships with students. 
4. Broad clinical and classroom experience.

   UToledo Social Work graduate students are trained to work with a wide range of populations, from children to seniors. They have access to state-of-the-art technology and graduate with more than 900 hours of field work. 
5. Human trafficking experts.

   UToledo is at the forefront of human trafficking research and advocacy. Our School of Social Justice houses the Human Trafficking and Social Justice Institute. The institute engages in research, community organizing, teaching and policy work. Its annual international conference is the oldest and most prestigious in the nation. UToledo students attend for free. 
6. Financial assistance.

   M.S.W. graduate students can apply for graduate assistantships within the social work department or through the graduate school office.  

 

UToledo Social Work master's students collaborate on research with faculty and present at conferences. 

Our faculty members are as diverse as our students and our community. They have expertise in: 

• Mental health and addictions 
• Human trafficking 
• Social justice 
• Working with the Latino community
• The benefits of animal-human interactions 
• Social work in health care 
• Social justice in the arts 
• Child welfare 
• Social work and spirituality 

 

What jobs can I get with a social work degree?

UToledo M.S.W. graduates are prepared to work in diverse settings with a variety of clients. Our graduates choose jobs in a variety of types of social work, including:

• Child welfare
• Community organizing
• Criminal justice
• Evaluation/research
• Gerontology
• Health care
• Hospice
• Mental health/substance abuse
• Political action
• School social work

Internship Opportunities For Social Work Master's Degree

M.S.W. students are required to complete internships, which run during the school year along with classes. UToledo graduate students spend more than 900 hours in the field.  

We assist students with arranging field placements. Placements range from clinical practice and research to community organizing, health care, administration, and more.