From Practice to Professing: Identifying Routes to Baccalaureate Social Work Education

Abstract

The teaching expertise of baccalaureate social work educators is becoming an increasingly critical issue as undergraduate education continues to grow both in size and importance. In this empirical study, the major avenues of entry into and recruitment of baccalaureate-level faculty are identified. It was found that the actual means of recruitment are different from the program directors' idealized priorities. Entrance into academia follows direct practice experiences and the principle motivation was an improved quality of professional life.