Social work doctoral education in the United States: examining the past, preparing for the future

Abstract

The relevance of doctoral education is being questioned across a wide spectrum of disciplines, and social work is no exception. An examination of the history of social work education in the United States provides a backdrop to the current challenges in doctoral education in the field. The historical role of research and teaching in social work education, the structure of doctoral social work education in the United States including the Ph.D. vs. the DSW, and the growth of doctoral programs are all examined. Current issues explored include: the interdisciplinary nature of practice; increased institutional focus on funded research; support for underrepresented doctoral students; and the need for doctoral students to be trained in pedagogy. Suggestions on how to address these issues are provided in order to enhance social work’s mission of teaching, research and service.

Keywords:

• Doctoral education
• social work
• teaching
• research

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Mr John Acquavita, MEd, and Ms Alex Talks, MSW for their helpful comments and edits of the article. The authors would also like to thank Dr Carlton Munson for his course on Social Work Education at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, which helped to inspire this article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Shauna P. Acquavita

Shauna P. Acquavita, School of Social Work, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA

Carolyn J. Tice

Carolyn J. Tice, School of Social Work, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA