School of Social Work

Accreditation

The School of Social Work at Chico State offers an undergraduate degree (BSW) in Social Work(opens in new window) as well as a Masters degree in Social Work (MSW(opens in new window)) which may be completed in a one-year, two-year or three year program.  In both our undergraduate and graduate degree programs, we offer traditional on-campus instruction as well as a distributed learning program(opens in new window) which allows students to take courses largely on-line with periodic visits to campus for in-person instruction. 

All of our Programs are accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)(opens in new window).

Accredited programs meet the extensive requirements of the Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards(opens in new window) laid out by CSWE. They must demonstrate that the explicit curriculum meets core social work competencies. Graduates will know how to apply ethical principles and critical thinking to social work practice. They will be able to utilize social work research and respond to changing practice contexts. They will be able to effectively engage with members of diverse populations and carry out appropriate assessments and interventions.

Most employers will require that you graduated from an accredited social work program. In addition, in California and most other states, in order to obtain a professional license in social work(opens in new window), you must have graduated from an accredited program. 

Our last accreditation review was in 2016, at which time all of our programs were reaffirmed accreditation for 8 years. 

Assessment

All Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) programs measure and report student learning outcomes.  Students are assessed on their mastery of the competencies that comprise the accreditation standards of the CSWE.  These competencies are dimensions of social work practice that all social workers are expected to master during their professional training.  A measurement benchmark is set by the social work programs for each competency.  An assessment score at or above that benchmark is considered by the program to represent mastery of that particular competency. 

Here are the latest assessment scores for the School of Social Work at Chico State:

BSW Assessment Scores - May 2023 (PDF)

MSW Assessment Scores - May 2023 (PDF)