Social Work
Behavioral & Applied Social Sciences

Mission Statement: The Defiance College Social Work Program strives to be a learning and nurturing community where the facets of students are developed through self-reflection, academics, experiential learning, and openness. Our aim is to develop professional generalist social workers who embody the values of our profession, while striving to understand the complexity of people and their circumstances, and are dedicated to strengthening the communities, groups, and individuals that comprise our diverse world. The program also strives to develop servant leaders who seek to enrich opportunities for the oppressed and are advocates for social justice.

Major in Social Work

The Social Work major (42 credits) includes 30 credits in social work courses and 12 credits in field placement.

SW 121 Introduction to Social Work
SW 235 Social Problems
SW 278 Interviewing and Interpersonal Communication
SW 301 Research Methods I
SW 355 Practice I: Generalist Practice
SW 356 Practice II: Groups and Families Generalist Practice
SW 379 Applied Behavioral Science
SW 397 Field Experience
SW 457 Practice III: Macro Systems Generalist Practice
SW 476 Social Welfare and Policy Development
SW 488 Senior Seminar
SW 486 Field Instruction


The pre-professional sequence courses are prerequisites for upper division social work courses and must be completed prior to admission into the program. These courses are:

PY 110 Introduction to Psychology
PY 290 Abnormal Psychology
PY 225 Infancy and Childhood
PY 227 Adolescence and Adulthood
SW 265 Cultural Diversity
SW 230 Behavioral Statistics
SW 120 Life in Society
SW 239 Marriage and Family