The Bachelor of Social Work (B.S.W.) at the National Catholic School of Social Service provides you with the opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills that you need for generalist social work practice. You take 14 courses over the four years at Catholic University. The social work curriculum begins with a course that provides an introduction to social work, and culminates in a final course that pulls all the content that you have learned together. You also take courses in human behavior and the social environment, policy, research, and practice. Several of our courses are service-learning courses to give you the opportunity to get out and about in Washington, D.C., and to be able to incorporate your service experiences into what you are learning in your classes. All of the social work classes form the basis for developing a professional knowledge base.

BSW Field Education

Field education is an integral component of the B.S.W. at the National Catholic School of Social Service. Through our field education program, you have the chance to put into practice what you’ve been learning in your coursework. Your first field placement is in the spring semester of the junior year – you will have the chance to complete 96 hours at an agency in Washington, D.C. Your second field placement is over the fall and spring semesters of the senior year – you will have the chance to complete 480 hours in the field at this placement. This experience is the basis for graduating as a professional social worker – a B.S.W.

The Liberal Arts Curriculum

The B.S.W. at the National Catholic School of Social Service is grounded in the strong liberal arts tradition of The Catholic University of America. Through the liberal arts curriculum, you will build your critical thinking skills. You will have the opportunity to take courses in philosophy, theology and religious studies, literature, math, science, and humanities. We encourage you to think about completing a minor to help round out your education at Catholic University.

Undergraduate Transfer of Credit

NCSSS accepts transfer credits from other institutions. Certain conditions apply.

• The course is completed at a regionally accredited institution
• The course is substantially similar to a Catholic University course
• The course is completed with a grade of C- (C minus) or better
• The course does not duplicate, overlap or regress previous work
• The college or university offering the course allows the course to be used for credit toward its own undergraduate degree

National standards for online education will be used to determine if an online course is comparable to a Catholic University course. Individual schools have established limits on the numbers of online courses that are transferable.