UTexas

Admission and Registration

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Admission

Admission to the University

Admission and readmission of undergraduate students to the University is the responsibility of the director of admissions. Information about admission to the University is provided in General Information.

Admission Policies of the School

The Steve Hicks School of Social Work supports social work majors in the entry-level foundation sequence and social work majors approved to advance to the practice sequence. Social work majors typically spend their first and second year completing the foundation sequence. After completing the requirements below, social work majors may apply for approval to advance to the practice sequence.  Students who are approved to advance to the practice sequence complete at least three semesters of social work coursework and any other remaining degree requirements.  Social work majors that advance to the practice sequence and fulfill all degree requirements receive a Bachelor of Social Work degree.

The professional practice of social work requires people who are above average in academic ability and performance, sufficiently emotionally mature to assume a helping role with people under stress, and committed to the ethical standards and performance demands of social work practice. Students are encouraged to use the advising services in the Steve Hicks School of Social Work early in their college careers in anticipation of meeting requirements for advancement to the practice sequence.

Admission

A student may transfer from another division of the University to the Steve Hicks School of Social Work in accordance with the regulations given in General Information.

A University student who wants to transfer as a social work major must meet the following requirements:

  1. Completion of at least 12 semester hours of coursework in residence at the University. Credit earned by exam, correspondence, and extension may not be counted toward this requirement.
  2. A cumulative in-residence grade point average of at least 2.00.
  3. S W 310 Introduction to Social Work and Social Welfare with at least a C or higher.
  4. If social work coursework has been completed prior to the application, a grade point of at least 2.50 in those courses is required, and all social work courses must have been completed with a grade of at least C.
  5. Additional requirements may be required. Please contact social work undergraduate advising office for more information.

Only currently enrolled students may apply. Forms to apply for internal transfer are available through the Steve Hicks School of Social Work website.

Admission to the Steve Hicks School of Social Work is offered on a space-available basis to the students who are best qualified.

Students with over 90 semester hours of coursework or a completed degree are encouraged to consider other options, such as completing a degree in their current college/school or alternate institution with the option of pursuing a MSSW degree at a later date.

Advancement to the Practice Sequence

No social work major may advance to the practice sequence unless the student has been admitted to the University as described in General Information and has been approved to advance to the practice sequence by the assistant dean for undergraduate programs, following recommendation by the BSW Curriculum Committee, according to the procedures below. All students are considered according to the policies given in the editions of the General Information catalog and the Undergraduate catalog that are in effect at the time of the application.

The Steve Hicks School of Social Work considers students for advancement to the practice sequence twice a year, during the fall and spring semesters. Advancement applications are distributed online through the BSW Gazette and email announcements. The application allows the student to describe their background and motivation to enter the social work profession as well as any special experiences that enhance the student's application.

The Steve Hicks School of Social Work limits advancement to the practice sequence to the number of students for whom a professional education of high quality can be provided. Because of enrollment restrictions dictated by the availability of faculty members and facilities, some applicants may be denied admission even though they meet the following minimum requirements.

  1. The applicant must have completed at least 45 semester hours of coursework, including at least 30 hours chosen from the following requirements:
    1.  All requirements of the University’s Core Curriculum
    2. Sociology 302
    3. Psychology 301
    4. One three-semester-hour course in human biology:  Biology 301E, 302D, 302E, 302F, 302G, 311C
    5. Second-semester-level proficiency, or the equivalent, in a single foreign language
    6. A three-semester-hour course in economics
  2. The applicant must have completed the following courses with a grade of at least C in each course: Social Work 310, 312, 313, 318, and 325. The applicant must also have a University grade point average of at least 2.50 in courses that are part of the social work major requirements. Social Work 310 must be completed a semester before applying for advancement to the practice sequence.
  3. The applicant must have a University grade point average of at least 2.00.
  4.  Application for advancement must be made on forms distributed online through the BSW Gazette and email announcements.
  5. The following must be submitted to the BSW Program by the application deadline:
    1. The completed application for advancement to the practice sequence
    2. A personal statement as explained on the application
    3. One recommendation form completed by appropriate individuals who can attest to the applicant’s readiness to enter the program
    4. Official transcripts from all colleges attended, if the coursework has not been transferred to the student’s University record
    5. Score reports for any credit earned by examination, if the scores are not on the student’s University record
    6. Attend a resume review workshop with the DiNitto Career Center and submit a resume.
  6. The applicant may be asked to appear for a personal interview.

The applicant is considered on the basis of academic performance and their commitment to and suitability for generalist social work practice. The committee also assesses the applicant’s emotional readiness to work with clients on the basis of such factors as their work in courses already taken, previous meetings with social work advisors, application essay answers, and the interview, if any, that is part of the application process. As a general guide, the committee also uses the Student Standards for Social Work Education, available at https://socialwork.utexas.edu/academics/field/forms/ which delineates expectations for social work students in four areas: basic abilities to acquire professional skills, mental and emotional abilities, professional performance skills, and scholastic performance. The Standards can be found in the appendix of the BSW Handbook, available at https://socialwork.utexas.edu/academics/field/forms/.

A student who is unable to attend in the semester for which the student is approved to advance must reapply for advancement in order to enroll at a later time. A student who has been advanced to the practice sequence and enrolls, withdraws, and then wishes to return must apply for readmission/advancement on the basis of the curriculum in effect at the time of the return. A student who has been out of the University for a semester or more must also submit an application for readmission to the University.

Transfer Credit

As part of the application for admission to the University, students must submit transcripts from all other colleges and universities they have attended to the University’s Office of Admissions. Students seeking readmission must submit transcripts from all schools they have attended since leaving the University. The Office of Admissions evaluates all transcripts and grants the student transfer credit when possible for coursework completed at the other schools.

Although the University’s Office of Admissions may grant the student a certain number of semester hours of transfer credit for work completed in another social work program, the assistant dean for undergraduate programs in the Steve Hicks School of Social Work determines whether this coursework may be counted toward fulfillment of the Bachelor of Social Work degree requirements. Students who wish to use transfer credit to meet degree requirements should submit a course syllabus, assignments, and the titles and names of authors of textbooks to the assistant dean for undergraduate programs for evaluation.

Students may also seek transfer credit for coursework they complete at another institution after enrolling at the University. In this case the student should submit a transcript from the other institution to the University’s Office of Admissions.

Registration

General Information provides information about registration, adding and dropping courses, transfer from one division of the University to another, and auditing a course. Published before registration each semester and summer session, the Course Schedule includes registration instructions, advising locations, and the times, places, and instructors of classes. The Course Schedule and General Information are published on the Office of the Registrar’s website.