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The need for licensed social workers is expected to increase by 22% through the year 2016; the need for social workers with advanced degrees in substance abuse and mental health, by 30%. While a BSW will allow you to enter the field of Social Work at an entry level position, advancement to supervisory or directorial levels will require a PhD, as will most teaching, research and consulting positions. Applicable work experience will also be requisite for most high level Social Work posts. Obtaining an online PhD in Social Work will provide you with the higher level education you need while allowing you to build a strong resume of practical experience at the same time.

Online PhD in Social Work Requirements

A candidate for an online PhD in Social Work must first and foremost have a sincere interest in helping others. He/she must be self-motivated and dedicated both to the online doctoral program in Social Work but to the population they are serving. A committed student in the online Social Work PhD program must themselves be emotionally mature and sensitive to people’s emotional needs and problems. A high level of objectivity is required as well as the ability to communicate effectively both with clients and colleagues. The course material in the online PhD program in Social Work will directly address those skills and assist you in achieving a heightened sensitivity to the needs and problems of others while providing you with the clinical skill you need to address those issues effectively.

A candidate for an online doctorate in Social Work must have a masters degree in social work from a CSWE accredited program and generally, two years of post MSW experience. There are any number of concentrations in social work at the masters level that are acceptable for admittance into an online doctoral Program in Social Work including:

• Mental Health
• Substance Abuse
• Community Organization
• Planning and Administration
• Families and Children
• Military Social Work
• Social Services Policy & Administration

Candidates for an online PhD program in Social Work hail from a variety of professional backgrounds including health and school settings, clinical work, public and private agencies.

Online PhD in Social Work

Depending on the program you select, an online Social Work doctorate will require approximately 45 credits for completion (15 classes), as well as the submission of a Comprehensive Paper in advance of a doctoral dissertation. It will take between five and seven years for a student to complete the course of study for a Social Work PhD online as well as the completion and defense of a thesis. Students will be required to participate in independent and collaborative research.

Information on Social Work Courses

The course work for an online doctoral program is structured to develop core competencies in the science and practice of clinical social work, advanced research methods, and policy analysis, trends and issues. Courses are designed to allow students to learn to apply philosophical perspectives and ethical principles to practical situations. Course work may include:

• Advanced Clinical Practice
  This course offers an opportunity to think reflectively about clinical social work practice. The relationship of knowledge and action in the professions, as well as some of the contemporary debates about practice, are addressed. The organizing idea of modern and post-modern perspectives is used to examine clinical practice, research on practice, and teaching about practice.
• Ways of Knowing in Clinical Practice
  In this course, a philosophical framework for social work theory and practice is developed through a comparison of modernist and post-modern ways of thinking about knowledge. The framework is then used to examine contemporary debates in social work in relation to theories about gender, approaches to trauma, and ethical dilemmas.
• Writing the Stories of Clinical Social Work
  This course is designed to enhance the student’s ability to provide professional leadership in clinical social work through scholarship. Students are asked to use ideas about language, narrative and texts from literary and critical analysis; consider several varieties of written narratives; and work on developing their own authorial “voice.” The main focus will be preparing students’ own papers for publication.
• A Research Framework for Viewing Clinical Practice
  This course serves as an introduction to social work research methods in the doctoral program. Objectives of the course include examination of the research process, as applied to the specialized needs of social work practitioners. Emphasis is placed on formulation of researchable practice questions of interest to seminar participants, and examination of quantitative and qualitative research methods and strategies appropriate to these questions.
• Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis
  This course examines fundamental statistics and data analysis techniques appropriate for social work research. Emphasis is on the application of elementary statistical techniques to the research examination process; the steps needed in the process of data analysis; how computers can be used; and in what areas conclusions can be drawn.
• Advanced Research and Statistics
  This course builds on material presented in prior research and statistics courses in the doctoral program, offering students opportunities to acquire more advanced data analysis skills. Two multivariate analysis techniques are emphasized—analysis of variance and multiple regression. With both analytic techniques, the interpretation of findings and the development of conclusions in the areas of practice, policy, and further research are stressed.
• Dissertation Proposal Seminar
  This seminar focuses primarily on the individual research interests of the students, with the intent of enabling them to complete an acceptable dissertation proposal. Students also focus on appropriate techniques of data collection and analysis.
• Qualitative Research Methods
  Offered entirely online, this course is designed to introduce students to qualitative research methodologies. The course focuses on critical issues in qualitative research, including philosophical assumptions about the research process, and the practical aspects of selected approaches to data collection, analysis, and presentation.
• Social Welfare Policy and Human Systems
  The purpose of this course is to understand the relationship of social welfare policy to the human service system. Federal and state policies are analyzed and viewed as shaped by history, values, economics, and the political climate. Attention is given to areas of needed policy change, and an effort is made to expand one’s thinking beyond existing policies, in order to consider policy alternatives and future directions for the social welfare system.

Specializations and Concentrations

When pursuing an online doctorate in Social Work there are many different concentrations and areas of specialization offered that will fit any students particular niche or career goals. Whether your interest is in children and family counseling, the non-profit arena, higher education, advanced research or policy analysis and management, there is an accredited PhD program online that will meet your needs. Some specializations include but are not limited to:

• Social and Community Services
• Social Policy Analysis and Planning
• Family Studies and Intervention Strategies
• Disaster and Crisis Intervention
• Clinical Social Work
• Human Services Administration

Careers in Social Work

An online doctorate in Social Work will prepare you for a career in a leading academic institution, social service organization or government agency. Obtaining your online PhD in Social Work will open the door to your ability to impact social work policies and increased earning capacity. Career possibilities include:

• Clinical Social Worker
  Clinical social workers offer guidance and counseling to people in crisis. Clients can range from the unemployed to children who need foster homes to elderly people who have no one to care for them. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, a social worker with a PhD in Clinical Social Work may earn as much as $104,000 per year.
• Community Service Manager
  Community Service Managers plan, organize and coordinate the activities of a social service program or community outreach organization. They are responsible for oversight of the program including budget, policies, program requirements and benefits. The median salary of Community Service Managers is $54,000 annually.
• Executive Directors in the Public Sector
  An Executive Director of a Not-for-Profit organization is responsible for the daily operations and implementation of all programs and strategies for the organization including attending board meetings, resolving organizational issues, analyzing data, as well as overseeing funding and fund raising processes. Executive Directors in the Public Sector earn an average yearly salary of $74,000.
• Researchers
  Some Social Workers prefer to specialize in research and advocacy, working with government agencies to improve the conditions in which people live. Researchers will often specialize in one field but move from one to another as their experience grows. Advanced social work researchers can earn as much as much as $72,000 per annum.
• Professor of Social Work
  Professors of Social Work are charged with the education of the next generation of social work professionals. In addition to classroom instruction and mentoring, they must conduct research seek grant funding and publish papers. A professor of Social Work at an accredited university will earn a median salary of $81, 017 and as much as $112,791 per year.

While an MSW is adequate for the average social work career, in order to impact overall social work policy and to earn a salary commensurate with your experience, an Online Doctorate in Social Work is the only way to go.