Master of
Social Work (Qualifying)

This subject introduces students to the purpose, values, and principles for social work practice in Australia. Students are introduced to social work history, practice domains, fields of employment, and key areas of social work concern, including social injustice, power imbalances and privilege. Students examine diversity in Australian society in relation to socio-economic status, gender identity, age, ethnicity, culture, religion, disability, and sexual orientation. Social structures, dominant values, norms, and discourses that privilege some groups over others will be analysed from critical and intersectional theoretical perspectives. The values of respect, human rights, social justice, and inclusion are fundamental in this subject and underpin professional practice. Students develop an understanding of the social work advocacy role to enhance accessibility, engagement, inclusion, and participation for disadvantaged people. Recognising how values, biases, and experiences are shaped by dominant cultural norms, students will also reflect on their own positioning in relation to diversity, difference, privilege, and disadvantage. Creativity, critical self-reflection, and self-care in social work practice are examined, as students are supported to prepare themselves as social workers in-training. Key expectations for social work professional behaviour are investigated, including ethical principles and personal qualities. Students initiate self-care practices that support their ability to be courageous and client-centred in practice.

Subject Code: SWK601
Credit Points: 6
Assessments: Group Presentation, Case Scenario Analysis, Appreciative Enquiry Paper

The subject provides students with an understanding of the cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts shaping the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. Students investigate the complex history of social work in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the implications for current social work and community practice. The subject also introduces students to the social work methods of community work and social action. Students are required to critically reflect on their positionality in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and propose culturally appropriate social action activities that are collaborative and respectful of community members needs and preferences. From a position of cultural humility, the subject explores the diverse cultural practices, worldviews, and experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities, and honours the life stories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The subject equips social work students with essential knowledge and skills for culturally safe practice with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

In-Person Learning: This subject includes mandatory in‑person attendance for all students. For online students, this is met as part of a five‑day on‑campus intensive designed to build essential skills for social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK602
Credit Points: 6
Assessments: Multimedia Presentation, Critical Analysis Video, Social Action Campaign

This subject provides students with the knowledge and practice experience needed to acquire skills for conducting an initial social work assessment interview. Students will develop foundational skills and knowledge in interpersonal helping, the helping relationship, engagement, initial assessment, giving and receiving feedback, reflecting on professional practice, and the values and ethical issues arising in diverse social work contexts. Students learn how to identify and navigate power dynamics to foster collaborative approaches to conducting interviews with clients. Practice models underpinning these skills will be examined. Students will engage in creative and critical reflection to link models, ethics, and values to their experiential learning. The experiential component will include practice in foundational interpersonal, engagement and assessment skills as well as the use of reflective processes through simulation activities and reflective writing. The aim of this subject is to prepare students with foundational interpersonal social work skills required to enter their first social work field placement and to meet professional standards.

In-Person Learning: This subject includes mandatory in‑person attendance for all students. For online students, this is met as part of a five‑day on‑campus intensive designed to build essential skills for social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK603
Credit Points: 6
Assessments: Reflective Video Diary, Initial Intake Assessment, Intake Interview Video

In this subject, students develop their skills and readiness for social work roles and practice in diverse, multidisciplinary health settings. Students are introduced to the Australian health care system, key aspects of the social work role in health, and some of the diverse areas of practice. Students build on their prior learning on social work engagement, assessment, and relationship building, applying this to practice in health services. Students also learn about the purposes of social work documentation and how to write case notes.  Case scenarios are the focus for assessment tasks. These tasks require students to role-play and analyse a single session intervention, write case notes, participate in professional supervision to reflect upon and learn from their own practice, and conduct a multidisciplinary team meeting in which the social work role is navigated, and the goals of social justice and wellbeing are advanced. Students will be expected to demonstrate a critical analysis of the social constructions of health and illness, the social determinants of health, and the impacts of health and illness. Students also learn about strategies for collaboration and partnerships with service users, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and colleagues from diverse disciplines in the design and delivery of health services.

In-Person Learning: This subject includes mandatory in‑person attendance for all students. For online students, this is met as part of a five‑day on‑campus intensive designed to build essential skills for social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK604
Credit Points: 6
Pre-Requisite: SWK603 Engagement, Assessment and Relationship-Building Skills
Assessments: Single Session Intervention, Viva Supervision Session, Multidisciplinary Meeting

Social workers work with complex problems in diverse practice settings that require a sound foundation of theories and ethics to inform and guide how they respond to their clients and broader social issues. This subject builds on the learning gained in first trimester and introduces students to foundational theories used in social work practice. Students will be exposed to debates regarding the status of theory in social work including questions about what ‘theory’ is and how theory is integrated into practice. The subject extends student learning about social work values to examine their relationship to key ideas and theories that underpin ethical social work practice. This subject also examines some of the fields of practice in which social workers work. It promotes the development of skills in critical analysis and reflection and the intersection of the personal and professional self. By the end of this subject, students will understand key social work and ethical theories and be able to apply these theories to scenarios from diverse fields of social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK605
Credit Points: 6
Assessments: Concept Map, Digital Presentation, Case Analysis Report

This first social work field practicum subject provides students with a placement in a social work organisational setting. Students are required to apply and integrate social work values, ethics, knowledge, and skills as they engage in supervised practice in a field placement organisation in a specific field of social work practice. Learning is assessed in terms of progress toward the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) Practice Standards. Field placement tasks will vary, dependent upon the nature of the organisational context. In addition to completing the placement tasks to a satisfactory standard, students must demonstrate professional and ethical behaviour, a critically reflective approach to practice, and the integration and application of class-based learning. Learning is demonstrated through participation in professional supervision sessions and in the completion of field education assessment tasks. Each student will be allocated an appropriately qualified Social Work Field Educator who provides professional supervision throughout the placement.

Subject Code: SWK606
Credit Points: 18
Pre-Requisite: SWK601, SWK602, SWK603, SWK604, SWK605
Assessments: Learning Agreement, Mid-Placement Review, End-Placement Review

This subject is assessed as an ungraded Pass or Fail.

This subject introduces students to the legal and policy contexts in which social work is practiced in Australia. Students learn about the laws, legal procedures, legislative frameworks, system of courts and tribunals, and social policies that influence social work practice in a range of fields. Students build on their knowledge of professional and legal responsibilities for social work practice, including record keeping for legal purposes, confidentiality, freedom of information, duty of care, and mandatory reporting. Social work roles are analysed in relation to other professionals involved in legal contexts and the ethical and value tensions that may present. Students are guided on how to prepare social work evidence for court. Students analyse the theoretical, political, and ideological aspects of legislation and social policy through a social justice lens and are introduced to policy-making models used in Australia. The potential for social work practitioners to participate in social policy change is highlighted and students develop key policy practice skills for policy advocacy, development and implementation. Using a policy case study approach, students examine policies and laws that relate to several areas of social work practice, choosing one area to focus on closely. Students propose and justify recommendations for policy and legislative reform to address inadequacies and inequities.

Subject Code: SWK611
Credit Points: 6
Assessments: Court Report, Case Analysis Report, Policy Pitch and Brief

This subject explores the varied experiences of individuals, families, and carers utilising mental health services in Australia, the scope of available services, and areas in need of improvement within the system. Students will learn to identify key signs and symptoms of common mental health disorders and explore the role of community recovery programs. Additionally, they will gain knowledge of the core concepts, principles, and frameworks for trauma-informed care. Students will also critique how the conceptions of ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’ behaviour have developed culturally over time, examine the historical emergence of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR), and assess the medical model context of mental health in Australia. The nature and impacts of single instance trauma, multiple exposure related trauma and infant attachment trauma will also be examined. Students will learn to recognise causal factors, impact, emotion dysregulation and symptoms of trauma. Experiences and responses to trauma amongst Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, children and young people, survivors of war and refugees, and survivors of violence and natural disasters are explored. Students will learn to recognise triggers of re-traumatisation, and work within the client’s window of tolerance. Students will learn how to talk about suicidality with those who may be at risk and facilitate safety planning and postvention support.

In-Person Learning: This subject includes mandatory in‑person attendance for all students. For online students, this is met as part of a five‑day on‑campus intensive designed to build essential skills for social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK612
Credit Points: 6
Pre-Requisite: SWK603 Engagement, Assessment and Relationship-Building Skills
Assessments: Community Education Video, Intervention Plan, Roleplay and Skills Analysis

This subject explores the theory, practice, and ethics of social work with groups, including psychoeducational groups, support groups, and teams in an organisational setting. Students develop skills in planning, facilitating and leading groups and teams in human services contexts. They gain knowledge on the issues that arise in groups with consideration of power relations, group dynamics, conflict management, and the stages of group work. There will be opportunities to practice and develop groupwork skills, including managing group processes to achieve outcomes. Students will develop an understanding of the skills, tasks, and responsibilities required of a group leader and will extend this knowledge of leadership more broadly to organisational settings. Students are encouraged to view organisations as targets of their social work practice interventions as they advocate for and facilitate organisational changes to reduce disadvantage and oppression and enhance wellbeing for clients, staff, the social work profession, and the wider community. The subject develops students’ knowledge of how organisations are shaped by internal and external influences and the part that social workers can play in developing anti-oppressive and culturally safe human service organisations. Drawing on their own experiences on field placement and prior theoretical knowledge, students analyse external factors impacting human service organisations, including government policies, funding sources, inter-organisational relationships, and social values and expectations. Students also analyse internal organisational factors, including organisational culture, values, structure, decision-making and goal setting practices, policies, and procedures. Students apply anti-oppressive practice principles to develop strategies for social justice oriented organisational social work practice. 

In-Person Learning: This subject includes mandatory in‑person attendance for all students. For online students, this is met as part of a five‑day on‑campus intensive designed to build essential skills for social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK613
Credit Points: 6
Pre-Requisite: SWK606 Field Practicum 1
Assessments: Group Plan, Co-Design Group Facilitation, Change Proposal

In this subject, students build on their foundational interpersonal skills and knowledge of social work theory, law and policy to develop as competent, ethical, reflective practitioners with children and families. The concepts presented in this subject are critically analysed as students consider socially constructed and contested ideas about family, child abuse, child neglect, child safety, wellbeing, protection, resilience, and risk. The integration of prior learning on cultural diversity and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is important for this analysis and for practice with children and families. Learning focuses on communication, assessment (including risk assessment), stages of intervention, therapeutic responses, case planning and management, and safety planning relevant to working with children and families. Work with children and families is contextualised in non-government and statutory practice settings. Areas of practice include family support, family therapy, child safeguarding and protection, and domestic and family violence. Students examine how social workers make and justify decisions about interventions in complex areas of practice with children and families. They demonstrate the application of ethical frameworks, theories, and research evidence to decisions about interventions.  The presentation and justification of an intervention plan in response to a practice scenario is integral to learning in this subject. Students develop skills in applying practice models, including demonstrating the application of narrative approaches. Professional writing skills for statutory settings is also explored.

In-Person Learning: This subject includes mandatory in‑person attendance for all students. For online students, this is met as part of a five‑day on‑campus intensive designed to build essential skills for social work practice.

Subject Code: SWK614
Credit Points: 6
Pre-Requisite: SWK603 Engagement, Assessment and Relationship-Building Skills, SWK606 Field Practicum 1
Assessments: Blog, Roleplay Interview, Intervention Plan

This subject focuses on the role that research and evidence play in ensuring quality social work practice and high standing of the profession. Students build on their capacity to locate and review contemporary research literature by developing knowledge and skills to critically assess research evidence, interpret findings, and identify implications for anti-oppressive social work practice. Building on knowledge from undergraduate studies, students’ understanding of the practice of social research and evaluation is developed as they are prepared for their professional responsibility to contribute to the generation of social work knowledge. Students apply different theoretical paradigms to social work research and examine the key role that a research question plays in shaping research methodology. Students select a social work practice question or related topic of interest as a focus for the critical appraisal and implications of existing research and for the design of a research project. Students build on skills in designing a social research project, including selecting appropriate data collection methods that align with research questions and methodological approach. Students examine their ethical responsibility to engage in evidence-informed practice and to identify and respond to ethical issues that emerge when undertaking practice-based social research.  Students experience the process of knowledge translation and dissemination as they translate and communicate research and theoretical knowledge into social work practice implications.

Subject Code: SWK615
Credit Points: 6
Assessments: Research Appraisal Reports, Conference Presentation, Research Proposal

In this capstone experience, students demonstrate consolidation and application of class-based learning to social work practice in real-world contexts. Students will apply social work values, ethics, knowledge, and skills to social work practice as they engage in supervised practice in a placement organisation in a field of social work practice that is different to their first field placement in SWK606 Field Practicum 1. Learning is assessed in terms of attainment of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) Practice Standards at the level of a graduating social worker. Field placement tasks will vary, dependent upon the nature of the organisational context. In addition to completing the placement tasks to a satisfactory standard, students must demonstrate professional and ethical behaviour, a critically reflective approach to practice, and the integration and application of class-based learning. Achievement is demonstrated through participation in professional supervision sessions and the completion of assessment tasks. Each student will be allocated an appropriately qualified Social Work Field Educator who provides professional supervision throughout the placement.

Subject Code: SWK616
Credit Points: 18
Pre-Requisite: SWK601, SWK602, SWK603, SWK604, SWK605, SWK606, SWK611, SWK612, SWK613, SWK614
Assessments: Learning Agreement, Mid-Placement Review, End-Placement Review

This subject is assessed as an ungraded Pass or Fail.