Masters Degrees in Social Work, Ireland

Social work is a challenging and a rewarding activity and requires a personal commitment to the ideals and values of the social work profession. Those considering social work as a career option should be aware of its ethical and value dimensions and, in particular, the commitment of practitioners to the promotion of social justice.

The Master in Social Work course offers a route to a professional qualification in social work for applicants with a primary degree in the Social Sciences or equivalent. It combines an academic postgraduate award with the National Qualification in Social Work (NQSW). The professional qualification is awarded by the National Social Work Qualifications Board and the academic qualification is awarded by the University of Dublin.

This is a two year full time programme consisting of 16 weeks full-time academic attendance and 14 weeks full-time fieldwork placement in the first year, and 14 weeks full-time academic attendance and 14 weeks full-time field work placement in second year.

The programme is geared towards an international perspective and the student group can avail of placement opportunities abroad including Canada, England, South Africa and the USA.

Admission Requirements

Applicants should hold a level 8 primary social science degree (second-class honors or higher), or equivalent, and a minimum of 6 months relevant practice experience. There are up to 25 places on the course each year. All applicants are advised to read the following documentation which provides an overview of entry and course requirements to the Masters in social Work. M.S.W. Guidelines

All applications for the Masters in Social Work must include the following documents:

A breakdown and description of relevant work experience to date which indicates the total number of hours or weeks worked. The minimum number of hours applicants must have is 850.
Students are not required to provide 2 academic references instead they must provide one academic reference and one reference from their practice experience.
Students must provide a personal statement of no less than 500 words and no more than 1000 words.

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Interested individuals are encouraged to make an informal approach to the Department to discuss their proposal and establish an initial fit between their interests and the Department’s research priorities and expertise. Formally, an applicant wishing to undertake a research degree should submit a research proposal in writing of 3,000–4,000 words and consult with the Department on the general suitability of the research topic, and on the availability of an appropriate supervisor.

The research proposal should provide the following information:
- Introduction to the central research topic that the student proposes to investigate
- Reference to the key debates and issues relevant to the research
- An indication the body of literature that the research will analyse; the main data that will be collected and/or analysed and the methods that will be used
- An outline of the potential significance of the proposed research for the field under investigation

Closing date
Research applications are generally accepted at any time

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