The Department of Social Work offers a 4-year undergraduate education based on knowledge, skills and values related to the social work discipline and profession. Social work undergraduate program is in the form of regular (daytime) formal education. Its duration is 4 years (8 academic semesters) and each academic semester consists of 14-16 weeks. The language of instruction of the program is Turkish. Each year, approximately 50 students are admitted to the undergraduate program on the basis of equal weight points through the central placement exam.The program complies with the conditions set forth by the Bologna Process. In the distribution of the program according to ECTS load, 75% (180 ECTS) of the courses are compulsory and 25% (60 ECTS) are elective courses. A proportion of students determined by the university senate are admitted to the programe very year with the Vertical Transfer Exam and horizontal transfers. Since 2017, the Double Major Program has been implemented.The ERASMUS exchange program, which includes both student and staff mobility, has been carried out since the beginning of academic operations in the department. The department focuses on "social work education","substance abuse" and "migration" and it is one of the departments that pioneer both regional and national studies.The undergraduate program of our department has been prepared with reference to the generalist model of social work practice. To explain briefly, the generalist social work practice model is the structuring of an eclectic knowledge principle based on critical thinking, professional values and skillsin an organizational structure and under supervision, within the framework of aplanned change intervention for the change and strengthening of a client system(individual, family, group, society) at any level. The generalist social work practice model is not focused on a specific field or method, but is focused on problem solving. It uses the “person in environment” approach to assessment, giving practice a holistic focus throughout the problem-solving process. According to the model, the social worker is a practitioner whose knowledge andskills cover a wide area and who evaluates the problems and solutions in a comprehensive way.The program followed by the Social Work Department is compatible with both the Bologna Process and the social work education standards stipulated by national and international social work education. While preparing the program,the following studies and documents were used:·KTO Karatay University Bologna Process studies,·Social Work National Core Curriculum (SWNCC) (2020),·The Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)(2015),·Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training (2020) prepared by the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW) and International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) (2020).As suggested by the Social Work Education Council (CSWE) (2001), eightareas stand out for the social work body of knowledge: 1) social work ethics and values, 2) diversity, 3) population groups at risk, 4) social and economic justice, 5) human behavior and social environment, 6) social welfare policy andsocial services, 7) social work practice and field education, 8) research. The compulsory courses in the Undergraduate Program of our department cover the areas that make up the body of knowledge of social work. The courses in the program can be divided into four main groups. In the first group, there are courses on behavioral and social sciences (general psychology, introduction to sociology, introduction to philosophy, introduction to social anthropology, behavioral disorders, general economics, human behavior and environment, etc.) that feed the body of knowledge of social work. These courses are mainly included in the 1st and 2nd grades in the curriculum. In these courses, students are expected to gain the ability to analyze human behavior, the psychological and social development of the individual, the basic elements ofsocial structure, the dynamics of social change, the roots of social inequalities and problems, political and economic activities in society through sociological thinking and psychosocial perspective. In the second grade, there are vocational courses that directly introduce social work such as the emergence of social work, its scientific and professional foundations, its relationship with social welfare services and human rights, its aims, ethical principles, basic values, being an applied science (foundations of social work, social welfare and history of social services), social work ethics, social policy and planning, etc. In the third grade, there are courses (social work intervention, social work with individuals and families, social work with groups, community social work, social work research) that involve structuring of social work intervention within the framework of social work methods, basic intervention methods, areas of practice, characteristics of client groups, basic skills, principles and ethical rules required for social work intervention. In the last group, there are practical courses (assessment insocial work environments, applied research, social work block practice).The feature of social work as an applied science is reflected in the course distribution in the program. The overall curriculum weight of the practical courses is 28.2%. Students are expected to participate in social responsibility projects specific to Konya at various stages of their education and to carry out applied research based on the use of scientific research methods and techniques. Students will have the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have gained through social service institutions/organizations indifferent provinces of Turkey, especially in the social work organizations in Konya with the supervision support provided by the department and to develop their professional identity before they start to work in the field when they reach the 4th grade.
