The core curriculum consists of 12 required courses and four electives. Although most of the courses are taken within the Silver School of Social Work, two of the electives must be taken outside of the School. Full-time students enroll in four courses in the fall and spring semesters for two years, while part-time students enroll in two courses each fall and spring for four years. In the fall semester following the completion of coursework students must submit a Comprehensive Integrative Paper, which serves as the written qualifying examination. After passing this examination students may select a dissertation committee and begin work on developing a dissertation proposal. Before they can start collecting data students must successfully defend the proposal to their committee and have it approved by the University Committee on Activities Involving Human Subjects. As a final step, students must successfully defend the dissertation to their committee.
core curriculum
This course introduces students to the scientific method as a way of knowing and provides an overview of the research methods most commonly used in social work. The course will cover qualitative research, both group designs and the case study method. It will also review survey (descriptive), relational, experimental and single-system designs.
The emphasis in this course is on the differing purposes of each type of research design and the varying ways each typically approaches such issues as sampling and data collection. Coherence of design is emphasized. Examples of classic and recently published studies illustrating each type of design will be examined in depth to understand its use. Because social work research takes place in a diverse world, the course covers enhancing the cultural competence of one's approach to research. Research ethics will also be considered because they are basic to all sound research designs. Thus this course serves as the foundation from which students will move on to consider qualitative and quantitative methods in greater depth.
This course is designed to introduce doctoral students to the philosophical foundations of scientific research and theory development within the social work field, and with some of the general intellectual tools they will need to be effective participants and leaders in our field's scientific, theoretical and intellectual dialogue. Philosophy of science enters into our work as intellectual leaders in clinical social work in three ways. First, philosophy of science addresses fundamental general issues concerning the nature of knowledge, the evaluation of research, preferable research methodologies, and how to reason scientifically. Second, within social work itself, specific disputes and divisions among social work researchers about epistemology and methodology can only be understood in the context of the philosophy of science. And third, philosophy of science, which deals with the nature of theory change and the rational assessment of beliefs, addresses a perennial question in clinical theory: How does a profession like social work decide what will count as knowledge for practice and how do these understandings change? Selected examples of this last problem will be considered. Common errors in clinical thinking will also be identified since recognizing them is the first step in overcoming them.
An overarching goal of the course is for each student to begin to identify and articulate her or his own epistemological standpoint as a developing scholar. Students will begin the critical study of a specific concept or idea of interest to them as scholars and/or practitioners.
In this seminar participants will conduct a critical and historical analysis of the welfare state in capitalist, liberal democratic society, primarily focusing on the United States. Students will understand the development of the philosophical, moral, ideological, and political-economic forces that have shaped the emergence of the welfare state from the Colonial Poor Laws and the 19th century poorhouse, to Scientific Charity and the Progressive Era, to the New Deal/Great Society coalition and the neoconservative era. We will analyze how concepts such as labor regulation, federalism, veterans' benefits, professionalism, private pensions and healthcare, welfare capitalism, workfare, and neoliberalism intersect with the formation and reformation of welfare states.
During the last two decades of the twentieth century, the set of institutional arrangements known as the "welfare state" went through a fundamental reformation. This seminar uses this redefinition as a lens through which we may assess current dilemmas in the provision of goods and services to those whom the market fails. We will focus on the development of the welfare state, the forces that have challenged it, and proposals for moving beyond the old welfare state, including asset-based policies and social movements.
This course is designed to introduce students to the principles and methods of qualitative methods and research. The course will cover the theoretical and disciplinary origins as well as applications of qualitative methods relevant to social work practice, programs, and policy. The goals of the course are to:
- Introduce the basic methods of qualitative research including data collection, data analysis and interpretation of findings.
- Provide an understanding of the researcher's unique role as the instrument of qualitative research.
- Introduce diverse qualitative approaches including ethnography, grounded theory, and narrative analysis as well as qualitative evaluations of practice and programs.
- Introduce students to six strategies for ensuring rigor in qualitative methods and enable students to knowledgeably critique these methods.
- Convey the importance of ethical issues in qualitative research.
- Help students learn how to integrate qualitative and quantitative methods.
This course explores a range of quantitative social science research methodologies that can be applied to the study of clinical social work practice. Students acquire a critical understanding of the comparative advantages and disadvantages of different methods with reference to selected research problems.
The objectives of this course are to develop and deepen an understanding of quantitative methods used in clinical research; to identify the phases of conducting research; to acquaint course participants with a variety of approaches to the study of clinical practice. Special emphasis will be placed on generating researchable questions, measurement, scale assessment, questionnaire and interview data collection instruments and their construction, the development of other types of instruments, sampling methods, and preparing data for analysis. The importance of sensitivity to measurement and response issues across diverse populations will be stressed.
The course aims to provide students with some actual experience in the location and assessment of measures of constructs used in clinical research. Furthermore the course will provide experience in the development and piloting of an instrument, and an introduction to basic data handling.
This course provides an overview of social science theories that are relevant to social work. Students will develop a critical understanding of the history and application of social science concepts. Wherever possible, we have selected theories that have an historical foundation and a forward trajectory toward contemporary issues. We also include articles or research with an alternative or critical view of the theories in question.
The course first will consider the definition of clinical social work, briefly review the evolution of the knowledge base of clinical social work, and consider key issues in the development of practice theory and empirical research. Then it will critically compare major current theories and practice models. Finally it will discuss some of the issues involved in clinical research.
This course provides an introduction to basic methods of statistical analysis used in quantitative social work research. It will focus on both the conceptual understanding and the skills needed to analyze quantitative data. Skills will be applied using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS-PC).
This seminar prepares students for teaching in social work education. It introduces students to selected literature on teaching and learning in higher education, including theories of adult learning, the range of roles and responsibilities of faculty members, and current issues in social work education. Modes of teaching and learning, and their relationship to subject matter, settings, and educational outcomes will be considered, and diversity issues in teaching and learning will be covered as well
Students in this course will:
- learn about the current structure of and issues within social work education and higher education in the United States today as they affect social work students and faculty;
- examine a range of content and process issues in social work education, with an emphasis on clinical social work, including understanding different theories of adult learning and different modes of teaching and learning;
- consider how diversity issues, including race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and disability, arise in teaching and learning and how they can be most effectively addressed;
- discuss issues in student assessment and other topics in social work education, including field education, ethics, global/international issues in social work education, and faculty work; and
- 5. begin to articulate a teaching philosophy in social work education.
This course focuses on the analysis of social welfare policies and theories guiding direct practice within a social justice perspective. Historic tensions between social work's dual interest in changing individual behavior and the reform of institutional arrangements that constrain clients in their quest for self- actualization, assume new dimensions in the 21st century with the globalization of the economy, dislocation, increasing inequality, and world-wide violation of human rights. These trends challenge social work scholars, policy makers and practitioners to critically evaluate assumptions underlying policy development and social theory to remain true to social work's s historic commitment to social justice within a society of increasing diversity and growing social exclusion. The course builds of content of the first year of doctoral study and encourages the use of critical thinking and the advancement of empirical knowledge to support socially just policy, practice and theory development in light of contemporary societal trends.
Integrating social work's historic concern for social justice and the implications of societal trends for the equitable distribution of societal resources, the course encourages critical thinking and an expanded theoretical knowledge base to support varied approaches to direct services with diverse client groups anchored in a social justice perspective. The course initially examines the philosophical underpinnings of social work and social justice as an organizing principle of the profession, theories shaping contemporary direct social work practice and frameworks for social welfare policy analysis. The second half of the course applies this content in selected social welfare policy domains through in-class student presentations focused on a specific social problems and target populations. Finally, the course looks at implications of professional trends emphasizing evidence based-practice and leadership challenges for clinical social work in the 21st century.
The purpose of this course is to prepare doctoral students to design and critically assess intervention research that address psychosocial needs, problems, and conditions. It builds on the methods of inquiry and theory courses and focuses on essential conceptual, methodological and practical issues involved in planning and carrying out research on psychosocial and behavioral interventions relevant to social work practice and policy. Topics covered include types of intervention research; theory and its relationship to study aims; conceptual models; meta-analysis, systematic reviews, and evidence-based practice; intervention research designs; measurements and outcomes, process measures to examine intervention implementation, fidelity and adherence; critical issues in intervention research; intervention research ethics; and dissemination of findings to improve practice and policy. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the impact of culture and diversity in intervention research.
This course is designed to prepare students for the dissertation, focusing primarily on the tasks involved in planning dissertation research. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the elements of a defensible dissertation proposal, with special attention given to the selection of a researchable topic, critical analysis and professional writing skills, and the application of knowledge about research methods to the chosen topic. Students will use the course to begin focusing on their topic of interest and on conceptualizing how different research questions within that topic may be answered with appropriate methods. Mutual critique and discussion among students will be an important aspect of the course.
elective courses
Electives should help to advance students toward their dissertation. Students therefore should select courses that will add to their knowledge in substantive areas related to what will be their likely dissertation topic, or in methodologies areas that are likely to be needed for their dissertation research.
At least two of the four required electives should be taken outside the Silver School, usually in other programs within NYU. Students most often locate appropriate electives in the following NYU Schools:
The Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
- Applied Psychology or Humanities
- Social Sciences in the Professions
The Wagner School of Public Service
The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
- Department of Psychology
- Department of Sociology
Electives that recently have been offered by our PhD program include:
Survey research is a form of research designed to collect self-report data from individuals about their opinions, beliefs, behaviors, experiences, life conditions, and subjective states. Usually the survey researcher is collecting data from a sample of a larger population to which the researcher desires to generalize the findings. This motive has significant implications for the sampling and data collection methods that are used.
This course is designed for individuals who are contemplating using survey methodology for conducting research. The course will include the following: when survey research is and is not the best method to use; the modes of conducting surveys (paper questionnaire, on-line questionnaire, interview) and determining which is the best for a given study; sampling considerations and decisions (e.g. is a probability sample possible for a given study? if not, how should one go about recruiting the sample?); sample size considerations; when is response rate important and methods for increasing it; designing a reliable, unbiased, and effective data collection instrument that will answer the study questions and hypotheses; the importance and value of independent variables; importance of and methods for pretesting instruments; survey management, data cleaning and preparation; and special issues in survey research, e.g. surveying about sensitive topics, cross-cultural surveys.
Students will design and conduct a survey on a topic of their choice during the semester.
This course is designed to teach the requisite skills for conducting a systematic review and a meta-analysis. Because knowledge is cumulative in nature, knowledge building requires careful attention to past research. A systematic review is a critical first step for scholarly papers, research projects, and dissertations. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses consist of a process of synthesizing prior empirical work with the goal of presenting an overview of the current state of knowledge on a given topic. This process consists of a focus on empirical studies and an overall summary of past research, which is obtained by drawing conclusions from separate investigations that address related or identical hypotheses.
In this course students will learn five stages of research synthesis:
- problem formulation;
- the literature search (data collection);
- evaluation of the quality of the studies;
- analysis and interpretation; and
- presentation of the results.
Students will also acquire a set of skills for conducting a meta-analysis. These include data retrieval, data management, developing a coding scheme, computing and coding effect size statistics, and interpreting and using meta-analysis results.
This advanced course is intended for students who have recently had an introductory class in qualitative methods and are planning to carry out a qualitative study. Students are expected to have a basic understanding of qualitative approaches from which they can advance their knowledge and skills in problem formulation, research design, data analysis, and interpretation. Due to time constraints, we will focus on two of the most common qualitative approaches: coding/ grounded theory analyses and case study analysis. Students will critically evaluate qualitative studies and write a qualitative methods proposal on a topic of their choice.
This course provides an overview of the important topics in trauma studies, including diagnosis/assessment, controversies, theoretical/conceptual frameworks, traditional and innovative treatment strategies, and clinician responses. Sexual abuse, immigration, combat, disasters and terrorism are the types of trauma under consideration.
This course examines how professional knowledge evolves in the context of broader intellectual currents in philosophy and the social sciences. It focuses on some contemporary debates in epistemology, ontology, and political and moral philosophy affecting clinical social work theories and practices. It also address the relevance and practical utility for clinical social work practitioners and educators of remaining attuned to significant issues in the social and intellectual contest of clinical theories.
The class also examines and critiques contemporary postmodern theorists on relational, narrative, subjectivity, and intersubjectivity theories, culture and race, gender, "second wave" feminist theories, queer theory, and social constructivism in psychodynamic theories of the self.
