The University of Kentucky’s Doctor of Social Work program was established in 2020. The program’s goal is to prepare practitioners for the challenges of contemporary practice through a rigorous education program. Unlike a PhD program, which centers on research, a DSW program centers on the development of scholar-practitioners who will be well-poised to engage in advanced practice with socialized populations. Unlike MSW-level practitioners, scholar-practitioners have both advanced practice skills and scholarly skills needed to advance the field of social work through the creation and dissemination of scholarly work. Doctors of Social Work are subject-matter experts, advanced practitioners, and leaders in their fields and hold the unique capability to merge academic and practical knowledge with the depth and applicability needed to meet the complex needs of individuals, families, and communities.

Curriculum and Workload

The DSW curriculum is grounded in a scaffolding pedagogical model aimed at developing critical thinkers and advanced practice professionals who can tackle the Grand Challenges of Social Work (Grand Challenges for Social Work, 2024). Delivered entirely online, the program follows a Core Plus model, which offers 11 core courses and four specialized tracks and culminates in a capstone project. The concentration options are Military Behavioral Health, Clinical Social Work, Administration and Leadership, and Social Work Education. 

The Core Courses are: 

SW852 Introduction to Doctoral Studies

SW853 Contemporary Social Work Concepts

SW855 Supervision, Ethics, and Professional Practice

SW856 The Science of Social Work

SW859 Statistics for Social Workers

SW860 Program Evaluation Methods

SW864 Advanced Policy for Social Work Practice

SW865 Foundational Theory

SW893 Justice Informed Social Work Practice

Colloquium I

Colloquium II

Students can complete the program at a pace that works best for their schedule, selecting between three program models. The duration of the program models ranges from two to three years. If you elect to complete the program in two years, your workload will be heavier, as you will take three courses in the Spring and Fall semesters and two in the Summer semester. The courses are organized into 15 modules, with the courses in the Spring and Fall semesters covering one module each week and the Summer semesters covering two modules each week, in an accelerated 8-week format. You will have a variety of assignments, including discussion boards, infographics, group and individual presentations, and written assignments, which expose students to different ways of engaging with the course material and meet the needs of diverse learning styles.

You can expect your core courses to have higher workloads than your concentration courses, as concentration courses are developed in a way that allows time and resources for developing your capstone project. Each course builds on the previous, so the skills and competencies you develop in any given course will serve as a foundation for the next course. For example, in SW852, Introduction to Doctoral Studies, you will learn several skills and competencies related to doctoral-level literacy – reading and writing like a scholar- which will be fundamental to your ability to engage with course materials and assignments in all following courses. Similarly, in SW853 Contemporary Social Work Practice, you will engage in critical analysis of a variety of social phenomena impacting the profession across all levels of practice. This in-depth analysis of social issues would not be possible without the advanced critical analytical skills you will develop in SW852 and will, in turn, inform your capstone topic selection as you discover and appraise contextual changes related to various areas of practice.

“My advice to DSW students would be to allow themselves to trust the process. I viewed every class as a piece in the larger puzzle-DSW Capstone.”

Patricia Jefferson, DSW Class of 2026.

All courses are delivered through an asynchronous distance education format, which means that you are not required to attend classes at specific times or places. You can access your course content, such as interactive lectures and reading materials, at a time that suits your schedule. This flexibility will allow you to develop a routine that makes the most sense to you and your busy life (more on this in Chapter 3). Dedicated students will typically spend between 10 and 15 hours per week engaging with course materials. In addition, in each course, you will have the opportunity to engage in live meetings with instructors and students at least four times per semester. These synchronous meetings are an excellent opportunity to delve deeper into the course content and to connect with your peers, but because the program is asynchronous, attendance is not mandatory, and the sessions are recorded so you can watch them at a later time. It is essential that you take the time to review the recording and follow up with the instructor if you have questions. Students are responsible for knowing and understanding what was covered in synchronous sessions.