Simmons College School of Social Work was the first social work school in the nation. With a distinguished legacy spanning for more than 113 years, Simmons School of Social Work is a pioneer in clinical social work education and managed care practice.

Simmons College School of Social Work is highly specialized in clinical social work.  We offer one single clinical concentration, offering 4 advanced clinical specializations. Our MSW program trains students to become clinicians and do direct clinical work with individuals and families.

Simmons SSW is a single concentration MSW program training social workers in advanced clinical practice through the lens of the “clinician/activist;” one who is deeply engaged in addressing social justice issues using clinical practice skills in a rapidly changing global and multicultural environment.Today, we have a student body of approximately 470 M.S.W.and PhD students.  

The average age of students in our MSW program is 26/27. The range of ages is 22 to 70.  The social  work practice class has 18 students in each class. All other classes have 20 to 22 students each. 

Simmons offers a rigorous education in clinical social work, through a progressive, hands-on curriculum that infuses education and practice with social justice values and multicultural perspectives.  Simmons SSW is a leader in educating students for the demands of contemporary clinical practice with individuals, families, groups and communities with a nationally acclaimed clinical social work program. Simmons School of Social Work offers BSW, MSW and PhD programs

The MSW Program can be completed full-time in 16 months and 24 months. The MSW can be also completed in 3 years and 4 years. 

ADVANCED CLINICAL SPECIALIZATIONS

Child and Family Specialization 

This specialization educates students for careers in schools, child protection settings, hospitals, and community-based mental health centers that include, though are not limited to, residential services, outreach, health and education services, and home-based therapy. Child and family social work practitioners endeavor to improve child and family well-being by seeking out protective factors that exist within individuals and in the social contexts (e.g., family, school, work, neighborhoods, and communities) where children and families live.

Through this process, child and family practitioners work with people in their communities to draw on protective factors as a means to build capacity. As a result, children and their families learn how to succeed in social environments challenged by stress, poverty, disorganization, and/or oppression. Students in this specialization will learn skills in collaboration, assessment, and child and family therapy and multi–system interventions.

Sample Electives for Child and Family Specialization:

SW 425, Family Approaches in Social Work

SW 595, Child and Adolescence Assessment and Diagnosis

SW 539, Social Work in Schools

SW 566, Play Therapy

Trauma and Interpersonal Violence Specialization

Viewing early-attachment disruptions, neglect, trauma, family, community and global violence as a spectrum, this specialization prepares students to practice with victims and survivors as well as their families and communities. Students also gain skills to work in settings such as courts, jails, or prisons. Electives and field placements educate students to develop their competency and comfort level with a range of clients. 

Students learn the social ecology of the criminal justice system, how to be an effective “guest” in a “host” environment (e.g., prison, court, police station, district attorney’s office, etc.), and the assessment and treatment of involuntary clients informed by strengths-based models that embrace social justice. Students become equally equipped to work with juvenile and adult clients; males and females; victims and offenders; individuals, families, and groups. The specialization also provides post-graduate opportunities for learning in specialty areas of intervention.

Sample Electives for Trauma and Interpersonal Violence Specialization:

SSW 482, Social Work Practice With Domestic Violence

SSW 528, Child & Adolescent Trauma

SSW 529, Forensic Social Work

SSW 582, Attachment & Neurobiology

SSW 588, Case-Based Learning in the Treatment of Childhood Trauma

Mental Health and Addictions Specialization

This specialization prepares students for careers in mental health and/or addictions. Examples include work with clients struggling with severe mental illness; those with addictions and those with co-occurring disorders, who receive care in settings such as inpatient units, residential treatment programs, day programs, and community-based support programs. The specialization also is designed for students who wish to work with clients with psychological and social problems of a less severe nature who receive help in mental health clinics and family agencies.

In conjunction with field settings aligned with this specialization, electives provide skills in rapid assessment and more thoroughgoing evaluation and formulation. Students learn to use several treatment modalities such as psychodynamic therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and group therapy. They become skilled at developing treatment relationships and differentially using themselves with a wide range of clients over time or in brief encounters. They deepen their theoretical understanding of mental illness, neurobiology, addictive behavior, and treatment processes.

Sample Electives for Mental Health and Addictions Specialization:

SW 483, Cognitive Behavioral Approaches to Practice

SW 571, Clinical Social Work With Addictions

SW 578, Practice With Severe and Persistent Mental Illness

SW584, Clinical Practice With Individuals: A Psychodynamic Model

SW 475, Narrative Approaches

Health and Aging Specialization

Students in this specialization may concentrate in health or aging or can combine both areas for a dual focus. 

• Health

As clinicians, case managers, program directors, and administrators, social workers work in a range of health-care settings, including neighborhood health centers, community and rehabilitation hospitals, AIDS service organizations (ASOs), large urban medical centers, and hospice programs. Students focusing on Health will develop skills and expertise in clinical work with individuals and families in health-care settings, skills in larger systems interventions, and an understanding of the social work role in interdisciplinary collaboration. Course content for this specialization reflects a diverse area of concerns: end-of-life care, disabilities and chronic conditions, spirituality, and ethical and legal dilemmas. The psycho–social dimensions of care are examined in the context of current health-care policy issues such as health-care reform, health disparities, and changes in the health-care delivery system. 

• Aging

This specialization focuses on the full range of health and mental health services for older adults, including those who remain in their own homes and communities. Students learn relevant clinical skills for work with individuals and families and about related social policies at the local, state, national, and international level. They examine the way in which social policies will need to be developed in response to this growing population. Social workers in the field of geriatrics practice in a range of settings, including hospitals, home-care agencies, assisted-living facilities, nursing homes, and mental health and substance abuse clinics.

Sample Electives for Health/Aging Specialization:

SW 478, Social Work Practice in Healthcare                                                                                            

SW 507, Interdisciplinary Approaches to Health Care Management of Older Adults (at Harvard  Medical School)                                                                                                                                                                  

SW 501, Social Work Practice with Elders                                                                                                   

SW 588, Advocacy and Social Action in Gerontology                                                                                            SW 471, Spirituality            

Note: These specializations are available to students enrolled in the regular M.S.W. program. These specializations are not available to students enrolled in the Urban Leadership, Healthcare, Advanced Standing and School Social Worker programs.