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Bachelor of Social Work (BSW)

Overview

The Social Work programme at the University of Otago offers two main qualifications designed for different career stages of professional social workers:

  • The Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) degree is designed for students wishing to obtain a first qualification in Social Work that qualifies them to apply for registration as social workers in New Zealand.
  • The Master of Social Work (MSW) degree is designed for mid-career social workers who are already registered but wish to undertake further professional development in a more focused area of professional practice.

Entry into the BSW programme via one of two pathways:

  1. Students can undertake a four-year undergraduate programme by first enrolling as Social Work Pre-professional students (under the BA programme) and then applying for entry into the third-year stage of the BSW programme (the Social Work Pre-professional years count as the first two years of a four-year BSW programme).
  2. If students have already completed another bachelor's degree majoring in a relevant subject such as Psychology or Sociology (other options may be suitable), they can apply for admission directly into the third-year stage of the BSW programme.

For more information about Social and Community Work:

Social and Community Work programme

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Programme details

Explore more in Social Work

Learn where this subject can take you and discover the full range of study options, from undergraduate programmes to postgraduate pathways.

Study Social Work at Otago


University jargon

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Further study

We offer postgraduate opportunities tailored to your interests at Honours, Master's and PhD level.


More information

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Regulations on this page are taken from the 2025 Calendar and supplementary material.

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