ABSTRACT

Competition to attract students for enrollment in American social work degree programs is intense. Program attributes (e.g. minimum grade point average, maximum transfer credits permitted, institutional tuition rate, and rankings) distinguish social work education programs in the United States. Determining which program attributes appeal to potential students could help increase a program’s competitiveness in a crowded education marketplace. The COVID-19 pandemic is further intensifying recruitment of students to BSW programs. This research used a case study approach to compare admission attributes of 21 bachelor of social work programs (BSW) offered at 11 public and 10 private institutions located in one state that could be viewed as representative of American BSW programs. This paper compared attributes that differentiated these undergraduate social work programs, while exploring the potential impact of the pandemic on BSW student recruitment. Implications for social work education are discussed, including lessons learned that may be helpful to BSW faculty and staff responsible for student recruitment activities and related operations. Social work education program administrators and faculty could use this information to review recruitment and application processes and raise awareness of the burgeoning influence of reputational ranking services.

摘要

吸引学生报名参加美国社会工作学位课程的竞争非常激烈。课程属性（例如最低平均绩点、允许的最大转学分、机构学费和排名）区分美国的社会工作教育课程。确定哪些项目属性对潜在学生有吸引力有助于提高项目在拥挤的教育市场中的竞争力。COVID-19 大流行进一步加强了 BSW 项目的学生招募。本研究使用案例研究方法比较位于一个州的 11 所公立和 10 所私立机构提供的 21 个社会工作学士课程 (BSW) 的入学属性，这些课程可以被视为美国 BSW 课程的代表。本文比较了区分这些本科社会工作项目的属性，同时探讨了大流行对 BSW 学生招收的潜在影响。讨论了对社会工作教育的影响，包括可能对 BSW 负责招生活动和相关业务的教职员工有所帮助的经验教训。社会工作教育项目的管理者和教师可以使用这些信息来审查招聘和申请流程，并提高对声誉排名服务日益增长的影响的认识。包括可能对负责招生活动和相关业务的 BSW 教职员工有所帮助的经验教训。社会工作教育项目的管理者和教师可以使用这些信息来审查招聘和申请流程，并提高对声誉排名服务日益增长的影响的认识。包括可能对负责招生活动和相关业务的 BSW 教职员工有所帮助的经验教训。社会工作教育项目的管理者和教师可以使用这些信息来审查招聘和申请流程，并提高对声誉排名服务日益增长的影响的认识。