UTPB preparing to offer master's of social work degree

Jul. 17—University of Texas Permian Basin is gearing up to offer a master of social work degree in 2024 that will dovetail with the upcoming Permian Basin Behavioral Health Hospital.

Samuel Terrazas, Professor and Academic Chair of the Department of Social Work, said enrollment would start in fall 2024.

Terrazas said there is a rather complex accreditation process through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

UTPB currently has a bachelor's of social work degree. Terrazas said they get a licensed bachelor's of social work degree.

The next level is the master's degree. That degree offers eligibility for licensure at the state level, as well.

They can also get a licensed clinical social worker degree, which allows them to do independent work.

There is also advanced standing. For those who have a BSW, they can do that in 32 hours or one academic year.

"Everything looks good. We just don't want to say those things are done until they're actually done," Terrazas said.

Samantha Perales, Field Director, provided information on the need for licensed clinical social workers in this area.

"According to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) as of 2020, Ector County had only 9 Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW) while Midland County has 19 LCSWs," the information detailed.

"According to the DSHS, LCSW's in all Texas counties ratio to 100,000 population ranked Ector County 127 and Midland County 101 out of 146 Texas counties. An analysis of counties with populations similar to Ector (161,091) and Midland (167,969) found significantly higher number of LCSW's in counties with similar populations according to DSHS. For example, Potter County with a population of 125,730 reportedly has 43 LCSWs while Ector and Midland counties with a collective population have 28."

Terrazas said UTPB's program is designed to be clinical, meaning that students are trained to do psychotherapy, assess, diagnose and intervene with mental illness, behavioral disorders or social-emotional problems.

"A lot of our students, as you know, are first-generation students. So the financial and professional mobility that happens with an MSW is pretty significant. ... The MSW and the LCSW, which is our licensed degree ... is very marketable throughout the United States. In terms of that, it is a great opportunity for ... people who are interested in social work in terms of a profession," Terrazas said.

The pathway can be earning a bachelor of social work, a master's in social work or becoming a private practitioner.

"They could literally hang a shingle in Odessa or Midland and provide psychotherapy and receive third-party payment from insurance companies, Medicaid, Medicare," Terrazas said.

Perales said social workers are a protected, meaning you have to be licensed to claim you are a social worker.

Students that are potentially interested in psychology can graduate with a psychology degree, but they cannot practice social work.

"They can enter into a master's of social work, do the two-year track and then become a licensed master social worker," Perales said.

Perales said they also hope to offer a pathway where a paraprofessional in the region who has been with a social service agency can be trained in social work.

The bachelor's and master's degrees require a practicum experience where they are working in the field, Perales said.

Terrazas noted that this is an applied degree, so students learn how to work with people, talk them down when they're upset and set boundaries.

"While we used theory to inform human behavior, it is one where in most of the courses they do simulations. We simulate client situations. We have what's called simulated competency progression. The student has to demonstrate that they can do whatever practice, skill, or capacity before they move on to the next," Terrazas said.

They start out in a very controlled environment where they control the scenario.

"In their final year, they're doing 16 hours a week in a field placement ... They're working with humans. They're working with ... people with substance abuse problems, child abuse and neglect. You name it. They're working with real people, so we prepare them for that. ... That's going to be the same thing for the master's degree. They have to do a field practicum, but those will be clearly different. It will be in clinical settings like Oceans (Behavioral Health Hospital) or other places where they would be seeing people with mental health related problems," Terrazas said.

Perales oversees students' field practicum placement, ensuring that they are at an agency where the student can work under a licensed social worker.

"I then work with the students throughout that academic year. We do a lot of continued competency building ... It's almost a time where they really solidify that transition from student to professional," Perales said.