Gatekeeping in BSW Programs

Leaders in their specific fields consider the administrative, ethical, and legal aspects of gatekeeping as well as its history and its major issues, legal matters, strategies and processes.

Social work educators and degree program administrators face difficult issues concerning law, student rights, and social justice in their role as gatekeepers of the social work profession. How, and why, should baccalaureate social work programs afford or restrict access to the profession? When do gatekeeping strategies mask educators' reluctance to tackle some of the more thorny issues that have plagued higher education in general, for example, academe's often limited success in addressing a variety of student special needs? Balancing the interests of a diverse student population, a baccalaureate program, and the profession--to say nothing of the clients--challenges gatekeepers' creativity to the utmost. This all-in-one resource, written by social work educators with special interests and expertise in gatekeeping, provides the knowledge and tools that faculty and administrators need to carry out their duties conscientiously and appropriately. Gatekeeping in BSW Programs covers the history of gatekeeping and its major issues, legal matters in the field, and strategies and processes of gatekeeping; it also includes useful appendixes of materials and tools, such as sample questions for student admissions and various sample academic policies.