Tract A refers to the basic course and program requirements. Track B corresponds to the steps necessary to meet the Plan B (research project) requirements. Track C specifies the steps necessary to obtain an approved degree program before graduation. The numbers refer back to the chart.

TRACK A: BASIC COURSE AND PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

A1: Students begin their MSW program planning by meeting with their advisor to examine career goals, required and elective courses, possible course waiving and the general requirements of the program. The outcome of these early meetings should inc lude a plan for completing all the courses and other requirements over the span of time in the program which will vary according to whether or not the student is attending full-time (12-13 credits per term) or attending part-time.

From this point on, the student is expected to meet with the advisors during each registration period, so that the advisors can be advised of the student's progress or problems. The director of graduate studies serves as a resource for technical question s or problems for the advisors and students. Students are reminded that at least 69 of the quarter credits or 41 of the semester credits must be in Social Work (45 quarter credits or 28 semester credits for advanced standing students). While advisement and approval of student plans are recommended, students are in no way relieved of the responsibility of ensuring that all department and graduate school requirements are met.

A2: Students should select a mix of quarter and semester credits of coursework based on the course plans developed with the advisor. Students must complete all unfinished undergraduate prerequisite courses by the time they have accrued 50 percent of their necessary credits. All foundation courses should be completed (i.e., incompletes cleared up) before students enter the advanced generalist concentration courses. Field placements are developed by the field coordinator.

A3: Before 50 percent of their program has been completed, students must have filed their program papers and selected their oral exam committee. The committee will be composed of two of the social work faculty, including the student's faculty advi sor and one graduate school-approved faculty person from a different department.

A4: The student meets with their advisor before registration in their last quarter, as usual, but the discussion includes a progress report on the Plan B project. All incompletes should be cleared up at this time.

A5: After the Plan B project has been completed, the student meets with their final exam committee chairperson (and keeps their advisor informed) to discuss their tentative planning. The Plan B paper must be approved for presentation by the Plan B advisor before the final examination and distributed by the student no less than two weeks before the committee meeting for the final examination.

A6: The final exam chairperson calls the graduate school to get approval to schedule the final exam. The student sets a date for the examination with the committee chairperson and secures the participation of the other committee members. The com mittee chairperson is responsible for obtaining the examination report form from the graduate school.

Fifteen to twenty minute presentation by the student describing advanced generalist practice and its relationship to their coursework, field experiences, Plan B paper and future career. Students should include their understanding of social work pr actice and theory, within the advanced generalist model, as well as their understanding of social work values and ethics.

About thirty minutes of questions by the committee for the purpose of clarification and elaboration.

Five to ten minutes for the committee to make its decision (with the student excused).

Ten to fifteen minutes for feedback to the student.

The student's presentation/discussion will be evaluated based upon whether it is effective, organized, relevant, informative, thorough, and clear.

After the student has passed the final exam, they will be encouraged to provide the committee with evaluative comments about their graduate program experience and recommendations for the ways the program might be improved.

In case of failure, the unanimous consent of the committee will be required for the student to retake the examination.

A8: The student must apply for graduation at the graduate school office (431 Darland Administration Building). This application can actually occur prior to taking the final oral exam. A final fee must be paid, and the graduate school then comple tes its credit check to assure that all requirements have been completed in compliance with the previously-approved degree program form. The student is then informed either that they are cleared for graduation or that they have unmet requirements.

A9: Students officially graduate at the end of the month when the graduate school certifies that all requirements have been met. The diploma is typically received some months after the degree is conferred. Students interested in participating in commencement should consult the commencement policy.

The Plan B project is completed in lieu of a master's thesis. The intent of the requirement is for the student to learn and to demonstrate a process of systematically collecting data and then developing new knowledge on a specific topic. The steps in com pleting the Plan B project are briefly described below. The project is more thoroughly described in the Plan B Handbook.

B1: The student selects their Plan B supervisor from the social work faculty.

B2: Students officially begin working on their projects while taking SW 8501, Research II, although some students begin a literature review prior to this time. In this course, the students develop their research questions or hypotheses and write a proposal for the project (which is the final paper for the course). Approval of the proposal from the Plan B supervisor and the second reader (one of whom is the student's faculty advisor) is needed to continue with the project. Students cannot carry incompletes from Research II to Research Problems.

B3: Students conduct their research projects in SW 8750, Research Problems, based on their proposals from SW 8501. The course instructor serves as a research consultant to the students during the class meeting times. The class is conducted as a seminar. Exposure to computerization of research data will be incorporated into the seminar. Most projects should be largely completed during this time.

B4: Students continue to work on the unfinished parts of their projects, including the writing of the final research report (i.e., the Plan B paper), in consultation with their Plan B supervisor. It is normal that the students will revise their p apers several times, in response to the feedback provided by the various faculty members.

B5: The Plan B supervisor approves the paper as being ready for presentation in the final oral exam. Following the exam, the student will complete the Plan B Paper Transmittal and Approval Form and submit it to the Plan B supervisor.

TRACK C: UNIVERSAL DEGREE FORM

The Degree Program Form formalizes the plan that the student develops to complete the MSW course requirements. The graduate school requires that students have this form reviewed by the student's advisor and the director of graduate studies by the time th ey have completed 50 percent of their total credit requirements.

The information below briefly describes the process of completing this form; more complete instructions are provided in the "Instructions for Filing Official Graduate School Program Forms." Completing this form requires precision, and it is essential th at students review all requirements of the MSW program and of the graduate school. The students must also refer to the Graduate School Bulletin.

C1: The student should follow the guidelines in the "Instructions" to complete the form. Once the advisor and director of graduate studies sign the form, it will be submitted to the graduate school.

C2: The MSW Program faculty evaluate the appropriateness of the student's planning, as evidenced by the information entered onto the form. The graduate school reviews the form from the perspective of whether or not all of the courses and instruct ors listed have been approved by the graduate school and that other graduate school guidelines have been followed. The reviews at both levels are for approval or rejection of the student's plan of courses. If either the program faculty or the graduate s chool find any reasons for rejecting the form as written, the student will be notified expeditiously.

Once the degree program form has been signed, it becomes a contract between the University and the student. Verbal approval is not sufficient. The approved form serves as the basis for the final credit check by the graduate school for the students, afte r the final examination has been passed. The forms can only be changed by a petition to the graduate school, with the signatures of the advisor and the DGS.