New Dual-Degree Program

Sarah Lawrence College has joined with the New York University School of Social Work to offer a dual-degree program in Child Development and Social Work. The course of study combines the theoretical knowledge bases of clinical social work and developmental psychology, and students in the new program will pursue study leading to Master’s degrees in both Social Work and Child Development. The program admitted its first students in September.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for two strong programs to join forces and create something new,” noted Dean of Graduate Studies Susan Guma recently. “The close study in both fields will prepare our graduates to tackle increasingly complex social and developmental issues with an eye toward true understanding.”

Students will begin the program at Sarah Lawrence College, completing one year of course work in developmental theory and an observational fieldwork placement. Social work classes, held at the Shirley M. Ehrenkranz School of Social Work at NYU, begin after the completion of this first year. Through careful course planning, students can complete both degrees in three years of full-time work, or on a part-time basis.

According to Guma, the goals of the dual- degree program are “to educate students for advanced practice in the treatment of children’s social, mental and emotional health; to provide an appropriate balance between academic study and direct, clinical practice with children; and to prepare social-work clinicians to meet the diverse needs of at-risk children, particularly those in the urban setting, through an in-depth understanding of the intellectual, emotional, social and imaginative life of the child.”

For more information, please contact the Office of Graduate Studies at (914) 395-2371, or go to www.slc.edu/child-development.