USC | School of Social Work

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Historical Firsts

First institution in the West to offer full-time professional social work curriculum (1920)
First social work doctoral program in the West (1953)
First school of social work to combine elements of casework, group work and community organization into an integrated model of social work practice (1964)
First industrial social work concentration in the West (1982)
First multi-purpose employee counseling service to operate in a university setting (1980)<
First to join a consortium of schools to provide child welfare training for public welfare employees
First Nurse Social Work Practitioner option, enabling nurses to earn a specialized master of social work degree and case management certificate (2004)
First school of social work to hire a medical anthropologist, Lawrence Palinkas, who specializes in behavioral medicine and health services research (2005)