Social work education

Abstract

The overall aim of the dissertation is to evaluate social education in Malta, with special reference to the course provided by The University of Malta. The evaluation is based on the opinions of ex-students of The Diploma in Applied Social Studies. This dissertation aims to discover, through a survey, the number of students who, having successfully completed the course, subsequently decide for or against following a career in social work. Students who go into practice are asked for their views on which elements of the course they find most contribute to their thinking and to their practice. I believe this to be an appropriate line of study in line with the recommendations of the Lindop Committee, (1985) which suggest that scrutiny should be shifted from the aims of the course providers to educational outcomes and delivery of courses. There are a number of students who are accredited social workers but have chosen not to take up a social work position. I have explored their reasons for this, as well as their reasons for choosing a social work course and their intentions as regards following a social work career at the time of enrolment. Attention has also been given to the drop-out rate among mature students in an attempt to explore what induced them to give up the course.