Dordt University partners with Gordon College to offer fast-track MSW degree

Dordt University’s Master of Social Work (MSW) program will partner with Gordon College of Wenham, Massachusetts, to provide students with the opportunity to fast-track their MSW degree.

The partnership provides Gordon graduates with a faster, more inexpensive pathway to earn their MSW at a Christ-centered institution, says Joe Bakker, director of online education.

“The credit to Dordt’s MSW program is based on what courses the students take during their bachelor’s degree,” he says. “Gordon students who major in social welfare or psychology will benefit the most.”

Dr. Erin Olson, director of Dordt’s MSW program, says that the partnership with Gordon College represents an arrangement between two institutions who hold “Christ-centered education as the most important factor in preparing students for work helping the vulnerable members of our society.”

“Gordon students who join Dordt’s MSW program will now have the opportunity to be taught by Christian social workers who will help them think more deeply about what it means to be a Christian in this field while also helping them achieve their career goals,” adds Olson.

Sybil Coleman, professor of social work at Gordon, is encouraged that Gordon students will have the chance to complete the MSW degree within a one-year period.

“The partnership gives Gordon students continued training and preparation for advancement in the social work field as well as the opportunity for licensure,” she says. “The online program provides flexibility for our students as well.”

This is the fifth partnership for Dordt’s MSW program. “These partnerships show that Christian institutions and their students desire the opportunity to pursue graduate programs that are Christ-centered,” says Bakker. “Students want their graduate experience to have the same integration of Christian values that they experienced as an undergraduate.”

Dordt’s MSW is entirely online, allowing students to participate from anywhere. Taught from a Christian perspective, Dordt’s MSW supports the institution’s mission to “equip students to work toward Christ-centered renewal in all areas of life.”

The program offers students three tracks: clinical practice, community practice and administration, and advanced generalist. With opportunities to participate in the program on a part-time or full-time basis, students can enter the program at the beginning of the fall, spring, or summer semesters. Dordt’s Master of Social Work is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) and approved by the Higher Learning Commission.

To learn more about Dordt’s MSW degree, visit Dordt.edu/MSW.

About Dordt University

As an institution of higher education committed to the Reformed Christian perspective, Dordt University equips students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community to work toward Christ-centered renewal in all aspects of contemporary life. Located in Sioux Center, Iowa, Dordt is a comprehensive university named to the best college lists by the Wall Street Journal, Times Higher Education, Forbes.com, Washington Monthly, and Princeton Review.