Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)
Overview
Be in demand to play a key role in developing a society based on social justice, and in alleviating disadvantage.
As a qualified social worker, you'll have a commitment to the well-being of society and be highly skilled to intervene with and support individuals, families, groups and communities to achieve equitable access to opportunities and resources.
You'll have the skills to stimulate action to change the social circumstances of individuals and groups who are socially excluded. You'll also work to reduce personal pain and distress and provide direction for individual development and control over life situations.
UQ lets you forge your own path in social work, undergoing foundation and advanced practice in the areas of health and ageing, children, youth and families, and mental health. Your focused learning, research and placement opportunities will be combined with core knowledge and skills in social work, social policy and research. You'll learn from award-winning educators about the law, human development, professional ethics and the principles and ideas that guide social workers.
You'll also undertake 1000 hours of supervised placement in a range of clinical settings, including hospitals and a variety of public and private agencies. Plus you may complete a rural, interstate or international placement in your final year.
Program highlights
- Build on common social work education foundations and develop your understanding and skills as you progress through the program, undertaking increasingly complex social work tasks
- Acquire valuable research skills to inform policy and practice decisions.
- Work with families and communities to address social issues and problems through interpersonal, community and policy solutions.
- Benefit from innovative learning methods that simulate real client encounters and learn appropriate responses to any situation
- Graduate job-ready, and qualified to excel in this rapidly growing field.
Majors
Tailor your studies to suit your goals. This program offers these options:
- Child, Youth and Family
- Health and Ageing
- Mental Health
How you'll learn
Your learning experiences are designed to best suit the learning outcomes of the courses you choose.
- Lectures
- Tutorials
- Work placements
- Online study
- Fieldwork
Placements and work experience
Clinical placements may be outside of the Brisbane metropolitan area where you will be required to fund your travel, accommodation and daily living expenses.
This program has pre-placement requirements which must be met prior to commencement of the program or a placement course. Further details can be found on the Placement Ready website.
What you'll study
At UQ, degrees are called 'programs' and subjects are called 'courses'. Here's a sample of the courses you could study in this program:
- Human Development and Social Work
- Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People
- Moral and Ethical Foundations of Social Work
- Social Work and the Legal Context
Career possibilities
Our programs prepare you for your first job and beyond. Depending on which major you choose, here are some of the careers you could be on your way to:
- Youth counsellor
- Child welfare worker
- Family therapist
- Community worker
- Social worker
- Social and welfare services planner
- Disability advocate
- Disability support worker
Graduate salary
Social work (undergraduate)
compared.edu.au
Professional memberships
When you graduate, you may be eligible for memberships with the following professional organisations. Contact the organisation to find out how to become a member.
- Australian Association of Social Workers
Program accreditation
The Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) is accredited by:
- Australian Association of Social Workers
“I would definitely recommend studying social work at UQ as it offers a diverse and stimulating learning program. The social work teaching staff are so friendly, approachable and helpful.”
Melissa BennettGraduate, Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)
“I would definitely recommend studying social work at UQ as it offers a diverse and stimulating learning program. The social work teaching staff are so friendly, approachable and helpful.”
Melissa BennettGraduate, Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)
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Entry requirements
Prerequisites
Prerequisites
Entry score threshold
| OP | Rank | IB |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | 79 | 28 |
These are the lowest adjusted scores we made an offer to in Semester 1, 2020. Entry scores are based on the most recent Semester 1 intake and are updated in April each year. Meeting the threshold doesn't guarantee admission.
ATAR scores: See QTAC's OP to ATAR conversions (PDF) for a rough guide to equivalent ATARs.
English language requirements
IELTS overall 7; reading 7; writing 7; speaking 7; listening 7. For other English Language Proficiency Tests and Scores approved for UQ
TOEFL IBT - Overall 100, listening 25, reading 25, writing 27, speaking 23.
TOEFL PB - Overall 600, listening 59, reading 59, writing 64/6.
Pearsons - Overall 72, sub bands minimum 72.
BE - A minimum overall grade of 5 plus a minimum grade of A in all macro skills.
CES - Overall 185, All sub bands minimum 185.
OET is not accepted.
There are other ways to meet the English language requirements. For some programs, additional conditions apply.
Need help meeting the entry requirements?
Additional application information
This program may be completed part-time, however, semesters that include a placement must be studied full-time.
Commencing in Semester 2 will take four-and-a-half years to complete the program.
Before starting placement courses, you must obtain, and thereafter hold for the duration of the program, a current Blue Card. For more information, visit http://habs.uq.edu.au/placement-ready.
For applicants who need to provide evidence of English proficiency, please note that this program requires a higher level of English language proficiency than the UQ minimum.
Additional application information
Before starting placement courses, you must obtain, and thereafter hold for the duration of the program, a current Blue Card. For more information, visit http://habs.uq.edu.au/placement-ready.
Entry score range
This table shows the range of entry scores for recent secondary students offered a place in the B Social Work (Hons) for Semester 1, 2020
| Without adjustments | With adjustments | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | 2 / 97 | 2 / 97 |
| Median | 9 / 82 | 9 / 82 |
| Lowest | 12 / 75 | 10 / 79 |
Who you'll study with
Here's a snapshot of our student intake for this program in Semester 1, 2020:
| Applicant background | Number of students | Percentage of all students |
|---|---|---|
(A) Higher education study | 31 | 53.45% |
(B) Vocational Education and Training (VET) study | <5 | <5 |
(C) Work and life experience | <5 | <5 |
| (D) Recent secondary education | ||
| 14 | 24.14% |
| 0 | 0% |
| <5 | <5 |
International students | 5 | 8.62% |
Total | 58 | 100% |
"<5" — The number of students is less than 5.
N/A — Students not accepted in this category.
N/P — Not published. The number is hidden to protect the privacy of students in other cells.
Student visas
International students who are accepted into full-time study in the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) are eligible to apply for an Australian student visa (subclass 500).
There are a number of requirements you must satisfy before a visa is granted, including the genuine temporary entrant (GTE) requirement.
Minors
Minors
Tailor your studies to suit your goals. This program offers these options:
Child, Youth and Family
The courses focus on practice in both statutory and non-government service organisations. Learning activities include developing your understanding of the legal, policy and organisational environments of practice with children, young people and families, with a strong emphasis on understanding the Queensland and national environments of practice.
Health and Ageing
You'll develop an understanding of theoretical perspectives which influence practice in health and ageing and the policy, legal and organisational environments of practice in health and ageing, with a strong focus on the Australian context.
Mental Health
The emphasis is on understanding the living experience of mental illness and treatments as a starting point for helping.
Minors
Tailor your studies to suit your goals. This program offers these options:
Child, Youth and Family
The courses focus on practice in both statutory and non-government service organisations. Learning activities include developing your understanding of the legal, policy and organisational environments of practice with children, young people and families, with a strong emphasis on understanding the Queensland and national environments of practice.
Health and Ageing
You'll develop an understanding of theoretical perspectives which influence practice in health and ageing and the policy, legal and organisational environments of practice in health and ageing, with a strong focus on the Australian context.
Mental Health
The emphasis is on understanding the living experience of mental illness and treatments as a starting point for helping.
Fees and Scholarships
Government assistance
Financial aid
As an international student, you might be eligible for financial aid – either from your home country, or from the Australian Government.
Indicative annual fee
AUD $32,352
Indicative annual fee 2021
This indicative annual fee is the cost of enrolling in the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) for the 2021 academic year. It is calculated based on a standard full-time study load (16 units per academic year).
If you enrol in a larger or smaller study load, your fees will be calculated on a proportionate basis. All fees are reviewed annually.
HECS-HELP
Domestic places in the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) are Commonwealth Supported. This means the cost of your education is shared between you and the Australian Government.
Instead of tuition fees, Commonwealth Supported students pay what are called student contribution amounts.
HECS-HELP is an Australian Government loan scheme to assist eligible students with the cost of their student contribution amounts.
Centrelink support
The Australian Government offers a number of income-support payments to eligible Australian university students.
Indicative annual fee
AUD $7,058
Indicative annual fee 2020 Commonwealth supported place
Fee information for 2021 is not yet available. Fee information displayed is for 2020.
This indicative annual fee is the approximate cost of enrolling in a Commonwealth supported place (CSP) in the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) for one academic year. It is calculated based on a standard full-time study load (16 units over two semesters).
Actual fees will vary according to your choice of courses and their unit value. The Australian Government indexes fees each year.
Additional costs
- Students are expected to fund travel and living expenses associated with placements, some of which may be outside the Brisbane metropolitan area.
Scholarships
Make your university experience more affordable with a scholarship. Opportunities include:
Scholarships
Make your university experience more affordable with a scholarship. Opportunities include:
How to apply
Applying online
How you apply depends on what type of applicant you are.
Your senior schooling is from Australia or New Zealand
Submit your application to the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre if you are an international student who is currently:
- completing Australian Year 12 (either in Australia or offshore) or
- studying the International Baccalaureate in Australia.
The QTAC code for the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) is 734001.
Find out more about applying for undergraduate study
All other international applicants
Submit your application to UQ. If you prefer, you can use an approved UQ agent in your country.
The program code for the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) is 2382.
Applying through QTAC
All domestic applications should be submitted to the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre (QTAC).
The QTAC code for the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) is 734001.
Important dates
If you’re studying Year 12 in Australia, go to the QTAC website to check the closing date for this program.
If you’re applying to UQ, the closing date for this program is:
- To commence study in semester 1 - November 30 of the previous year.
To learn more about UQ dates, including semester start dates, view the Academic Calendar.
Important dates
To check the closing date for this program, go to the QTAC website.
To learn more about UQ dates, including semester start dates, view the Academic Calendar.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants
For support with applying - or if you have any questions about Uni - get in touch with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit.
Explore other programs
Express yourself. And your interest.
They say choosing a degree is hard, which is why we've made it easy. Register your interest in the Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) and we'll send you everything you need to know about applying to UQ.