Now in its second year, the Bachelor of Social Work at the University Of Wollongong (UOW) has proven to be a popular choice with those seeking to further their education.
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In a coup for south coast residents, the course is offered in it’s entirety at both Wollongong and Shoalhaven campuses.
UOW Associate Professor in Social Work Peter Camilleri said the course has proved popular with those pursuing tertiary study.
“The first year of the program was social science and we are starting to teach the social work subjects this year,” Professor Camilleri said.
“It is now a fairly large program for the university in that we now have over 200 students in the first two years in both Wollongong and Shoalhaven.”
The need for social workers across the country is fairly high; the community services sector has grown enormously.
- Peter Camilleri, UOW Associate Professor in Social Work.
It is the first time the university has offered the degree which was created to meet the demand for employees in the thriving sector.
“The closest social work program is probably ACU in Canberra or Western Sydney; there’s really nothing from Sutherland all the way down to Eden,” Professor Camilleri said.
“The need for social workers across the country is fairly high; the community services sector has grown enormously.
“They’ve tended to have problems recruiting social workers from Wollongong all the way down to the bottom of the Shoalhaven, mainly because graduates from Sydney get absorbed within the metropolitan market.”
Professor Camilleri believes as the community ages, issues around the type of services people require and how to coordinate those services become considerably larger.
“Families have become smaller,” he said.
“If you look at most families, people’s children can be either in another state or even overseas, so the sort of support you need as you age gets more complex.”
