Social Work & Public Health

The Master of Social Work and the Master of Public Health (MSW/MPH) joint degree program is offered by the School of Social Work, and the Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, School of Medicine.

The MSW/MPH joint degree program provides social work students with a deeper understanding of complex determinants of health and the scientific methods necessary to operate in an interprofessional environment. Building on the natural overlap between public health and social work, the MSW/MPH degree strengthens and deepens the knowledge base necessary to address health disparities, urban health challenges, and equips students with the skills to qualify for employment that demands integration of prevention, research, and social epidemiological methods. Interprofessionally trained public health social workers master the requisite knowledge and skill sets required to utilize community–based interventions to assist in the development of sensitive and need-based public health and social welfare policies.

Examples of job opportunities include positions at Wayne County Department of Health and Human Services, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Wayne Community Mental Health Authority, Detroit Medical Center, Henry Ford Hospital Systems, Karmanos Cancer Institute, ACCESS, Michigan League for Public Policy and many more.

International applicants must complete the equivalent of a U.S. four-year bachelor's degree, including all state and external/internal examinations required for the degree. Some three-year general degrees (from Canada, India, Pakistan, France, Lebanon, etc.) may not be equivalent to a four-year U.S. bachelor's degree. However, if you have completed an honors degree, additional undergraduate coursework beyond the three-year bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree, you may be considered for admission.

If you are applying to a master's program, your minimum undergraduate GPA must be 2.75 or its equivalent in upper division coursework. If you are applying to a doctoral program, your minimum undergraduate GPA must be 3.0 or its equivalent in upper division coursework.

Submit your transcript(s)

To begin the application review, upload unofficial copies of English-translated international transcripts from all post-secondary educational institutions from which you earned a bachelor's degree or higher, including Mark Sheets, if applicable. If you are admitted, you must submit an official course-by-course academic evaluation of your completed bachelor's degree.

Demonstrate English proficiency 

Non-native speakers of English must demonstrate English proficiency by meeting the minimum requirements. You are required to submit an official qualifying score meeting minimum Graduate School requirements. Send official test scores to Wayne State University Graduate Admissions, using the school code 1898.

To begin the application review, upload an unofficial copy of your English proficiency test score(s). Once admitted, an official test score must be submitted to Graduate Admissions.