Master in Social Work - with a Comparative Perspective

Social work and community development are, through their very nature, rooted in contextual historical, socio-political, economic and cultural realities. Thus they should be informed by and responsive to local realities. The failure or limited success of most models of development and strategies to alleviate exclusion and poverty makes the challenge of constructing alternatives and improving social work, a joint responsibility. The clearly dialectical and complex relationship between the global and the local call upon social workers and community development practitioners not only to think globally and act locally, but to think and act both globally and locally, and to understand the interlocking influences of micro, mezzo and macro level (including global) factors on the lives of people that social workers are engaged in.

Accordingly, a main vision of social work is to engage in the community in the pursuit of enhanced functioning and development of individuals, families, groups, organisations and communities, and the promotion of peace, human rights, social justice and equality of all people at local, regional, national and international levels. This programme will strive to identify, elaborate and develop challenges and perspectives of special relevance for social work in the Circumpolar region. A deliberative, contextual and comparative approach will be used to comply with particular needs for competence and knowledge. The focus will be on living condition, democratic governance, indigenous and gender issues. More specifically the programme has the following objectivs

* To develop the students ability to critically analyse and develop social work practice through a comparative approach using different contexts.


* To build competence and qualify people in social work to positions where post-graduate competence is required


* Offer further education at master level to experienced social workers to prepare for leadership and supervision roles.


* Develop social work both as an academic and an applied discipline.


* Provide a basis for increasing the number of applicants for doctoral programmes, thereby increasing the number of doctoral degrees within the field of social work.


* Create good relations between professionals from similar vocational backgrounds.


* Develop contacts and cooperation with educational institutions and research environments both nationally and internationally.


* To provide a basis for a deeper understanding of social policy and social work as a force in community development in different socio political contexts in the High North.