Shanghai-New York MSW Program
NYU Silver’s MSW Program at Shanghai and New York is the only MSW program of an American university in China. The program provides the opportunity to experience an innovative global MSW education. Extended immersion in Shanghai and New York allows students to critically reflect on cultural, social, and economic similarities and differences between these two environments, and it enhances their learning about and capacity for culturally appropriate practice.
Global MSW Education
The MSW at Shanghai and New York program is designed for students of any nationality who desire a truly global social work education. The program consists of a generalist practice curriculum in Shanghai followed by a specialized practice curriculum in clinical social work in New York City. Global and multi-cultural content is infused throughout the curriculum. Shanghai field placements not only feature bilingual (English and Mandarin) opportunities, but also provide a focus on emerging social issues in China today. New York field placements provide a complementary focus on social and clinical issues within a U.S. context.
Bilingual Program
All courses are taught in English. In Shanghai, students have their field placements at local social service agencies and hospitals. These placements are in either Chinese or English, depending on a student’s language capability. In New York, students have their field placements in the greater New York metropolitan area, where a wide variety of agency settings are available. These field placements are at sites where English is the primary language.
Full-Time and Part-Time Pathways
Two pathways are available to accommodate students’ varying schedules. For more information about these pathways, see below.
Contact Us
Silver School of Social Work at NYU Shanghai
Pudong Campus
1555 Century Ave.
Pudong, Shanghai, China 200122
Coordinator: Qingwen Xu
Email: silver.shanghai@nyu.edu
Program page in Chinese: 全球社会工作硕士项目
Special Application Instructions
Two-Year Applicants: In the NYU Silver Application Portal, select Full-Time Pathway as your Enrollment Status, Two-Year as your Program, and Shanghai as your Campus Location.
Extended Applicants: In the NYU Silver Application Portal, select Part-Time Pathway as your Enrollment Status, Extended as your Program, and Shanghai as your Campus Location.
Degree Pathways
Two-Year Pathway: This pathway consists of a generalist practice curriculum in Shanghai followed by a specialized practice curriculum in clinical social work in New York City. Students spend two semesters in a field instruction agency in each of the program’s two years, for a total of 1,200 hours of field learning experience.
Extended Pathway: This pathway is designed to meet the needs of working professionals, consisting of part-time study during the Shanghai portion of the program and full-time study during the New York portion of the program. The extended pathway is available to Chinese nationals (including residents from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan), and to non-Chinese nationals who have an appropriate visa for part-time study in China.
Two-Year Pathway
First Year in Shanghai
Fall
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice I | 4 |
| Social Welfare Programs & Policies I | 3 |
| Human Behavior in the Social Environment I | 3 |
| Diversity, Racism, Oppression, and Privilege | 3 |
| Chinese Language* | 2 |
| Field Instruction I | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 17* |
Spring
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice II | 3 |
| Human Behavior in the Social Environment II | 3 |
| Practice with Groups | 3 |
| Social Work Research I | 3 |
| Field Instruction II | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 16 |
Second Year in New York
Fall
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice III | 3 |
| Human Behavior in the Social Environment III | 3 |
| Social Work Research II | 3 |
| Elective* | 3 |
| Field Instruction III | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 16* |
January Term
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Elective* | 1 |
Spring
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice IV | 3 |
| Advanced Social Policy | 3 |
| Elective | 3 |
| Elective | 3 |
| Field Instruction IV | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 16 |
*Note: Students who wish to strengthen their language skills may choose to take the Chinese Language elective during the first semester in Shanghai. Students choosing to do so must take 7 elective credits during their year in New York (usually 1 credit in January and 6 credits in Spring). Students who choose not to take Chinese must take 9 elective credits during the year in New York (usually 3 credits in Fall and 6 credits in Spring).
Students in this program pathway have the option to take up to, but no more than, 3 one-credit electives.
Extended Pathway
Two Years in Shanghai
Fall (Year 1)
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Welfare Programs and Policies I | 3 |
| Human Behavior in the Social Environment I | 3 |
| Diversity, Racism, Oppression, and Privilege | 3 |
| Total Credits: | 9 |
Spring (Year 1)
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Human Behavior in the Social Environment II | 3 |
| Social Work Research I | 3 |
| Practice with Groups | 3 |
| Total Credits: | 9 |
Fall (Year 2)
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice I | 4 |
| Chinese Language* | 2 |
| Field Instruction I | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 8* |
Spring (Year 2)
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice II | 3 |
| Field Instruction II | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 7 |
Third Year in New York
Fall
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice III | 3 |
| Human Behavior in the Social Environment III | 3 |
| Social Work Research II | 3 |
| Elective * | 3 |
| Field Instruction III | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 16* |
January Term
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Elective* | 1 |
Spring
| Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|
| Social Work Practice IV | 3 |
| Advanced Social Policy | 3 |
| Elective | 3 |
| Elective | 3 |
| Field Instruction IV | 4 |
| Total Credits: | 16 |
*Note: Students who wish to strengthen their language skills may choose to take the Chinese Language elective during any semester in Shanghai. Students choosing to do so must take 7 elective credits during their year in New York (usually 1 credit in January and 6 credits in Spring). Otherwise, students must take 9 elective credits during the year in New York (usually 3 credits in Fall and 6 credits in Spring).
Students in this program pathway have the option to take up to, but no more than, 3 one-credit electives.
Sequential courses are designed to be taken in order. Students are responsible for following their designated curriculum guide and cannot take these courses out of their designated order unless otherwise indicated by their academic advisor.