• An academic qualification with a firm eye to real-world application
• An internationally recognised degree
• A clear and logical course structure
• Lecturers with strong track records in research and practice and interdisciplinary working approaches
• Individual supervision from academic staff
• The opportunity to qualify as a higher-level public official in the German system (höherer Dienst)
• The chance to proceed to doctoral study if so desired

This Master’s degree course is designed to build consecutively on a first degree; we welcome applications from holders of a first degree in social work or a comparable discipline.

The course’s curriculum is centred on the key social work objective of promoting people’s full participation in societal life. Working on the basis of problem- and resource-centred approaches, students learn to apply and combine community- and client-centred interventions to achieve this aim. Alongside gaining academic knowledge and a methodological repertoire, students acquire social management skills which give them the capacity to influence the institutional frameworks within which social workers practise. Modules include:

• The science of social work
• Social management
• Person-centred approaches in social work
• Analysing life situations
• Concepts and projects in social work
• Community-centred approaches in social work
• Evaluation
• Electives and workshops
• Master thesis

Essential:

• A first degree (Bachelor’s, German Diplom or equivalent) in social work, youth and community work (Sozialpädagogik) or a comparable discipline, worth at least 210 credit points
• Diploma Supplement/Transcript of Records
• International applicants are required to demonstrate proficiency in the German language at level C1 (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) or above via a recognised language test, which should be one of the following: Goethe Institut C1, TestDaF 4, telc C1 Hochschule, DSH2, Deutsches Sprachdiplom issued by the KMK (Kultusministerkonferenz), or Kleines or Großes Sprachdiplom issued by the Goethe-Institut 

Further required documents:

• Letter of motivation
• CV

Further documents you may submit to enhance your application (each of these will have the effect of improving the grade of your first degree, for the purposes of the admissions procedure, by a fictitious 0.1 points in accordance with the German system and therefore increasing your chance of a place):

• Proof of voluntary work in a relevant area (for instance, in the political arena, in your student union or for a social or community cause) of at least one year’s duration
• Proof of any relevant professional experience completed during or subsequent to your first degree, of at least one year’s duration, or relevant experience in academic research, concept design, model or pilot projects or publishing academic work
• At least 6 months’ experience working in a social work setting outside your home country

N.B.: Applicants whose Bachelor’s degrees are equivalent to 180 credit points are required to attain a further 30 credit points within the first two semesters on the course in order to enrol fully. You gain these points by attending courses from the Bachelor’s degree in Social Work at HAW Hamburg, as stipulated by, and subject to the agreement of, the admissions committee for the Master’s course. Your enrolment will be provisional for the first two semesters and full enrolment will be subject to meeting this condition. There are further details in the Admissions and Selection Regulations for this degree course.