School of Social Work

School of Social Work
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5354 USA
(269) 387-3180

Trauma Across the Lifespan

WMU's School of Social Work provides students with the opportunity to complete a specialization in trauma practice across the lifespan, for Clinical Social Work (CSW) concentration MSW students. Students will declare their plan to obtain the Trauma Specialization through the Office of Admissions and Student Services, and organize their program plan to meet the requirements detailed below. 

The Trauma Specialization (TS) prepares students to provide trauma-specific evidence-based clinical services to those with a history of trauma across the lifespan (including children, adolescents, adults, survivors, and perpetrators; and those who have experienced a wide range of traumas, such as child abuse, sexual assault, intimate partner violence, community violence, combat, witnessing violence, human trafficking, natural disasters and/or traumatic accidents). 

Trauma Specialization Course Requirements 

Students who wish to complete the TS will complete nine elective credits in courses approved for the Trauma Specialization. These elective credits will meet expectations for the nine credits of electives required for the MSW degree and are available to any student in the MSW program as electives, which includes: 

  • SWRK 6500, Core Concepts of Child Trauma (3 credits), taken no later than the Fall of the concentration (final) year. 

  • SWRK 6379, Integrative Seminar in Trauma Studies (1 credit), taken in the spring of the concentration (final) year. 

  • Five additional TS approved elective credits, having a trauma-specific and clinical social work focus. Two of these credits need to be taken in the School of Social Work. 

  • MSW Clinical Social Work Clinical Concentration Field Placement: Students also complete their Clinical concentration field placement (500 hours) in a Trauma Specialization approved field organization, which: 

  • Identifies itself as having a trauma-specific approach, and provides assessment, treatment planning, and treatment for those with a trauma history 

  • Field instructor has training and experience in providing trauma-specific treatment 

Approved Trauma Specialization Courses 

The following WMU School of Social Work are approved for the Trauma Specialization (tuition costs may vary slightly by campus). If a course is not listed here, it is not approved for the Trauma Specialization. Please see new course schedules as they become available. 

  • SWRK 6350: Human Trafficking and Trauma Practice (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6350: Trauma in Sexual and Gender Minorities (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6350: Trauma and Refugee Populations (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6351: Secondary Traumatic Stress and Self-Care in Trauma-Focused Practice (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6352: Trauma and Neurodevelopment (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6353: Integrating Mindfulness with Treatment for Trauma (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6354: Integrating Body-Based Interventions with Treatment for Trauma (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6355: Intimate Partner Violence: Assessment and Intervention (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6356: Assessment and Treatment for Adult Survivors of Sexual Trauma (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6357: Trauma and Military Social Work (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6358: Risk Assessment and Treatment Planning for Adolescents with Sexually Abusive Behaviors (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6359: Strengthening Trauma-Informed Organizations (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6361: Intergenerational Trauma: Assessment and Intervention in Indigenous Communities 

  • SWRK 6362: Play Strategies for Trauma Practice with Children and Adolescents (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6363: Trauma and Black Adolescents (1 credit) 

  • SWRK 6378: Integrative Seminar in TF-CBT (1 credit, for TF-CBT students only—final Fall semester) 

  • SWRK 6379: Integrative Seminar in Trauma Studies (1 credit, for TS and TF-CBT students only—Final Spring semester) 

  • SWRK 6500: Core Concepts of Child Trauma (3 credits) 

  • CECP 5830: PTSD (1 credit) 

  • CECP 5830: Forensic Psychology (1 credit) 

  • CECP 5830: Self-Harming Behavior (1 credit) 

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Training 

The WMU School of Social Work offers a unique training opportunity in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) for students in the Clinical Social Work concentration. This includes specialized course work and concentration field placements that offer training and supervision in TF-CBT, with TF-CBT trained field instructors.  The TF-CBT Training can be completed along with the Trauma Across the LifeSpan specialization, or separately.  There are 5 elective credits plus a MSW Clinical Concentration field placement required for the TF-CBT Training program, to include: 

  • SWRK 6500: Core Concepts of Child Trauma (3 credits).  TF-CBT students must take SWRK 6500 no later than Fall of their concentration year. 

  • SWRK 6378: Integrative Seminar in TF-CBT (1 credit), to be taken the Fall semester of your concentration (final) year.  

  • SWRK 6379: Integrative Seminar in Trauma Studies (1 credit), to be taken the Spring semester of your concentration (final) year.  

  • MSW Concentration field placement with a field instructor trained and implementing TF-CBT, and that provides the opportunity to complete at least 2 full TF-CBT cases during the field placement 

  • Complete a pre-requisite TF-CBT Web 2.0 training course. Access to the free 10-hour on-line training course is available at https://tfcbt2.musc.edu/. This training is an assignment in SWRK 6500. 

  • Participate in quarterly in-person TF-CBT consultations for field instructors and students. 

 

WMU School of Social Work Clinical Social Work 

Trauma Specialization Program Options: 

Trauma Across the Life Span (TALS) and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) 

Courses required (apply to MSW elective credits) and field placement requirements 

Trauma Across the Life Span (TALS) 

Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) 

Completing Both  TALS and TF-CBT  

SWRK 6500: Core Concepts of Child and Adolescent Trauma (3 credits); take no later than Fall of concentration/ final year 

X 

X 

X 

SWRK 6378: Integrative Seminar in TF-CBT, Fall semester, concentration/ final yr. (1 credit) 

 

X (includes 3 days of training in TF-CBT model) 

X (includes 3 days of training in TF-CBT model) 

SWRK 6379: Integrative Seminar in Trauma Studies, Spring semester, concentration/ final yr. (1 credit) 

X 

X 

X 

CSW Concentration year placement (500 hours) 

X (focused on trauma assessment and intervention/ treatment, any population, any treatment model) 

X (TF-CBT with children, adolescents, and their caregivers) 

X (TF-CBT with children, adolescents, and their caregivers); also meets TALS field requirements 

Total elective course credits required 

9  

5  

9  

 For additional information about the Trauma Specialization or TF-CBT Training project, please contact Dr. Karen VanDeusen, Trauma Program Director, at @email.