Requirements for Licensure in Social Work; Authorized Services

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  5. Requirements for Licensure in Social Work; Authorized Services

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  1. The education, experience, and training requirements for licensure in social work are as follows:
    1. For licensure as a master's social worker, a master's degree in social work from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; and
    2. For licensure as a clinical social worker:
      1. A master's degree in social work from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; and
      2. As defined by the board, three years' full-time supervised experience in the practice of social work following granting of the master's degree.Of the three years of supervised experience, only the first two must be under direction.A doctoral degree in a specialty, an allied profession, or child and family development may substitute for one year of such experience. At least one year of experience shall have occurred within two years immediately preceding application for licensure as a clinical social worker or the applicant shall have met the continuing education requirement established by the board for clinical social work during the year immediately preceding application.
  2. Licensed master's social workers may render or offer to render to individuals, marriages, couples, families, groups, organizations, governmental units, or the general public service which is guided by knowledge of social resources, social systems, and human behavior. They may provide evaluation, prevention, and intervention services which include but are not restricted to community organization, counseling, and supportive services such as administration, direction, supervision ofbachelor's level social workers, consultation, research, or education.The first two years of their practice after licensure as a master's social worker shall be under direction and supervision.Thereafter, they may engage in private practice, except that those social workers whose practice includes counseling or psychotherapeutic techniques may only engage in such practice under the supervision of a duly qualified supervisor and only for such period of time as is prescribed for qualification to take the clinical social work licensing examination.
  3. Licensed clinical social workers may practice all authorized services of licensed master's social workers and may: provide supervision and direction; provide psychosocial evaluation through data collection and analyses to diagnose the nature of an individual's mental, cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and interpersonal problems or conditions; provide counseling and psychotherapy to individuals, marriages, couples, families, and groups; interpret the psychosocial dynamics of a situation and recommend and implement a course of action to individuals, marriages, couples, families, or groups in such settings as private practice, family service and counseling agencies, health care facilities, and schools; and provide direct evaluation, casework, social work advocacy, education, training, prevention, and intervention services in situations threatened or affected by social, intrapersonal, or interpersonal stress or health impairment.

(Code 1981, §43-7A-12, enacted by Ga. L. 1984, p. 1406, § 1; Ga. L. 1987, p. 467, § 1; Ga. L. 1990, p. 1484, §§ 4, 5; Ga. L. 1993, p. 330, § 5; Ga. L. 2012, p. 347, § 2/HB 434.)

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Master's level degree and licensure.

- A master's level social work graduate from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education may provide social work services without a license as long as such person does not hold himself or herself out as being licensed or use words, letters, titles, images, or figures stating or implying licensure. Practice without licensure by a master's program graduate social worker may include services that are provided under direction and supervision while the individual is preparing to take the master's social work licensing examination, but only for a period of up to one year following the granting of the degree, or that are provided by a graduate who is engaged in the practice of community organization, policy, planning, research, or administration or under other specified circumstances listed in O.C.G.A. § 43-10A-7(b). 2017 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U17-3.


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