If you are a prospective social worker contemplating your licensing requirements, you’re most likely thinking about the steps needed to obtain your license in the first place. However, there is more work that you must put in in order to keep your social work license once you have it.
In Texas and the rest of the nation, social workers are required to complete continuing education courses every two years to keep their licenses active.
This is to ensure that all practicing social workers are keeping track of the evolving state of the social work field, from rising trends to emerging challenges that their work must account for. After all, one of the exciting and engaging things about social work practice is that it is continuously incorporating new methodologies and approaches to provide the most comprehensive, up-to-date care possible to people in need.
So what does continuing education for social work look like, and how much time and energy should social workers expect to devote to license maintenance once they are practicing in the field? Read on to learn everything you need to know about C.E. requirements in the social work profession.
Why is Continuing Education Required?
As noted above, the social work profession is designed to evolve and adapt to public needs and the new tools we have to deliver care and track progress on an individual or communal level. This means that the methodologies social workers learn at the beginning of their careers may be subject to change as time goes on.
Maintaining Relevant Social Work Skills and Knowledge
While C.E. requirements may seem like a burden for incoming social workers, they can be a useful and interesting way for social workers to advance their understanding of the work they do. They also ensure that longtime social workers do not lose the ability to do their jobs effectively even as their professional worlds change around them. This allows seasoned experts to continue to participate in the field, contributing their hard-won knowledge to guide emerging practices to be as effective as possible.
Building New Skills and Areas of Specialty
There are other reasons why practicing social workers can appreciate C.E. requirements. For those who seek new skills or areas of specialty, they can offer professional development that would be difficult to find otherwise. This can involve learning new approaches and strategies within your existing area of focus – such as new counseling modalities for LCSWs – or a first exposure to a type of social issue that has previously gone unaddressed in your career. In this way, C.E. requirements can be an important way for longtime social work professionals to broaden their career paths.
Networking Opportunities
Finally, continuing education courses that are taken in person can offer important opportunities for networking. While more and more options for online C.E. courses are becoming available, there are still many social workers who prefer to make use of the chance to meet other professionals in their field, whether for building solidarity or for seeking new professional relationships that can lead to career growth.
Continuing Education Course Options and Types
For those who still feel daunted by the prospect of adding 30 hours of required class time to their already busy work schedules, don’t fear.
It’s easier than ever for social workers to find engaging and illuminating continuing education classes to suit their interests as well as their schedules.
One huge advantage comes in the rise of online courses, which allow hardworking social workers to complete their continuing education requirements from the comfort of their own home. Though the opportunities to build new professional relationships and expand your social work community may be reduced in these settings (which don’t enable a large amount of one-on-one interface), their convenience and ease makes them an option many social workers take advantage of. Social workers considering this option can rest assured that their online C.E. courses are held to the same standards of quality and comprehensiveness as in-person alternatives.
Beyond seminar-style courses, there are also some workshops and conferences that can qualify towards social workers’ C.E. hours. Workshops can provide focused skill-building for social workers who wish to stay on top of the emerging practices in their discipline as well as equip those who wish to expand their expertise with new ones. Conferences, meanwhile, can offer a variety of programs, allowing social workers to log many of their required hours over the course of a single day or weekend. For those specifically hoping to utilize their C.E. time to connect with other social work professionals, these are the best avenue possible to achieve this goal.
Spotlight: The NASW Texas State Conference
As mentioned above, conferences can offer an excellent opportunity for licensed social workers to log many of their required hours in one fell swoop, as well as introducing you to other social work professionals and offering an array of fascinating lectures, seminars, and workshops.
One of the top social work conferences in the state is hosted by the National Association of Social Workers (Texas Chapter). This annual conference brings together more than one thousand social work professionals, building solidarity and sharing knowledge to empower professionals and strengthen the field as a whole.
Beyond the convenience of concentrating a significant amount of your C.E. coursework into a single event, the NASW conference can be a broadly encouraging event for social workers, who can see in the large crowd size that they are not alone in their work. By learning about the efforts of social workers in different parts of the state, attendees to the NASW conference may feel reinvigorated in their own personal work, understanding how it fits into a larger objective of improving life for Texas’ neediest populations and the state’s wellbeing overall.
Social Work Continuing Education Requirements in Texas
Since they are a central way of ensuring that social workers are still invested in their work and up to date on current practices, Texas’ continuing education requirements for social work licenses are strict. That said, they should not be too difficult to maintain for those who are on top of their dates and deadlines.
C.E. requirements in Texas are determined by the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), who are also the board that oversees the license renewal process. They stipulate the following requirements for practicing social workers:
- Social workers must complete 30 hours of continuing education course work for every renewal period that they hold their license (two years).
- At least six hours of C.E. coursework must be devoted to professional ethics.
- At least three hours of C.E. coursework must be devoted to cultural competence.
- For those in supervisor roles, at least three hours must be devoted to supervisory work.
- Social workers must complete a training course on human trafficking prevention approved by the Texas Department of Health and Human Services.
- A license is eligible for renewal when it is within 60 days of expiration.
It’s important to note that licenses that have lapsed due to a failure to renew will expire altogether after a period of one year. Those who miss their C.E. requirements in time but still wish to renew their licenses will be able to do so, but it will be costly: to renew a delinquent license, applicants must pay the state’s late renewal fees.
Taking the Next Steps to Become a Social Worker
If you don’t yet hold a Texas social work license, you won’t have to think about your continuing education requirements for some time. For those just at the beginning of plotting a social work career, your first step will be finding an accredited Master of Social Work program, which is a prerequisite to qualify for any level of social work license in the state.
Those who wish to learn more about Texas license types and what you can do with them can find our comprehensive guide here.
FAQs
What is continuing education for social workers?
Continuing education is a requirement for practicing social workers to uphold their licenses. It entails attending classes, seminars, and workshops to enrich their knowledge of the field. It can include learning about burgeoning approaches to social work practice, developing an advanced understanding of particular social issues, and building new skills that can expand one’s abilities as a social worker.
How often do social workers need to renew their licenses?
In the state of Texas, social workers must renew their licenses every two years. A license will be eligible for renewal within 60 days of its expiration.
How many hours of continuing education do social workers need to complete in Texas?
The Texas Administrative Code holds that social work licensees must complete 30 hours of continuing education during each renewal period in order to qualify for renewal. Of these 30 hours, at least six must be devoted to courses related to social work ethics, while at least three must be devoted to cultural competence. Six hours must also be completed under supervision.
Can I pursue my social work continuing education online?
Yes. This has been a great advantage for busy social workers who previously were required to take classes in person, adding commuting time and other logistical hassles to the continuing education process. That said, in-person continuing education seminars, conferences, and workshops can provide valuable networking opportunities, adding incentive for social workers to fulfill some of their C.E. requirements offline.
Can I develop a new social work specialization through continuing education courses?
In some cases, yes. Continuing education courses can help you build new areas of specialization within the license level you already hold. They will not, however, allow you to acquire a new level of social work license (such as an LCSW for those who already hold an LMSW). In order to receive a new type of social work license, you will need to complete the existing licensing requirements for that level.