More children and young people are being drawn into criminal networks. The government therefore wants future social workers to be equipped with better knowledge of how to prevent youth criminality and how to support young people who want to leave the criminal environment.
As part of this, the inquiry into the social work program has been presented.
If we can catch young people early, we can stop a criminal career. In this work, social services play a central role, says Johan Pehrson.
Education Goals
The inquiry proposes that youth criminality becomes a new degree objective, as well as honor-related violence and oppression.
We have also seen a need to change other things. Social workers need solid legal competence in their education, says the investigator Michael Tärnfalk, who proposes that the education should include at least 30 credits of law.
On the question of what the timeline looks like, the Minister of Education responds:
As soon as possible, this is urgent.
Michael Tärnfalk, however, believes that it will take "five, six years" before the first social workers according to the new proposals enter the profession.
Something Must Go
According to the government's directives, the social work program should not be extended. The question is then what should be removed when youth criminality and other things are added.
It's up to the universities themselves. There is probably room for them to be pragmatic, says Michael Tärnfalk.
However, the inquiry proposes, outside its directive, that a new inquiry should investigate an extended social work education, from 3.5 years to 4.5-5 years. This would mean "a knowledge boost on a broad front". Alternatively, a supplementary education to specialist social worker can be investigated. But first, one must clarify why the interest among social workers to continue their education is so weak today.
There are obstacles somewhere that prevent it from happening, says Michael Tärnfalk.
Criticism
Fredrik Hjulström, social policy manager at Akademikerförbundet SSR, thinks it's good that "the inquiry has landed on the need for specialist education", but is questioning the details of the main proposal:
It's obvious that if you're going to add something new, something else will disappear, he says.
What do you say about the argument that somewhere you should be able to cut into the existing education plan?
Then we can cut the medical education by three years and see how many want to become doctors then.
A social worker works with social situations and problems, how they can be prevented and addressed. Some social workers work with individuals, others with larger groups or at the community level.
Social workers can, for example, work within social services, hospitals or schools, treatment centers, in private and public administration, or in personnel administration.
The social work education is provided at 19 universities in the country. The education is 3.5 years long. The last degree review was conducted nearly 20 years ago.
Source: NE, University of Gothenburg, Stockholm University, Government Directive 2023:121
