On-campus program Social Work & Management (B.A.) – FHM

Requirements and Target Group

The Bachelor's degree programme in Social Work & Management is aimed at individuals who aspire to a career in social work while also wanting to acquire business and management skills. It is particularly targeted at (advanced) secondary school graduates, vocational practitioners with relevant training, as well as persons wishing to qualify for leadership or coordinating roles in social institutions. The programme is suitable both for career starters and for those already employed who aim to obtain a state-recognised social pedagogy qualification or wish to specialise in fields such as child and youth welfare, intercultural social work, or inclusion.

What Admission Requirements Apply for Social Work & Management?

To enrol in the Bachelor's degree programme Social Work & Management at the Fachhochschule des Mittelstands, you need at least one of the following qualifications:

• General higher education entrance qualification (Abitur)
• Advanced technical college entrance qualification (Fachhochschulreife)
• Subject-relevant specialised higher education entrance qualification
• Vocational qualification with at least two years of completed vocational training and a subsequent minimum of three years of subject-related professional experience (depending on prior education, possibly with an entrance examination)
• Master craftsman certificate or equivalent advanced training (e.g. state-certified technicians, business administrators, certificate holders of relevant specialist schools)

For non-subject-related vocational training, the university requires an entrance examination. Furthermore, for state recognition as a social worker, completion of an integrated practical study phase (at least 100 days) under professional supervision is required.

You should have an interest in societal issues and social questions to study this programme. Important qualities include strong empathy, communication skills, and capacity for reflection. Teamwork, resilience, and willingness to engage in self-reflection will support you in dealing with complex problems in practice. Initial practical experience in social or pedagogical fields is advantageous but not a prerequisite. Independent working, organisational skills, and openness to intercultural topics will facilitate your studies and future professional work.

Study Content in Detail

In the degree programme Social Work & Management at the Fachhochschule des Mittelstands (FHM), you engage with current challenges in social work and acquire comprehensive professional, methodological, and business management skills. The central study contents include:

• Scientific foundations of social work science and sociology
• Legal aspects, especially family law and the legal foundations of social work
• Educational science fundamentals and developmental psychology
• Methodical action, counselling and interdisciplinary case work
• Health sciences, medical basics as well as social psychiatry and psychopathology
• Ethics in social work
• Business administration, social and personnel management
• Strategic management, sustainable corporate governance, organisational development and quality management
• Smart Skills: team management, presentation and moderation, self-management as well as subject-specific English
• Empiricism and academic work (including empirical research project)

You can choose specialisations in the areas of child and youth welfare as well as interculturality and inclusion. During your studies, you will deal with topics such as empowerment, participation and preventive approaches. The integrated, supervised practical phase (at least 100 days according to NRW SobAG) is compulsory for state recognition and promotes the practical transfer of knowledge.