The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Master of Social Work program has been ranked No. 3 in Tennessee by MastersinSocialWorkOnline.org, which cited the program’s in-person instruction, evening schedule, hybrid learning opportunities and preparation of social work professionals for the region.
The ranking organization identified UTC as a best-fit option for Chattanooga-area learners who prefer in-person cohorts. Its Tennessee rankings highlighted the program’s Council on Social Work Education accreditation, evening classes for working students, face-to-face instruction in Chattanooga, and a curriculum that addresses practice with individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities.
The full 2027 Tennessee rankings and methodology are available at MastersinSocialWorkOnline.org.
The recognition comes as UTC’s MSW program begins its second decade.
For Dr. Amy Doolittle, associate professor and MSW program director, the ranking reflects the work of a program that has established itself while remaining focused on personal connections between students and faculty.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Doolittle said. “We’re 10 years young, and it takes time for a new program to establish itself. Reaching this point, with 10 cohorts completed and an 11th now underway, affirms the strength and stability of the program.”
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For more information about UTC’s Master of Social Work program, including
admissions and curriculum details, visit utc.edu/msw
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UTC’s MSW is an on-campus, in-person program. Classes meet in the evening, a schedule designed to help students who work full-time pursue graduate education. The program also incorporates selected hybrid courses and learning activities.
That distinction matters to students who want direct interaction with classmates and professors, said Dr. Cathy Scott, director of the School of Professional Studies and professor of social work.
“I know firsthand of students who shared with me that that’s why they chose UTC,” Scott said. “While there are online programs available, they value that in-classroom experience where they have direct interaction with their peers. Peer learning is very important, and then they also have firsthand access to their professors.”
The program’s evening format, Scott said, gives working professionals the opportunity to continue their careers while completing a graduate degree.
Scott knows that experience personally.
“I was that professional,” she said. “I worked full time as a social worker and went to graduate school in the evening. So a program like this is what helped me on my educational journey, and that’s what I’ve heard from many students.”
Students in the MSW program take multiple classes with the same faculty members, creating opportunities for relationships to develop throughout their studies, Doolittle said.
“We’re a smaller program,” she said. “We have fewer than 50 students at any given time. I think that makes us unique.”
Faculty members work to maintain a program size that meets regional needs while supporting the student-to-faculty ratio required through accreditation. The program typically receives about 20 to 22 new applications annually.
UTC’s MSW program is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. The degree prepares graduates for social work licensure, although licensure requirements vary by state.
Relationships with agencies throughout the region also shape the program’s curriculum and field education. Those agencies provide placements for students and feedback that helps faculty understand changing needs in social work practice.
“We have strong regional community support for our program,” Doolittle said. “We often have more agencies that want our students than we have students to put in agencies.”
Doolittle described the arrangement as a partnership: UTC provides the academic foundation, while community agencies provide applied learning through field placements.
The feedback moves in both directions. Agency partners can identify gaps or emerging needs they see in practice, and faculty can consider how curriculum or field education may address them. Doolittle said the process supports connections from the classroom to the community and back to the classroom.
Students also benefit from UTC’s location in the School of Professional Studies, which creates opportunities for interprofessional learning with students in school psychology and mental health counseling. Through community activities and partnerships, students see how professionals from related disciplines work together in service of clients.
Scott said the MastersinSocialWorkOnline.org recognition helps draw attention to social work education and to the work of the UTC faculty.
“To have social work education highlighted, period, is great,” Scott said. “But then to have our program here at UTC recognized as a top program, a top program of its delivery type, it’s very important and very significant—particularly in this region.”
She said the faculty’s commitment to the profession carries into the student experience.
“They all have a passion for the profession,” Scott said. “For our faculty members to love what they do and then pass that on to our students is very important. I think that also speaks to the richness of this program. When students are a part of the MSW program here at UTC, they can see social work in action.”
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