Assistant Professor of Social Work with Clinical Focus

OVERVIEW

The School of Social Work at the University of St. Thomas invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor of Social Work position with a nine-month appointment.  We seek a dynamic and engaged scholar-educator who demonstrates collaborative engagement, excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service. This candidate will contribute meaningfully to our commitment of preparing ethical, competent, and culturally responsive social work professionals. Our School offers social work degree programs at the baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral levels.

This in-person position will have primary teaching responsibilities in the clinical MSW program and may include teaching at the BSW or DSW level as needed. The successful candidate will have demonstrated training, skills, and experience to teach clinical courses. The MSW program is offered in two formats: in-person weeknights and hybrid weekends. The BSW program is offered in the traditional weekday format, and the DSW is fully online. 

Primary Responsibilities:

• Teach six social work courses per year
• Teach across multiple formats (in-person weeknights and hybrid weekends)
• Student advising and mentoring
• Engage in scholarly work, research, publications, and community impact
• Contribute to curriculum development, innovation, assessment, and CSWE accreditation processes
• Participate in departmental, college, university, and community service

ABOUT THE SCHOOL AND COLLEGE

The School of Social Work mission is: Grounded in social justice and inspired by Catholic social thought, we educate and engage students to learn, grow and develop their professional skills as they prepare for social work practice in support of health, wellbeing and the common good.

We recently celebrated its 50th anniversary as an accredited school. Our faculty and staff are committed to helping students develop a strong clinical social work identity, grounded in social work values and ethics; the skills to actively engage diverse client populations; a strong knowledge base with critical thinking and reflective practice skills; the capacity for leadership; and the capacity to assess and improve social work practice. Our MSW program has special expertise and programming in integrated behavioral health, practice with older adults, practice with immigrants and refugees, and addiction and co-occurring disorders.

The School of Social Work is part of the Morrison Family College of Health. We invite candidates who will work to advance the missions of both the School and the College, the latter being, to prepare highly skilled and caring professionals who are culturally responsive, practice with ingenuity, and proactively advance health equity and social justice.

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS

The University of St. Thomas is a dynamic, mission-driven, urban university. Located in a residential neighborhood with easy access to two downtown metropolitan centers, we are Minnesota’s largest private university with eight schools and colleges, 150+ undergraduate majors/minors, and 55 graduate programs. To learn more about life as a faculty member at St. Thomas, please see https://www.stthomas.edu/jobs/for-faculty/index.html.

The University of St. Thomas embraces belonging and equal opportunity for all. Our convictions of dignity, diversity and personal attention call us to embody and champion an inclusive environment.  The University is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer (EEO).  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, status as a protected veteran, or other protected characteristic.  This commitment to inclusion and equal opportunity is consistent with our mission: Inspired by Catholic intellectual tradition, the University of St. Thomas educates students to be morally responsible leaders who think critically, act wisely, and work skillfully to advance the common good.  A successful candidate will possess a commitment to the ideals of this mission.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The University of St. Thomas offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits program, which includes:

• Tuition remission benefits for employees, spouses, and dependents upon eligibility
• A generous employer retirement contribution upon eligibility
• Medical, dental, and vision options
• Employer-paid disability, life, and AD&D benefits
• Paid parental leave benefits

Salary range for this position is $68,000 - $80,000

The University of St. Thomas has provided a compensation range that represents its good faith estimate of what the University may pay for the position at the time of posting. The specific salary offered will be determined based on factors such as the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal salary equity considerations, and available market information.

QUALIFICATIONS

Minimum Qualifications:

• MSW from a CSWE-accredited program and at least two years of post-MSW clinical social work practice experience
• PhD or DSW (U.S. or foreign equivalent degree) in Social Work or a closely related field (ABD considered if all degree requirements are completed by August 1, 2027)
• Ability and strong interest in teaching clinical social work courses at the graduate level
• Experience in teaching, and interest in teaching in both in-person and hybrid learning environments
• Commitment to the values and ethics of social work and the mission and convictions of the university
• Minnesota state law requires that individuals with social work degrees who teach must be licensed. Candidates from Minnesota must hold a clinical license (LICSW). Those outside of MN must hold a clinical license in localities that have this option, and if not, they must be clinical license-eligible.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Clinical expertise in one or more of the following areas: behavioral health, integrated healthcare, substance use and addictions, clinical practice across the lifespan and with underserved populations, trauma-informed practice, clinical assessment, or implementation of evidence-based interventions
• Experience with interprofessional collaboration, and/or community engaged practice
• Experience with curriculum development and pedagogical innovation
• Experience securing and/or administering external funding (e.g., grants, contracts)

HOW TO APPLY

To be considered for this opportunity, all applicants must apply online athttps://www.stthomas.edu/jobs/. 

The application process consists of several required steps, completed in the order outlined below.

Step 1.

You will first be asked to create an applicant profile. As part of creating your profile, you must upload the following materials: 

• Curriculum Vitae (CV)

• Social work license number, licensure state, and type; or indicate if you are not currently licensed but are license-eligible.

Please upload only the documents specifically requested in the job posting at this stage. Do not upload any additional materials into other available fields. Candidates selected for further review may be contacted later to submit additional materials.

Step 2.

After submitting your applicant profile, you will be directed to the job‑specific application. During this step, you will be asked to:

• Copy and paste a job‑specific cover letter that expresses why you are applying for this position, your teaching philosophy, and your program of scholarship. The letter should outline relevant experience and how that experience has prepared you for the role, including evidence of successful teaching
• Complete the voluntary EEO, Veteran, and Disability self‑identification forms

Step 3.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to provide contact information for three professional references who can speak directly to your teaching experience and qualifications.

• References will not be contacted without your permission
• Reference checks typically occur during the later stages of the search process 

All application materials must be submitted online through the University of St. Thomas employment site.

Questions regarding the position should be sent to the search committee chair, Dr. Ankita Deka, at [email protected]. Application review begins October 30, 2026. To be guaranteed full consideration, completed applications should be submitted by that date. The position will remain open until filled.

Several faculty members from the School of Social Work will be attending CSWE 2026 in Atlanta, and our school will also be hosting a booth! We would love to connect with you. Please don’t hesitate to stop by our booth, say hello, and learn more about our programs.

In light of its commitment to create and maintain a safe learning and working environment, employment with the University of St. Thomas requires consent to and successful completion of a background screening.