Faculty of
Applied Social Sciences

Impressive, eventful days in Cape Town - Master's students of Social Work return from South Africa with formative experiences

It was a week full of impressions: In the last week before Christmas 2024, 15 Master's students of Social Work took part in an excursion to Cape Town in South Africa organized by the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences (called "Summerschool", as it is summer in southern Africa at this time). In addition to specialist lectures on site, they visited several social work institutions and were also able to learn a lot about African history, culture and the present.

Even the journey to the Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative (WPDI) center in Cape Town - the community center under the direction of Dr. Chance Chagunda, where the lectures took place - was adventurous. The community center is located in one of Cape Town's many unsafe districts, so it became clear to everyone involved on the way there that this was no leisure trip. However, the center enjoys a good reputation in the area and the students were safe there. Over four days at the WPDI, they gained interesting, exciting and specialized impressions of social work in southern Africa, its challenges and obstacles, but also practical approaches to solving them. In addition to Prof. Dr. Ndangwa Noyoo and Minenhle Matula from the "Southern African Policy and Development Nexus (SAPDN)", Dr. Chagunda was also prepared to provide a deep insight into the world of social work from a completely different perspective, namely the view from the Global South.

The lunch breaks were always characterized by activating offers of South African culture (dance & music, food culture, jewelry making) and in the afternoons there were visits to practical social work facilities in South Africa.

For example, there was a refuge for women who had experienced physical violence at home and were then protected there - often together with their children - from their husbands and accompanied on their way to a safer life. Or a visit to a facility that supports people with physical disabilities. In conversation with the students, the social workers described how the conditions of their staff in the highly disadvantaged communities, which are characterized by high levels of gang crime, are sometimes dangerous.

The excursion was organized by the International Team of the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Ndangwa Noyoo and Minenhle Matula from SAPDN. The good organization and support contributed significantly to the success of the visit.

The following statements show how strong and impressive the experiences were that the students took away with them.

Quotes from students who took part in the summer school:

• "I thought the Summerschool was a wonderful experience and I learned a lot for myself personally and for myself as a social worker."
• "... got a completely different perspective that I generally didn't have from university in Germany."
• "... very enriching and ... it showed that an international perspective is also very important in social work ... the summer school is an important step in this direction."
• "I realized ... that social workers worldwide have similar goals and wishes and attitudes and that it was really internationally unifying to see that."

Due to these important and impressive experiences for all participating students, also with regard to their own professional development, the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences will continue to expand its international offerings, including excursions and summer schools, in the coming years.

The Faculty of Applied Social Sciences offers students the opportunity to participate in the "Study International" certificate program. On July 29, the first three graduates received their certificates.

Summer School in Austria, Spring School in Malta, participation in English-language courses and attending several international lectures are Ophelia Stratmann's proud achievements during her Bachelor's degree in Social Work at the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences. She loves traveling and immersing herself in other worlds, she says as she receives her certificate. This is one of the reasons why Ophelia Stratmann chose a master's degree program after completing her bachelor's degree, which she can complete largely online and therefore on the go.

Osman Abdirahman has also just completed his Bachelor's degree and is already working. In his case, it was primarily a semester abroad in Brisbane (Australia) that prompted him to enroll in the certificate program. Even though it was very time-consuming to organize the semester abroad - Osman Abdirahman had organized the stay completely by himself as a free mover - he was able to gain experience that he would not want to do without. Both professionally, as far as social work in Australia is concerned, and personally: he still keeps in touch with friends he met there. His English also improved enormously during this time.

It was a similar story for Katharina Nieder: she was also a free mover in Porto (Portugal) and returned with impressions, experiences and contacts that have significantly enriched her life. Ultimately, her participation in the certificate program also led to her attending the Spring School in Malta and gaining many more impressions related to international social work. Her commitment to the topic has even led her to support the International Team at the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences as a student assistant.

All three students assume that the Study International certificate will open doors for them in the future - whether in migration social work, in NGOs or in international development cooperation organizations. As the first graduates of the program, they were presented with their certificates and a small gift by the International Team of the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences (here Claudia Preißer and Peter Engert). They were also warmly congratulated by the Dean of Studies, Prof. Dr. Gunnar Lang, and the International Coordinator, Prof. Dr. Michael Klassen, who were unable to attend due to scheduling constraints.

Since the Study International certificate program was launched at the faculty last year, over 100 students have already registered as interested parties in the StudIP group. This group provides regular and up-to-date information about international courses offered by the faculty. These include courses taught in English, a Winter School in Cape Town (South Africa) and the next Spring School at the University of Malta in spring 2025. At the same time, the International Team is establishing collaborations with higher education institutions and practice institutions worldwide to offer its students access to the opportunities and potential of international social work.

, 01.08.2024

During the week of May 13 - 17, 2024, 26 students from the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences were once again invited to attend a Spring School on Social Work and Human Rights, Ethics and Non-Profit Management at the Msida campus of the University of Malta (UoM).

During the intensive one-week event, which was organized for the second time, the students were able to acquire valuable knowledge and skills in the field of social work on the above-mentioned topics and learn about essential aspects from a Maltese perspective. The Spring School of the renowned Maltese university offered a diverse program that included lectures, interactive sessions and on-site visits to social work practice institutions (Foundation for Social Welfare Services, Fondazzjoni Sebh and Jesuit Refugee Services). The content was taught by experienced lecturers from the Faculty for Social Wellbeing and experts from practical experience. During the impressive week, the students also had the opportunity to explore the Mediterranean island, including the World Heritage city of Valletta, on their own.

Parallel to the Spring School, the students of the Master's degree program in Social Work who remained in Wiesbaden had a special opportunity to take part in the courses in Malta: During the lectures at the University of Malta, the students were able to connect online and actively participate in discussions and contributions. For this reason, Maria Adam, the faculty's media didactics specialist, traveled to Wiesbaden to work with the technicians at the University of Malta to ensure that the requirements for a smooth transmission of the events to Wiesbaden were met.

As this form of participation could not be implemented during the visits to the practical facilities, the faculty's international team had prepared a special program for the students in Wiesbaden. Dr. Claudia Psaila, Senior Lecturer, Psychologist & Social Worker at the Faculty of Social Policy and Social Work at the University of Malta and co-editor of the Studies in Social Wellbeing Journal, was invited to Wiesbaden from Malta. Dr. Psaila lectured in English and with great enthusiasm and empathy on the topics of "Resilience in Social Work" and "Spirituality & Social Work Practice". The four courses, which took place in the afternoons, provided a practical insight from a Maltese perspective.

An exchange with the faculty's International Coordinator, Prof. Dr. Michael Klassen, on establishing and strategically expanding cooperation between the two higher education institutions rounded off the visit from Malta.

(c) 2024 International Team of the Department of Social Work

A Spring School on Social Justice and Human Rights, Ethics in Social Work & Non-Profit Management was held at the Faculty for Social Wellbeing at the University of Malta for students of the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences from 08.05.-11.05.23. The event was linked to courses taught by Prof. Dr. Gunnar Lang and Prof. Dr. Michael Klassen; it was coordinated by the faculty's International Team. Participation in the program was also open to students on the International Studies certificate program at the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences. As part of the event, 14 students from the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences visited the island and the higher education institution. In the morning, students in Malta and online students from Wiesbaden discussed the teaching impulses provided by Maltese colleagues. The focus was on aspects of management and international cooperation, human rights conflicts and issues, as well as the historical development and special features of social work in Malta.

In the afternoon, the group visited practical facilities in various areas of social work. The students also found the exchange with Maltese students at a get-together enriching, where the differences in studies and practical experience were discussed.

The offer met with an extremely positive response from students, who in their final reflection on the trip reported back both the insightful, committed presentation of the course content and the insights into the practical experience of social work in Malta. Inspired by this, the aim is to repeat the trip.

Sandra Holtgreve & Peter Engert for Team International, 06.06.2023

Dr. Claudia Psaila was a guest in 2024 and gave insights into dealing with spirituality, grief and loss in the professional context of social work. Dr. Claudia Psaila is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Malta and draws on many years of practical experience as a psychotherapist and supervisor in hospices. She works and researches on topics such as spirituality and psychotherapy in social work, reflective practical experience, resilience, and trauma-sensitive care work. The participants experienced interactive events and exchanged views and resources on dealing with resilience and spirituality in social work.

Welcome! At the beginning of July and August 2022, four researchers began their six-month guest stay at the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences. As part of the fellowship program for vulnerable researchers from Ukraine, Dr. Larysa Platash, Dr. Olha Lazarenko, Yaroslav Slutskyi and Dr. Olena Oleksenko will continue their previous research activities at the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences. The academics are working on topics of inclusion and educational participation, malpractice in psychotherapy with a focus on trauma as well as interculturality and the experiences of international students. The social worker, psychologist and economist can now continue their research activities at the faculty, which had become uncertain due to the war following the Russian attack on Ukraine. Dr. Yaroslav Slutsky will soon complete the group of guest researchers and will begin his stay at the faculty in the fall.