Abstract
The history of teaching social work at the universities in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq is relatively new. The beginnings go back to the years 2006/2007 at the University of Salahaddin in Erbil (USE). A short time later, the department of social work was opened in 2014/2015 at the University of Sulaimani (UoS). Swedish and German universities, UNICEF and DAAD organizations supported both departments. Currently, these are the only two universities that offer this subject in the Kurdistan Region. At the University of Dohuk (UoD), social work is integrated into the course curriculum as part of sociology. However, there is no separate BA program in social work. In Iraq, the degree program is also offered in Baghdad. This chapter seeks to reveal the history of the emergence of the departments and their vision and mission, as well as the opportunities and challenges that social work faces. At the same time, it also details the social work curriculum and its objectives. At the end of this chapter, some questions are raised so that more follow-up can be done in the future.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
Hamad, Shvan Ismael, Head of the Social Work Department, Salahaddin University. Interview (March 8, 2020).
- 2.
https://hum.univsul.edu.iq/HUM-Depts/social-work Accessed: March 19, 2020.
- 3.
In 2010 the Department of Sociology was opened at the University in Dohuk and recently there have been efforts to give more weight to social work within sociology, especially in the higher semesters. (Interview with Muhammad Saeed Al-Barwari, Head of the Department of Sociology, University of Dohuk; 5 July, 2021).
- 4.
Social analyst would be the word-by-word translation, but it is the common word for social worker.
- 5.
Hamad, Shvan Ismael, Head of Social Work Department, Salahaddin University. Interview (March 8, 2020).
- 6.
Ghafur, Rizgar, Head of Social Work Department at the University of Sulaimani. Interview / Personal Communication. Accessed: March 15, 2020 and April 27, 2021.
- 7.
Irwani, Muslih, Assistant Professor at the Social Work Department at the Salahaddin University. Interview (September 5, 2019).
- 8.
Wali, Jaza Hama Salih, Head of Kurdistan Sociologists and Psychologists Union. Interview / Personal Communication. (August 21, 2020).
- 9.
Ghafur, Rizgar, Head of Social work Department, University of Sulaimani. Interview / Personal Communication. (March 15, 2020).
- 10.
Hamad, Shvan Ismael, Head of the Social Work Department, Salahaddin University. Interview (March 8, 2020).
References
Adams, R., Dominelli, L. Payne, M. (Eds.) (2009). Social Work: Themes, Issues and Critical Debates, Palgrave Macmillan, Third ed., Springer Nature.
Fahmi, M. S. (2013). General Practitioner of Social Work, Practical Areas. Alexandria: The Modern University Office.
Ghaderi, C., & Saleh Karim, L. (2019). Social work with refugees in Kurdistan Region in Iraq. In: M. Pfaller-Rott, A. Kállay, D. Böhler. (Eds.) Social Work with Refugees. Ostrava: European Research Institute for Social Work (ERIS) Monographs. Vol. 5 , pp. 163–184.
Kanie, M. W. (2016). Mrov u Karamat. Teheran: Andesha Cultural and Artistic Center.
Liedgren, P. (2015). Teaching social work in Iraqi Kurdistan as a Swede, Transfer of teaching styles. International Social Work, 58(I), 175–185. The author’s 2012 reprints and permissions: isw.sagepup.com.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden GmbH, part of Springer Nature
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Karim, L.S., Ghaderi, C. (2021). Teaching Social Work in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. In: Ghaderi, C., Sonnenberg, K., Saleh Karim, L., Namiq Sabir, N., Abbas Qader, Z., Dünnebacke, L.M. (eds) Social Work at the Level of International Comparison. Springer VS, Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-30394-5_10
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-30394-5_10
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer VS, Wiesbaden
Print ISBN: 978-3-658-30393-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-658-30394-5
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)