As an upcoming graduate of the VCU School of Social Work masters' degree program, I along with many of my classmates are concerned about the 1credit ethics component to be added for licensure in Virginia. If this 1 credit is considered part of the Direct Clinical Practice instruction we received in our first year of study (this class included instruction and discussion of the NASW Code of Ethics and a paper constituting one third of our 3 credit grade) then inclusion of this requirement will have already been met by recent and current Master graduates from VCU will not have concerns. However, if an additional one credit requirement is being added for licensure, recent graduates at the time of implementation of such a change will be placed under a burden to locate, pay for and complete an additional class in ethics...unless we are grandfathered in under the proposed regulatory/statutory change. If this is an additional requirement, an exception should be made for recent graduates. We recognize the importance of social work ethics. It is heavily incorportated into our instruction both first and second year. It is not given short shrift, but emphasized at every turn. As recent graduates, we are concerned that an additional burden will be imposed upon us to meet a requirement not presently included in our graduate studies. Graduates before us did not have this requirement and graduates that follow us will have this credit included in their regular course work. Only we recent graduates will be placed at a disadvantage... unless we are grandfathered out of a new course requirement.

Sincerely,  Janice R. Reeves