From exclusivity to massification of social work education in Portugal. Limits, potentialities, and challenges

Social work education is related to the economic, political, and social development of each country. In Portugal, social work education evolved from a certain degree of 'exclusivity' to a 'massification' process. Social work struggled for a place in higher education, in the 1970s and 1990s, but was further challenged by the legislative changes that occurred in Europe with the Bologna process. In this article we highlight, from a critical perspective, the economic, political, and social changes, as evidenced in its transformations from its foundation, through the establishment of rights (democracy) to the current challenges (globalization, unemployment, risk, and constant austerity). To achieve these objectives we analyzed documents, articles, and official statistics from the Ministry of Higher Education. The analysis revealed constraints, opportunities, and challenges that occurred when Social Work became a profession with bachelors, masters and doctorate degrees. This resulted in the need for Social work teachers with the ability to conduct research and to interact within a community. In order for Social Work to be sustained as a discipline, a practical science and a profession, the field must attend to social and political changes, especially in the context of austerity, and also be critic& of privatization and dismantling of the welfare state.