Dual Studies Bachelor
Soziale Arbeit (B.A.)*

In addition to the academic degree Bachelor of Arts, you can obtain the professional certificate as a "State-recognised Social Worker and Social Pedagogue" in the degree programme Social Work. 

To receive state recognition as a social worker or social pedagogue, social work students must successfully complete a practical phase of at least 100 days. The advantage of the dual study model at the IU: The practical phases with your practice partner will be counted towards your studies.

With state recognition as a social worker and social pedagogue in Germany, you qualify to work in social work. Professional security is only possible once you have been awarded state recognition. This gives you access to unique positions, rights and higher pay entitlements under collective agreements. Employers in the public sector, for example, require state recognition. Recognition also ensures that you have defined competencies as a social worker. Among other things, your profile includes knowledge of organisational and legal sciences, the science of social work, social work methods and professional ethics.

No, the terms can now be used synonymously. Social pedagogy is rather to be seen as a sub-area of social work. The decisive factor is the law on the recognition of social pedagogues and social workers, according to which these two professions have equal status. However, many courses of study have been renamed or newly created in the course of the reform, so there is probably an indirect connection.

Yes, the Social Professions Recognition Act (SobAG) of the respective federal state explicitly refers to this:

§5 Equalisation of state recognition
Professionals who are state-recognised in other federal states of the Federal Republic of Germany according to similar requirements are equal to those who are state-recognised according to this law.

The certificate that IU issues to you as a social worker and social pedagogue is free of charge. Costs may only be incurred when applying for an extended certificate of good conduct.

You are not on your own when finding a suitable practice partner. Your student advisor will help you find the right company for your dual degree programme. They will discuss your wishes and ideas and determine which company fits you best. In doing so, the advisor will use our extensive network of 6,000 companies. Of course, you can also bring your preferred institution or apply on your own initiative.

The practical phases in the dual degree programme must be completed in institutions where state-recognised professionals carry out tasks of professional social work. These include social, administrative, educational and political tasks, for example:

Working with foreign nationals
Elementary Education
Family Education/Family Counselling
Therapeutic Education/Rehabilitation
Home Education
Youth Work/Youth Education
Resocialisation
School Social Work
Social Services
During your practice, you must have qualified guidance with the following qualifications at your disposal:

Social Workers (Diploma/BA/MA)
Social Pedagogues (Diploma/BA/MA)
Psychologists (diploma/BA/MA)
Pedagogues (Diploma/BA/MA)
In exceptional cases, persons with similar professional qualifications can also take over the guidance.

After successful completion and receipt of the Bachelor's certificate, the application is made. All necessary instructions and templates are included in the corresponding myCampus course.

In principle, it is not possible to change companies. However, this is possible at your own request or in exceptional cases. You should contact the student advisory service as soon as possible.

The following prerequisites must be fulfilled to receive state recognition after completing a dual degree programme at IU:

- (1) Bachelor's degree in Social Work

- (2) Proof of an extended certificate of good conduct (when applying for the diploma). The certificate must not be older than three months.

As a student of the IU Duales Studium in Germany, you are generally entitled to BAföG. You can find out whether you meet the relevant requirements on the official BAföG website.

At IU you pay 0 € - because your practice partner takes over your tuition fees.