Exploring correlates of implicit curriculum for accreditation outcomes evaluation: results of student evaluations.

When the focus of the accreditation process for social work programs in the United States shifted to competency-based student achievement in 2008 the overall student experience in a program seemed to be sidelined. Another shift in these standards in 2015 renewed attention on the student experience, through a required assessment of the implicit curriculum. This study examines student evaluation of the implicit curriculum of more than 50 undergraduate and graduate social work programs using the Social Work Educational Assessment Package (SWEAP) Exit Instrument. Individual student and program characteristics were explored for their relationship to student assessment of the implicit curriculum. This quantitative, non-experimental, secondary data analysis utilized descriptive, bivariate and regression analyses of over 1400 individual student responses. Findings indicate that age, race, gender, and disability are all characteristics that have significant relationships to student evaluation of various aspects of the implicit curriculum. Recommendations for attention to the implicit curriculum for social work programs are discussed in light of the findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]