The DSW was once known as the precursor to the Social Work/Social Welfare Ph.D. in the 20th century. In the early 2000s, it re-emerged as a completely re-envisioned doctoral credential that is well suited for our modern age of evidence-based practice. The DSW course curriculum is intended to train scholarly clinicians for practice-oriented leadership so graduates of the program can assume positions of leadership in a myriad of roles and settings such as clinical practice, academia and administration.