An Encore in Social Work? How Our Schools Can Become More Age Inclusive

At a time when the number of younger students entering our colleges and universities is stagnant, and the number of older people in our society continues to grow by the millions, schools of social work have an opportunity to broaden their student base by intentionally including people past midlife. This article argues that we must recruit and retain encore students, defined as those 35 and older, in our social work programs for schools, students, the profession, and society. It covers key demographic changes in the United States and their relation to social work programs, the importance of multigenerational classrooms, interest in encore careers for the social good, and the current and future shortage of social workers. It then reports on the results of an online search of 20 social work programs’ home pages and websites devoted to diversity issues, finding little regarding age-inclusive images and language. The article concludes by offering concrete steps for social work programs to become more age inclusive, including incorporating the principles of andragogy—adult learning theory—into curricula, increasing the accessibility of degrees, and innovating in program designs. By creating more age-inclusive social work programs, we create better experiences for all students.