How religious women students of social work in Israel experience academe

Abstract

Although the values of pluralism and diversity are enshrined in social work’s Code of Ethics, the literature indicates that religious students will experience hostility within social work schools. This qualitative study explores how religious Jewish and Arab-Muslim social work students in Israel experience the secular academic context, in light of the profession’s values. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted over a 6-month period, starting in January 2018, with third-year women students of social work at the country’s largest public college – a microcosm of Israeli society in terms of ethnic, religious, and national affiliation. The participants were 20 women (10 Jewish and 10 Arab-Muslim) who self-identify as religious, in a secular academic setting. Analysis of the findings yields a broad and varied picture: the main themes include the initial encounter with the physical, social, and intellectual college environment; questioning whether academe is really liberal; and the feeling of being outsiders. These findings, which contribute to an understanding of the social and educational needs of the student who is the ‘other’, are relevant to social work educators worldwide. The other is everywhere.