ASWB Exam Study Guide

The NASW recently published revisions to the social work code of ethics. While minor in terms of how this will impact the exam (more on that later), these revisions are crucial to our field. These changes to the code of ethics fall into two main categories: self-care and cultural competency. This week’s blog discusses the updates regarding self-care, and our upcoming blog will discuss updates regarding cultural competency. Code of Ethics and Self-Care I am SO glad to see self-care added to the code of ethics. Self-care mutually benefits both clinicians and their clients by promoting personal

We're back this month with more on Antisocial Personality Disorder. As discussed in our April blog, every other month we are covering a topic and comparing how that topic could show up on the exam in a recall vs. reasoning question. In February and March we covered Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Last month, we did a recall question on Antisocial Personality Disorder. So this month, we're taking that same topic (Antisocial Personality Disorder) and giving you a reasoning question to practice with. What do I need to know about Antisocial Personality Disorder? The biggest thing to keep in

This year, we’ve decided to try something new with our social work blogs to help highlight the different types of questions on the social work exams. When covering a new topic, we’ll take the first month to do a recall question on that topic. After that, the next month we’ll take the same topic and do a reasoning based question. While both the master’s level LMSW and clinical level LCSW ASWB exams have more reasoning than recall, you want to be prepared for both types of questions. For the months of April and May, we’ll cover the topic of Antisocial Personality Disorder. The last two months we

Today we're back with more on Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). As mentioned in last month’s blog, every other month for the next several months, we are covering a topic and comparing a recall vs. reasoning question to highlight how the same topic can be tested in different ways. Last month’s blog highlighted a recall question on NPD. This month we are taking the same topic, but giving you a reasoning question to practice with. What do I need to know about Narcissistic Personality Disorder? When thinking about how a client with NPD may present, you want to first and foremost be thinking

Over the next several months, we are going to be trying something new with our social work blogs to highlight the differences in the types of questions that show up on the ASWB exam. One month we are going to do a recall question of a topic. The next month, we are going to take the same topic, but do a reasoning question on that topic. Both the LMSW and LCSW exams have more reasoning than recall, however, you definitely want to be prepared for both. This month and next month, we are exploring the topic of Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). What is Narcissistic Personality Disorder

In last month’s ASWB exam prep blog, we covered the topic of consultation with colleagues. We discussed when to (and when not to) choose this answer option on the exam. Sometimes the exam will present you both with the answer option to 'consult with colleagues' as well as the option to 'seek supervision' ('consult with a supervisor'). When this happens, which answer option should you choose? And in what other scenarios is seeking supervision appropriate? Consult with colleagues or seek supervision: which is best? The answer the ASWB is most often looking for when some form of consultation is

On the ASWB exams (both LMSW and LCSW), there are many reasoning based scenario questions that offer the answer option ‘consult with colleagues.’ I’ve had a number of social workers email me coaching questions about this, sharing their difficulty in identifying when this is the right answer and when it’s not. Sometimes consultation will be the correct answer and other times it will not, which can make this answer option feel challenging. The good news is, there are some clear guidelines to follow for these questions. Today’s blog covers some of the scenarios when you want to choose this answer

Many of us preparing for our ASWB social work exams have never encountered a situation in which we are being subpoenaed. This also happens to be a topic that is often overlooked during our schooling. This leaves a lot of social workers feeling unprepared for questions around privilege and subpoenas on the LMSW and LCSW exams. It is almost a guarantee you’ll see this subject show up on your test, so it’s an area you want to go in feeling confident about. The good news is TDC’s LMSW and LCSW programs cover this subject thoroughly AND you have access to a coach you can email with any lingering

As every social worker (new or seasoned) knows, maintaining records is an important part of the job. Because of this, record keeping is a topic that is regularly tested on the ASWB masters and clinical level exams. What do you need to know about record keeping for the LMSW and LCSW Exams? Are you ready for questions on this important topic? What to know about records Maintaining accurate records is both a legal and ethical issue. Each state has different laws about how long records need to be kept. The good news is, this is a national exam, so specific state laws won't be tested. For this

Have you ever wondered what to do when you unintentionally cross a boundary with a client or if a boundary violation occurs? What steps need to be taken? What must we do to address this? Boundary crossings and violations are topics that could very well show up on your ASWB exam. Do you know how the ASWB expects you to answer these questions? Boundary crossings vs. boundary violations What is the difference between a boundary-crossing and boundary violation? While it is unlikely the test will get this nuanced, we do find it helpful to keep these differences in mind. A boundary violation occurs