Our students join us from around the world, bringing with them a host of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences, and embodying SP2’s commitment to using their knowledge and skills to build community and to advance the social good. During their time here they engage in innovative research and meaningful fieldwork, striving every day to make lasting change and a meaningful impact in Philadelphia and beyond.

“A central imperative for social work, policy, and practice is the fundamental need to think conscientiously about the individuals, groups, and communities these disciplines will affect most. We are resolute in our intention to educate students of social policy and practice to embrace difference and build community in all its dimensions, and to create cutting-edge scholarship that enables our field to more effectively promote social good.”

– Sara S. Bachman, PhD, Dean

Program Curriculums

Our focus on social good demands a multifaceted approach to recognizing and celebrating the many identities, experiences, histories, and aspirations that animate our local and global community. This commitment permeates all five of our rigorous degree programs (MSW, MSSP, NPL, PhD, and DSW), helping bind these programs to SP2’s overarching mission: producing the best social service providers, policymakers, and nonprofit leaders in the world.

Visiting Scholars

Since 1908, the School has served as a temporary home for hundreds of Visiting Scholars joining us from around the world. This tradition of welcoming the best and brightest from abroad continues today, and many international scholars regard SP2 as their research home while in the United States.

Events

03/21

SP2 Fridays

Come out and network with current students and alumni. Refreshments will be served. SP2 Fridays is presented by the Offices of Institutional Advancement & Student Affairs.

Events

03/27

Sp2 Book Talk.3.27.2025

Power, Politics and Territory in the ‘New Northern Ireland”

Dr. Elizabeth DeYoung, a research scientist at SP2’s Center for Guaranteed Income Research, is the author of the book “Power, Politics and Territory in the ‘New Northern Ireland’: Girdwood Barracks […]

News

On a glossy surface, a small glass globe sits on a blue stethoscope

Frameworks provide new paradigm for global health law

Aiming to provide a new model for global health law, a recent essay in the Journal of Global Health Law by Dr. Jennifer Prah of SP2 and Perelman School of Medicine outlines comprehensive frameworks for attaining global health justice.


Contact Us

Joretha N. Bourjolly, MSW, PhD

Associate Dean for Community Cultivation & Engagement

215 898 8444

jerri@upenn.edu