<p>British Journal of Social Work Vol. 43 no. 4 (Jun. 2013), p. 667-684</p> <p>Available in library.&nbsp; See journal shelves.</p> <p>Available online.</p>

In Italy, the shift to university training for social assistants, which has taken place over the past two decades, has modified on the one hand the organisational structure and balance in the didactics of training and on the other the legal value of the academic qualification obtained and the contractual situation of the social worker. With reference to this change, and starting from data that emerge from a national research project carried out on a sample of 1,000 Italian social workers, this article analyzes motivations for enrolment in the degree course and the evaluations given of the different aspects of the training received and of the shift to the university environment. The interaction of these two aspects is also of importance for reflections going on at a European level both on the issue of motivation in the profession and on the relationship between theory and practice in the training of social workers.