https://doi.org/10.1177/00208728241267806 International Social Work 1–6 © The Author(s) 2024 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1177/00208728241267806 journals.sagepub.com/home/isw isw Social work and management: Interdisciplinary education from an international perspective in South America Magdalena Calderón-Orellana , María Alejandra Inostroza , Paula Miranda Sánchez and Jorge Farah Ojeda Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile Abstract Addressing social work challenges requires interdisciplinary approaches. While traditionally linked with health, law, and education, its connection with administration is underexplored. This research examines the management–social work relationship in South American training programs. Using qualitative methods, it highlights the scope and challenges of interdisciplinary collaboration. Keywords Critical perspective, education, interdisciplinary, management, social work, South America The complexity of challenges in social work underscores the need for a comprehensive under- standing of the broader context and macro-level interventions (BASW, 2023). Addressing formi- dable social issues requires collaborative efforts with other professions (Menken et al., 2016). Social workers traditionally foster interdisciplinary collaboration, particularly in educational settings, public health, mental health, and other fields (Bronstein et al., 2010; Miller et al., 2019; Nissen, 2019). Indeed, it has been observed that social work engages in interdisciplinary collaborations in the United States, Canada, and Israel, in areas such as sociology, psychology, education, political sci- ence, law, and anthropology, with moderate interactions in administration (Berg-Weger and Schneider, 1998; Bronstein et al., 2010; Hutchinson and Korazim-Kőrösy, 2017; Török and Korazim-Korösy, 2012). Summarizing, despite the evident need for collaboration (Uehara et al., 2017), a conspicuous lack of interaction between social work and management in education has persisted, a critical gap Corresponding author: María Alejandra Inostroza, School of Social Work, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Campus San Joaquín UC, Av. Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Macul, Santiago 782-0436, Chile. Email: maria.inostroza@uc.cl 1267806ISW 0 0 10.1177/00208728241267806International Social Work X(X)Calderón Orellana et al. research-article 2024 Voices from Practice