Bilingual English-Spanish social workers are needed to work with Latinx clients with limited or no English-language proficiency. A small number of academic social work programs around the country have specialized tracks to train social workers to work with Spanish-speaking clients. This presentation will describe qualitative focus group themes regarding the experiences of 25 Latinx-identified students who participated in a new two-semester English-Spanish dual-language component in the final year of Lehman College’s Master of Social Work (MSW) program. Themes include how the interactive nature of the class increased students’ effectiveness and confidence working with Spanish-speaking clients in the field, and how the class empowered students and served as a support system for them. The presentation of the findings of the study will serve as a background for an interactive discussion with attendees regarding the feasibility and advisability of dual-language programs for different professions throughout CUNY such as healthcare, law, and business.