Approved placement sites host students during their field education experiences and
provide them with a variety of learning opportunities, essential to their development
and learning as a social worker.
Social service agencies, medical facilities, counseling providers, advocacy organizations,
and other health and human service providers are just some of the diverse agency
types where social work students complete their field education and learn the critical
skills necessary to be successful as social workers. Approved placement sites will
usually have a BSW or MSW as an employee who will serve as the student’s Field
Instructor and supervise their learning. However, the absence of a BSW/MSW does
not prevent an agency from becoming a placement site.
Field instructors for BSW students must have either a BSW or MSW degree from an accredited
Social Work program and have worked in the field for at least two years after earning
their degree. Field Instructors for MSW students must have an MSW from an accredited
Social Work program and have worked in the field for at least two years after earning
their degree. The WVU School of Social Work works with Field Instructors that are
part of an approved placement site, as well as independent social workers that
work with students at agencies where no social worker is available to supervise
their learning.
My Role as a Placement Site:
As an approved placement site, you agree to host at least one student with your agency
at either the BSW or MSW level for the duration of their field placement. Although
placements vary in length and required number of hours determined by the type of
student and placement, placements typically last for 2 to 3 semesters of the academic
calendar year. During this time, students will be at your agency for a determined
number of hours each week. Students placed within the agency are expected to observe,
participate, and reflect upon a variety of activities utilizing social work theories
and practices. Students should both learn and contribute to the agency’s work.
Students are also expected to have at least 1 hour of supervision each week with
their approved Field Instructor. A Midterm and Final Assessment are completed by
the Field Instructor in order to assess the student’s progress in developing social
work competencies.
Resources and training information can be found under the
Trainings and Resources page.
If you are interested in supporting student learning and community engagement by
becoming an approved Field Education Placement Site or serving as a Field Instructor,
please contact
Lindsey Rinehart, Field Education Director.
FAQs
Q. What is the purpose of the field instruction experience?
A. The field instruction experience is an integral part of the total curriculum and
is designed to provide opportunities for students to apply the concepts and theories
taught in the classroom to actual practice situations, thus incorporating the knowledge,
values, and skills studied in class into work with clients and client systems,
at micro, mezzo and macro levels.
Q. What experience is required to be a field instructor?
A. The Council on Social Work Education requires either a BSW or MSW from a CSWE-accredited
social work program and two years of post-social work degree experience in social
work to serve as a Field Instructor for BSW students, and an MSW from a CSWE-accredited
social work program and two years of post-social work degree experience in social
work to serve as a Field Instructor MSW students (See EPAS B2.2.9 and M2.2.9).
Individuals meeting the minimum CSWE requirements for BSW and/or MSW supervision
are considered for Field Instructor roles with the SSW.
Q. What is an external field instructor?
A. An external BSW Field Instructor is a person with BSW credentials and two years
of post BSW experience that are located outside of where the student(s) is placed.
An external MSW Field Instructor is a person with MSW credentials and two years
of post MSW experience that are located outside of where the student(s) is placed.
This person provides weekly supervision with the student to ensure the values of
social work, as well as the core CSWE competencies are being incorporated into
the student’s practicum. External field instruction can focus more broadly on social
work concepts and less on day-to-day functioning of the internship.
Q. What is a site supervisor?
A. A site supervisor is a person within the student’s placement location that works
closely with students throughout their experiences but brings different educational
backgrounds and skill sets. This person may provide day to day supervision and
oversight with the student, but does not have the BSW/MSW qualifications to provide
social work supervision of the student.
Q. What training is required to be a field instructor?
A. To best support field supervisors, the SSW provides a supervisor overview training
on zoom, at least once per semester. A recorded version of this training can also
be found on our training webpage. Additionally, other supplemental trainings are
sometimes offered throughout the year and recordings are housed on webpage. Field
instructors are strongly encouraged to attend or review the overview training.
Q. Will I be compensated for being a field instructor?
A. Unfortunately, at this time WVU School of Social Work does not have the ability
to financially compensate field instructors. The SSW works to offer no cost continuing
education opportunities to Field Instructors as a gesture of appreciation for the
important service they are providing to students, the SSW, and the greater social
work community.
Q. What are the requirements of supervision with the student?
A. The student is expected to prepare for and participate in regular conferences
with the Field Instructor, focusing on the student's learning and application of
social work concepts. Students should have supervision for one hour a week with
their field instructor. If a student has an external Field Instructor, they are
still required to have supervision for one hour per week with them. The student
should also have supervision with their site supervisor during this time; however,
there is not a specific time requirement.
Q. I have an employee who would like to complete their field placement at their
place of employment. Is this permitted?
A. If the student is proposing an employer-based placement, they will indicate this
preference as part of their application. The Field Office will discuss the employer-based
plan with the student to determine if it meets the SSW’s policy and consider how
it will impact student’s learning and educational goals. Student consultations
with the SSW Field Office and agency administrators are highly encouraged, at an
early stage, to collect input for shaping a viable plan.
Q. How many hours is a student required to be at placement?
A. Varies by program:
-
BSW:
- Placement occurs across Fall and Spring semesters, typically
beginning in October
- Students are in agencies 17-20 hours per week and attend
professional seminars.
- 400 required hours.
-
MSW Generalist:
-
Full Time: Pla
cement occurs across Fall an
d Spring semesters, typically beginning in October, students are in agencies
13-16 hours per week and attend professional seminars. 300 required hours.
-
Part Time: Placement occurs across Summer and fall semesters,
typically beginning in June , students are in agencies 12-16 hours per
week and attend professional seminars. 300 required hours.
-
MSW Specialized:
-
Full Time: Placement begins in August and continues across fall
and spring semester, ending in late April. Students are in agencies 20-22
hours per week and attend professional seminars. 600 required hours.
-
Part Time: Placement begins in August and continues across fall,
spring, and summer semesters, ending by July. Students are in agencies
15-18 hours per week and attend professional seminars. 600 required hours.
Q. I am a field instructor at another University, can I still be a field instructor
at WVU?
A. Yes. The Field Office sees field instruction as an opportunity for social workers
to gain supervisory experience and assist with their professional growth. We
request that field instructors maintain the NASW Code of Ethics regarding confidentiality
and boundaries when completing supervision.
Q. Do all of the student’s hours need to be direct client contact?
A. No. We encourage the students to have direct contact with clients as part of
their placement but there are other valuable aspects of social work practice.
The goal of a student’s field placement is to give them a well-rounded social
work experience that provides them an opportunity of working with individuals,
families, groups, organizations, communities, research opportunities, and explore
policies. Incorporating all of these activities will assist the student in meeting
the core CSWE competencies.
Q. Can a student do a remote field placement?
A. Yes. A student can do a remote placement, as long as the remote placement provides
an opportunity for the student to complete activities that meet the core CSWE
competencies. We have found many placements can work through a blend of onsite
activities and more self-directed activities that students can complete remotely.
As long as the student is able to practice and engage in all of the competencies,
is integrated into the placement site, and has regular communication with their
supervisors, there is a lot of flexibility regarding how much time is spent in
person vs. remote.
Q. Are there any special tools/software that I need to be a field instructor?
A. The best tool in working with students in Field placement is your real world
knowledge and social work experience. WVU SSW does use a web-based system, Tevera,
for many of our documents. Students submit their timesheets, field learning plan
and other field documents via this system. Field instructors will be required
to register for Tevera and utilize the system to sign and complete student field
documents.
Q. What documentation are field instructors required to complete?
A. Field instructors will sign off on student timesheets which are submitted on
the 5th of each month. Field instructors will provide guidance as the student
develops a learning contract, outlining what activities they will engage in and
how these will connect to the CSWE competencies and ultimately sign off on this
document. Field instructors will complete a midterm and final field assessment
about the student’s progress towards competency development. In the rare occurrence
where a student may be terminated from an internship, the field instructor may
be asked to provide documentation about student performance challenges.
Q. What support does the school provide to field instructors?
A. Field instructors will initially have the opportunity to meet with someone from
our field office to get oriented to the program and discuss the plans for an
upcoming student placement. During the placement period, the student will have
a designated Field Faculty Liaison (FFL) who will be the instructor of a seminar
course the student is enrolled in. The FFL will send an introductory email to
supervisors and will share contact information and important dates. The FFL is
a good first point of contact for any challenges experienced during the placement.
The FFL will schedule site visits with the student, field instructor and site
supervisor if applicable, once or twice during the year depending on length of
placement and additional meetings can be scheduled as needed.
Q. How do I apply to be a field instructor?
A. Individuals interested in supervising students, as either a Field Instructor
or Site Supervisor, and providing supervision to social work students during
field education experiences will first complete a Field Instructor Interest Application.
Following their application submission, and often occurring during the site visit,
the individual will be oriented to the SSW field practices.