Student Field Experience

The BSW Field Experience is a Foundation-Generalist placement that provides students with opportunities and experiences that demonstrate the multiple and varied roles that social workers perform, as well as day-to-day operations within social, human, and health care agencies, programs and organizations. A major assignment within the BSW Field experience is a multi-part portfolio which serves to help the student articulate and demonstrate how they have successfully integrated and applied the social work skills, theories, values and beliefs in a real world, social work practice setting.

The BSW Field Experience requires completion of a 400-hour internship and utilizes an “integrated placement” model that occurs during the student’s final two semesters of the undergraduate program. During the Fall and Spring semester of their senior year, students are in field placement at least 2 days a week, for approximately 17-20 hours per week throughout the semester. During the semesters that students are engaged in field placements, they will also be enrolled in SOWK 491 professional seminars. These interactive seminars serve to help the student articulate and demonstrate how they have successfully integrated and applied social work skills, theories, values and beliefs in a real world, social work practice setting. All students will receive detailed information regarding field placement requirements during Field Education Briefings scheduled during their junior year.

The MSW Foundation-Generalist Field Experience provides students with opportunities and experiences that demonstrate the multiple and varied roles that social workers perform, as well as day-to-day operations within social, human, and health care agencies, programs, and organizations. This Foundation-Generalist Field Experience requires that Regular Standing* students complete a 300-hour agency placement either during the first or second year of the program (depending on degree plan). Full-time students begin their foundation placements in early October of their first year and complete 300 hours by the end of April (approximately 13-16 hours per week). Part-time students begin their foundation placements in June between their 1st and 2nd year and complete 300 hours by early December (approximately 12-16 hours per week).

During the semesters that students are engaged in field placements, they will also be enrolled in SOWK 581 professional seminars. These interactive seminars serve to help the student articulate and demonstrate how they have successfully integrated and applied social work skills, theories, values and beliefs in a real world, social work practice setting. All students will receive additional, detailed information regarding field placement requirements during a Field Education Briefing session scheduled 4-6 months in advance of their field placement.

All students begin the MSW Specialized-Advanced Field Experience in August of their final year. Full-time students complete 600 hours between mid-August and late April (approximately 20-22 hours per week). Part-time students complete 600 hours between mid-August and late June (approximately 15-18 hours per week). Students will enroll in SOWK 682 for professional seminars while completing their field experiences. Students in Specialized-Advanced Placement will concentrate more intensively and autonomously in levels of intervention which reflect the elements of the Advanced Integrated curriculum, including work at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels of practice. The Specialized-Advanced placement is meant to prepare students for entry into social work practice employment, with the understanding that students have already grasped the generalist concepts, theories and roles, as well as appropriate professional behavior. MSW students coming into the program with Advanced Standing** are required to complete this field education experience only.

*Regular-Standing applies to students whose undergraduate degree is in an area other than social work, or whose social work undergraduate degree is more than 8 years old.

**Advanced-Standing students have earned an undergraduate degree in Social Work that is less than 8 years old, and are only required to complete the Specialized-Advanced Field Education Experience.

Important: Impact of Criminal Background, Failure to pass drug screen, and/or substantiated CPS or APS Complaint upon Field Placement and/or Degree Program Completion.

Employer-Based Placements

The School of Social Work permits students, on a case-by-case basis, to complete their internships at their place of employment, with particular attention paid to the student’s learning opportunities. For maximum educational growth, it is important that students be exposed to a range and diversity of practice experiences to support their professional development process. Students wishing to complete an Employer-Based Placement (EBP) are required to submit a proposal for approval. The agency and student must be able to create and support an educationally based field learning experience as defined below. 

Students will indicate their interest in exploring an Employer-Based Placement in Tevera as part of their Student Field Experience Application. After discussing with the field office, students will work with their employer to develop an Employer-Based Proposal that outlines how the student will meet the social work competencies and supervision requirements in their work setting. When this proposal is completed and approved by the student, employment supervisor, field instructor, and field office, it is uploaded into Tevera to be kept as part of the student’s placement documentation.

Policies regarding employer-based field placements are in accordance with the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Accreditation Standards and are designed to help recognize the role transition that is expected of employees who are engaging in employer-based field experiences in these circumstances. For further information regarding employer-based placements, please consult the Field Education Handbook. 

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.

A. Students may begin Field Placement only if they are enrolled in the co-requisite (Full-Time) or have completed all prerequisite (Part-time) courses with a grade of “C” or higher and have no outstanding grades of “I” or “NR” in those courses. Students who have a criminal record or a record of CPS/APS complaints may face challenges finding a field placement. Students in these circumstances are encouraged to inform the field office early on to determine the best path forward. See the Statement Regarding Criminal Background and/or CPS/APS History for further details.

A. As you begin the field process, you will register as a student user in Tevera, the School of Social Work’s online field management system. Using Tevera, you will be able to explore the agencies with which WVU has a relationship with. Students in the local area will have a wide range of preapproved options, students outside the local area will be able to check for preapproved agencies and will also work with the field office to find appropriate placement options in their local communities. If there are not already sites listed in your local area, you may find the 211 website, NASW local chapter websites, local United Way websites, or your own professional network to be good places to start exploring. If you have an agency in mind that is not in our database, you can share the agency name and contact information with your field coordinator who will work with you to determine if the agency can be approved as a field site.

A. The Field Office works closely with students to determine a placement that matches their career and educational goals. Students in the Morgantown region will be matched to appropriate sites for their BSW placement and for their MSW foundation year placement. These matches are based on factors such as student choice, ability, and availability of sites. Local students will interview for advanced placements with more autonomy but still receive support and guidance from the Field Office. Students outside the Morgantown region will work closely with the Field Office to find appropriate placements in their local communities.

A. Out-of-state placements and agencies are treated the same as in-state options. All agencies must complete an application to be an approved field site and must have an active agreement with WVU for student placements. The Field Offices works with students to support them in finding appropriate placements in their local communities.

A. Possibly. The field office will explore students’ specific goals and circumstances. When considering multiple placements at the same agency, consideration would be given to appropriate level of learning opportunities at the placement, variety of programs offered, and how this lines up with students’ goals.

A. Possibly. Requests for Employer-Based Placements are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and must meet specific criteria in order to assure that the placement site will satisfy both CSWE and SSW field requirements. Students submit a proposal and identify the specific activities that contribute to competency development and must be supervised by an approved MSW Field Instructor. Employer-Based Placement applications are submitted as part of the field application process. Students approved for employer-based placements will move through placement at the same pace as other students; they may not log more hours in a week than would be typically completed in a non-employer-based setting.

Q. I work 5-6 days a week during daytime hours, can I do some of my placement on weekends or in the evenings?

A. Possibly. Field experience is designed to provide students with exposure to multiple services, activities, social work roles, operations, and populations within an agency, program or organization. Students are expected to be in field placement for 2-3 weekdays during the placement period and often the client activities and opportunity for competency building occurs during regular business hours. Thus, the majority of placement hours should occur during that time period. A second consideration is that students must have access to qualified supervision and have regular interaction with their Field Instructor and/or Site Supervisor. Although many social service agencies offer 24 hours/7-day services, there may not be appropriate supervision available for the student. Occasional placement activities experienced or conducted during the agency, program or organizations “off” hours may be permitted but must be approved by the Field Instructor.

A. Students are provided with a two-week period in which they can finish their placement if they have met all requirements and have approval from their field supervisors. The field placement experience is intended to provide exposure to the ongoing, multi-faceted aspects and activities within the day-to-day operations of a social work practice setting. If a student has met the requirements before the two-week period, the student is required to maintain a consistent presence (at least 8 hours a week) throughout the placement period to maximize the depth and breadth of the learning experiences. However, should a student’s field schedule be disrupted due to an unforeseen situation (illness, death, etc.), they may make up missed hours during academic holidays and breaks, per approval from their Field Instructor.

A. Sometimes. Field placements are courses that afford students the opportunity to engage with clients and communities as a component of their educational program and without a social work license, similarly to educational, medical, or other health professional accredited programs. These educational experiences are structured as learning and not labor and comply with the U.S. Department of Labor regulations and are not required to offer stipends or compensation for students (CSWE). Some agencies are able to offer stipends for field placements. There are also specialized programs such as Title IVE and the Rural Integrated Behavioral Health Training Program (RIBHT) that provide stipends to accepted students. Some agencies may qualify as work-study opportunities for qualifying students. The Field Office attempts to promote paid placement opportunities and will help students seek them out when possible. However, most field placements are unpaid.

Q. May previous work or volunteer experience in social work, or an internship from another program such as Counseling or Psychology be used in place of the MSW Field Experience?

A. No. The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), which is responsible for accreditation of social work education programs, does not allow work or life experience to be substituted for the field instruction component. The only circumstance approved for waiver of the MSW Foundation Field Experience is when the student meets the requirements for Advanced Standing, due to having a BSW.

Q. I have a Master of Counseling Degree, Psychology or another human services field, may I use the internship/practicum hours for that program to waive the social work field instruction requirement?

A. No. Social Work Field instruction experience is based upon very specific Competencies and Practice Behaviors which correlate with the many varied social work roles, interventions and practice settings in compliance with CSWE accreditation standards. Therefore, internships/practicum from other non-social work degree programs may not be substituted for the field instruction component.

A. Yes. All students registering for field courses (SOWK 491, SOWK 581, and SOWK 682) will be assessed a field fee of $160 per semester. This fee includes a lifetime license to Tevera for students and supports the SSW’s Field Office activities, such as cultivating new placement sites and supervisor training. Many sites require that the student also undergo a criminal background check, drug screen, or infectious disease testing such as a TB test, and sometimes these costs are the student’s responsibility.

A. Due to Colorado workman’s compensation regulations, WVU SSW students in Colorado are required to seek paid or employment-based internships. WVU SSW cannot guarantee paid or employment-based internships will be accessible to students, which may impact completion of our program.

A. Students should speak with the field office about scenarios that may disrupt their placement. Depending on the timing, a student may be able to cut down on hours and then increase them at a different time in the placement, they may be able to work with the agency to arrange for some amount of remote work that would meet their needs. The student should work with the potential agency to develop a plan for when hours could be completed. Students may also consider speaking with their advisor about possible changes to degree plans

A. Students are expected to complete their full internship with one organization. This allows for depth of practice and for a longer relationship with supervisors in order to fully assess competencies. If problems arise with the placement, students should engage the first phase of the problem-solving process by speaking with their field supervisor about their concerns. See the full problem-solving process for more details in the Field Education Handbook.