Practicum Placement Process

The following is general information regarding the usual process of assigning students to practicum. It is meant to assist students in understanding the multiplicity of factors affecting placement decisions and how those decisions are made. Please discuss any questions, concerns, or unique situations with your assigned Practicum Coordinator.

1. Survey of Agency Availability: Twice a year the Practicum Office mails all previous practicum site contacts a letter to ask for updated practicum placement information. The Practicum Placement Data (PPD) form is mailed out during winter quarter, and a request for additional information is mailed during the summer. We ask for updates regarding types of placement opportunities, potential instructors, number and degree level of students to be accepted, and other information such as transportation options, financial assistance, schedule requirements, and special skills or certifications needed. As they are returned, the PPD forms are entered into our online reserves and hard copy PPD books, located in the SSW library, and with each Practicum Coordinator. As additional information comes in by email or telephone, Practicum Coordinators have the most current knowledge of sites.
2. Schedule of Placements: Students from the BASW, Extended Degree and MSW Day programs are interviewed during Spring quarter for placement beginning Summer or Fall Quarter. Advanced Standing MSW students are interviewed before and during Summer Quarter for placement beginning in the Fall. Because many of the practicum sites listed in the PPD books will be assigned students during Spring Quarter, Advanced Standing MSW students are mailed a list of the most current available placements before they arrive for Summer Quarter and their interviews. Foundation year MSW students are interviewed before and during Fall Quarter for placement which begins with orientation mid-Fall Quarter and continues Winter and Spring.
3. Individual Meetings with Students and Practicum Coordinators: Before placement decisions for each student cohort are made, the Coordinators meet with all students to determine background, interests, goals, educational objectives, placement possibilities, and other factors which may influence a student's practicum choices, such as need for financial assistance, employment, a certain geography, etc. The Coordinators help students expand or narrow options among existing practicum sites, or work with the student to develop other options. Our goal is to identify at least three agencies which would meet the student's needs, ranked in order of preference by the student, and to provide additional information for decision-making.
4. Development of Alternative Placements: Some students request placement in unlisted organizations or at other locations, including sites not previously utilized, with faculty on special projects, in internships abroad or out of area, or within their current agency of employment. All such alternative placements must be negotiated and developed with your Practicum Coordinator, according to our published policies and guidelines. In the interests of equal access, students are requested not to interview with or attempt development of a practicum site without the approval of a Practicum Coordinator. Information about all practicum opportunities must be made available to all students.
5. Placement Decisions: After interviewing all students in each placement cycle, the Coordinator team meets to identify each person's top choices. Coordinators act as both student spokesman and school representative, attempting to balance requests with resources. When there are multiple students interested in the same spots, the Coordinators work together to determine the best possible solution: reviewing the students' information regarding experience needed for success with the practicum, fit with coursework, level of interest in their other choices, practical limitations such as need for financial assistance, bus accessibility, daily schedule requirements, etc. A primary consideration is the matching of supervisor and site to a student's educational plan and needs.
   
   As necessary, the Coordinators will contact students about conflicts and alternatives and may ask for a written statement of need. In some cases, we may request that agencies add more students. While student choice is given a high priority in placement assignments, due to high demand not all students will be able to be placed in one of their top choices. However, we make every effort to expand the range of available options, communicate our progress, and insure that students will be placed in a setting which can meet their professional goals. Students are notified of decisions in writing via student mailfiles.
   
   Sites offering competitive stipends use a different process. Students are notified in writing during Spring Quarter of the agencies' opportunities, interview processes, criteria, and timelines, and the agencies make their own selections.
6. Placement Interviews: No placement is considered final until both student and agency have interviewed and accepted each other as to goals, fit, duties, and expectations. Students should contact their assigned agency immediately following notification, asking for an interview with their contact person and an interview with the prospective practicum instructor, if they are not the same person. If an interview is unsatisfactory, either party may decline to accept the placement and should confirm or decline in writing to the Practicum Office according to instructions on our notification forms. The Practicum Coordinator will immediately begin work with the student for replacement at another agency. Students are asked not to contact agencies for interviews without a referral from the Practicum Office, and may not interview at multiple sites before determining their choice. This policy is a result of requests from our practicum sites to minimize the volume of student contact. One of the primary roles of the Practicum Coordinators is to screen and match students according to our knowledge of both student and agency. We will continue to work with each student until all have accepted placements in agencies which can fulfill their goals.