INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL WORK FIELD PROGRAMS

1. INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL WORK FIELD PROGRAMS

2. UW-Milwaukee Field Liaison Liaison Here are some terms used in the Field Program: Your Field Liaison is an employee / faculty member of the UW-Milwaukee Helen Bader School of Social Welfare who: • is responsible for arranging, coordinating, and overseeing your field practicum experience. • is available for information and consultation throughout your field practicum. • meets with your Field Instructor and you at the field agency each semester. • intervenes if difficulties arise during the field practicum. • reviews the completed Learning Plan, Field Assignments, and all evaluations. • calculates and assigns the final grade for your SW Field Course.

3. FIELD PROGRAM STAFF Roberta Hanus Sue Loeher Katie Mangan Jerry Rousseau Wendy Volz Daniels Barbara Teske-Young Jeanne Wagner, Field Program Director

4. Agency Field Instructor Agency Field Instructor Your Agency Field Instructor is a professional employee of the agency where you are having your field practicum who: • is responsible for providing day-to-day field instruction and oversight of your field work at the field agency. • is responsible for providing one-hour of weekly face-to-face supervision during each week of your field practicum. • collaborates with you on the development of your Learning Plan • reviews and provides feedback on your Field Assignments in supervision. • evaluates your demonstration of competence in the 8 Learning Objectives on your Midterm and Final Evaluation Forms. Your Field Instructor is not paid by UW-Milwaukee for her or his work with you.

5. FIELD EDUCATION IS INTENDED TO: • Reinforce students’ identification with the purposes, values, and ethics of the SW profession. • Promote professional competence. • Model understanding of and respect for diversity. • Foster the integration of empirical & practice-based knowledge. -Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)

6. The Importance of Relationships The SW Field Education Practicum is a “relationship” involving three important parties: • The UW-Milwaukee HBSSW Social Work Department. • The UW-Milwaukee SW Field Student. • The Field Agency. Practicing appropriate professional communication with all relationship parties is vital to the success of the Field Practicum experience.

7. SW FIELD PLACEMENT REQUIREMENTS UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS will have one two semester field placement in one agency. GRADUATE STUDENTS who receive one of the following two exemptions, will have one field placements for three consecutive semesters. • Students who have received a BSW degree from an accredited program within five years of entering the MSW program are eligible to be exempted from SW 721. • Students with a bachelor’s degree who have been employed full-time in a social work position and have been supervised by an MSW for at least two years are eligible to be exempted from SW 721. • All other students will have two field placements of two semesters each. To request an exemption, you must submit a Social Work 721Exemption Request Form.

8. HAVING A FLEXIBLE SCHEDULE IS AN ABSOLUTENECESSITY FOR INVOLVEMENT IN FIELD WORK Field Work requires between: • 16 - 20 hrs / week during the Fall & Spring Semesters. • 21 - 27 hrs / week during the Summer Semester. Most Field Agencies require students to be available for Field Work between 8 AM - 5 PM. If you are only available for field work in the evenings and on week- ends, it will be extremely difficult to locate a Field Placement . Make arrangements with your employer in advance of entering Field Work to have a flexible work schedule in order to be available for Field Work from 8 AM - 5 PM.

9. SCHOOL SOCIAL WORK PLACEMENTS(for MSW students only) • Two-semester School Social Work Field Placements only begin with the Fall Semester to be in accord with the school year. • Students who want a Field Placement in the practice area of School Social Work should contact SW Field Liaison Wendy Volz Daniels as soon as possible at: Wendy Volz Daniels: 414 - 229 - 4695 or wvolzdan@uwm.edu

10. SOCIAL WORK FIELD PROGRAM WEBSITE All SW Field Program field application forms, documents, policies, and procedures can be accessed on the Social Work Field Program website located at: http://www.hbsswfield.uwm.edu

11. FIELD APPLICATION PARTS & FORMS • Field Application Components: Please read and follow all instructions! • Part I • Part II • Background Information Disclosure Form • Authorization and Release Form • SW 721 Exemption Form (optional)

12. Caregiver Background Check • All students entering a practicum are required to have a Wisconsin “Caregiver Background Check” for: Charges of criminal activity. Child / elder abuse or neglect. • Students who resided outside of Wisconsin since their 18th birthday will need to complete an “Out-of-State BackgroundCheck” as part of the application process. • “Out-of-State Background Check” forms can be obtained from Colleen Giaimo / Enderis 1075 / 414-229-6526 / crm2@uwm.edu

13. OVERVIEW OF PLACEMENT PROCESS • Access electronic application forms from the SW Field Program website under “MSW Program.” • Please read and follow all instructions. • All parts & forms must be typed / computer prepared. • Complete Parts 1 & 2 and all forms of the application. • Provide an original signature and date on Parts 1 & 2 and all forms.

14. OVERVIEW OF PLACEMENT PROCESS • Save a copy of Parts 1 & 2 in your computer documents file. Part 1 will be either faxed or sent as an e-mail attachment to prospective Field Agencies along with an interview request. • Submit2copies of Part 1 and 1 copy of Part 2 and all remaining forms to the SW Field Office / Enderis 1075. • Schedule an interview with selected Field Liaison to review your application and discuss placement interests. • Your interview will be scheduled at a time consistent with the time table for the specific agency placement you are requesting.

15. INTERVIEW WITH FIELD LIAISON • Field Liaison will review the field application with student. Revisions may be required. • Discuss any concerns or special placement needs. • Gather information about possible field placement sites in your identified Social Work Practice Area. • Let the Field Liaison know of any Field Agencies you are interested in. Students are not to arrange their own placement. • Discuss any arrests and/or convictions on your Background Check. Background Check results with a “conviction” will be mailed to the Field Agency after a student is accepted for a placement.

16. OVERVIEW OF PLACEMENT PROCESS • Part 1 of the application is either faxed or sent as an e-mail attachment to prospective field agencies along with a request for an interview. • Student is notified to contact the Field Agency to arrange an in-person interview. • Student schedules an interview with the Field Agency. Interview should be scheduled in a timely manner.

17. FIELD AGENCYINTERVIEW • The interview with a Field Agency is a two-way process. • The Field Agency interviews the student. • The student interviews the Field Agency. • Refer to “Interviewing Tips” on the Field Dept. website. • Gather information about the Field Agency and the field placement from the Field Liaison and the Field Agency website. • Review the list of questions you may be asked. • Review the list of questions you may want to ask. • Know the location of the Field Agency and parking arrangements. • Bring a copy of Part 1 of your application and a note pad and pen. • Dress professionally. • Timeliness counts.

18. FIELD AGENCY INTERVIEW • Discuss any “convictions” on your Background Check during the latter part of the Field Agency interview if you decide you want a practicum with the agency. (Background Check results with a conviction will be mailed to the agency after a student accepts an offer of a field practicum.) • Student completes the interview with the Field Agency with plans to follow-up with the Field Agency representative. • Student contacts all involved Field Liaisons to provide an update on the status of each interview with a Field Agency. • Student follows-up with all involved Field Agency representatives and all Field Liaisons when a final placement decision has been made.

19. PART 1 OF THE FIELD APPLICATION • Review the “Social Work Practice Areas”section on the SW Field Program website to determine your practice area of interest. Children and Youth Behavioral Health (Mental Health & AODA) School Social Work Medical Social Work Criminal Justice Gerontology Community Outreach / Case Management Macro-Practice

20. PART 1 OF THE FIELD APPLICATION • Refer to the "Liaison Selection Template"to determine which Field Liaison has the agency assignments for your practice area of interest and geographic location. • Check the box with the name of this Field Liaison. • Be specific & inclusive when describing SpecificDuties / Responsibilities on the section for “Social Work and Human Service Employment” on Part I. • List all professional training, academic courses,workshops, in-services… that are relevant to social work practice on the last section of Part I.

21. APPLICATION PROCESS REMINDERS • Following the acceptance of a field placement, the student should notcontinue to explore additional placement possibilities. • Upon acceptance of a field placement, student is to contact all other involved Field Agencies and Field Liaisons to inform them of the placement decision and to thank them for their involvement. • Three failed interviews with Field Agencies requires an assessment and recommendation from the Field Liaison regarding the student’s continuation in the Field Education Program.

22. PRE-PLACEMENT PROCESS • When you have accepted a placement, contact the Field Agency to inquire about any pre-placement requirements: • Field Agency orientation program. • Medical examination and / or TB skin test. • Drug testing. • Field Agency Caregiver Background Check. • Proof of driver’s license and auto insurance. • Confidentiality acknowledgement. • Professional references.

23. MSW FIELD EDUCATION COURSE REGISTRATION • Graduate students in the Title IV-E Full-time Child Welfare Program entering a field placement should registerfor their field course under the Section with Susan Loeher as the listed Instructor. • All other graduate students registering for Social Work Field Course 721 should register under the appropriate section for SW 721 and for the LAB / IntegratedField Seminar that is required to be taken in conjunction with SW 721. • All other graduate students registering for Social Work Field Course 722 should register under the appropriate section. There is no LAB / Integrated Field Seminar with SW 722. Contact your selected Field Liaison for assistance if you have questions.

24. CLINICAL PLACEMENTS • Clinical Mental Health / Behavioral Health Placements are often requested by graduate students. • Advanced level students (821 / 822) are generally given preference for clinical placements. • The Field Department cannot guarantee a clinical placement for all student requests due to the limited number of these placements and high competition for these placements within the HBSSW and other Wisconsin Social Work and Psychology Programs. • Clinical placements for students involved in the Title IV-E Child Welfare Program are very limited and cannot usually be accommodated.

25. REASONS FOR NOT BEING ACCEPTED FOR A PLACEMENT • Students may not be accepted for placement by a Field Agency as a result of: • Failed TB skin test. • Negative results in a health physical. • Positive drug test. • Criminal and / or Caregiver Background history. • Competition with other placement applicants. • Poor presentation during the Field Agency interview.

26. “ORIENTATION TO FIELD PROGRAMS” PRESENTATION • Students entering their 1st semester of field placement are requiredto attend one of two mandatory“Orientation to the Field Practicum” programs one to two weeks before the beginning of each semester. Dates are listed in the Field Education calendar. • The dates and locations for these two presentations will also be e-mailed to you through your UW-Milwaukee e-mail account.

27. ON-LINE FIELD AGENCY RESOURCE LISTING • A listing of Field Agencies is available on the website for the Social Work Field Department. To access… Click on Agency Placements on the menu. Click on Student Field Placement Search. Click on County and then Practice Area. • Field Liaisons will provide information about prospective Field Agencies to students during the Field Liaison Interview. • Please list any agencies you want your Field Liaison to contact for a potential placement on Part 2 of your Field Application.

28. SPECIAL SUMMER FIELD PLACEMENT OPTIONS AND INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM OPPORTUNITIES • Women & Public Policy Internship in Washington, DC / one semester for BSW & MSW students. Special application required. Special International Summer Programs: 6 BSW or MSW credits • Bristol International Credit-Earning Program (BICEP) in England (2 weeks) • Intensive Spanish for Social Work Practice in Costa Rico (2-3 weeks) • Upper Austria Summer Course in Social Work or Criminal Justice (2 weeks) • Linz, Austria field practicum For MSW & Advanced BSW Students(6-8 weeks) • Plymouth (England) Drug & Alcohol Project field practicum / For MSW & Advanced BSW Students(6-8 weeks) For more information, contact Jeanne Wagner, SW Field Program Director 414-229-6501 / jeanne@uwm.edu or Go to the SW Field Dept. website and click on “International Education”

29. FIELD PLACEMENTS OFFER MANY OPPORTUNITIES FIELD PLACEMENT = OPPORTUNITIES • NEW CHALLENGES • PROFESSIONAL GROWTH • PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT • EMPLOYMENT POSSIBILITIES • NEW RELATIONSHIPS