Field Education Program

A core component of the Master of Social Work educational experience is our field education program. The field practicum is the “signature pedagogy” of social work, exposing students to real-world social work practice with diverse populations and a variety of social and environmental concerns. You will use knowledge gained in the classroom to develop your practice skills in a professional setting under the supervision of experienced social work practitioners.

For our on-campus MSW students, we work with a full range of community agencies in and around the Greater New Orleans area.
For our learners enrolled in our online classes, the field education placement advisors work with and connect you with agencies in your area so that you can make a direct impact within your community.

More than 100 social service agencies, government entities, schools, hospitals, and businesses throughout the country participate in our field education program. Reflective of our unique clinical and community-based practice curriculum, your field placement provides the opportunity to develop clinical-community skills through a blending of micro, mezzo, and macro practice.

Upon the completion of your MSW degree, you will have accumulated a minimum of 900 hours of social work practicum training in field education. With guidance and mentoring from your Faculty Field Liaison (Seminar Instructor) and your agency-based Field Instructor (Supervisor), you will not only engage in active social change, you will also regularly explore your commitment to working with diverse communities – all towards embodying professional social work values of ethical practice.

Information about the orientation to field process will be sent to all On-campus MSW Students. Online MSW Students will receive an email from their Placement Advisor. Prior to final placement, any questions about the process may be emailed to TSSW_field@tulane.edu. Once assigned, Faculty Field Liaisons are the first point of contact.

Forms

Social work students, both part-time and full-time, entering their first semester of study must submit their field education application to the field education department. Once the application has been submitted, students and their Placement Advisor will work toward obtaining a field placement. In the school's efforts to find each student a suitable field placement, field agencies will conduct interviews with students, and agencies and students submit confirmation of acceptance once they have accepted a student into their field placement.

Student Learning Goals

Beginning their first semester of Field Practicum, Each student must submit a goals sheet for each section (SOWK 7520, 7530 and 7540) of their field education practicum. Beginning with the first summer semester, part-time students also must submit Learning Goals and continue to do so for each subsequent semester (SOWK 7910-7920 and SOWK 7930-7960) of the field education practicum.

Field Evaluations

As part of the field education practicum, both full-time and part-time students are evaluated on their full range of performance expectations. With each field practicum assignment, students are evaluated by their field instructors and rated using a Field Evaluation tool. These evaluation forms are issued to the field instructors electronically and are shared with their students before the end of each semester.

Student Course Evaluations

As with other courses, program evaluation is necessary to engage in ethical social work practice. Therefore, both full-time and part-time students provide evaluations of their field placement. These evaluations give students an opportunity to anonymously express feedback about their learning experience at the agency. The details within the evaluation will be considered in efforts to improve the students’ experience in our program.

Field Education Manual