HOURS:
BSW: 440 hours
MSW: 240 hours* each semester
*Please note that MSW students will occasionally have to obtain slightly more than 16 hours per week in order to fulfill the 240 hours for each semester. Although students are required be in placements for two days per week, additional hours or days can be scheduled between the student and field instructor so long as these hours provide appropriate learning experiences for the student. Students should form a plan as to how they will obtain 240 hours each semester in order to avoid being in field during or after final exams.
Field Education
The Field Education Program at the Department of Social Work provides an opportunity for students to integrate their curriculum knowledge with real-life experiences in a variety of field practice settings. Students are supervised by experienced social work field instructors at human services agencies where they refine their social work skills and begin their lives as social work professionals.
The field placement is a vital part of the professional development of the student. Through our collaborative efforts the Social Work Department and human service organizations will continue to offer field education of the highest quality to enhance human well-being and meet the basic human needs of all people. Master of Social (MSW) work students complete concurrent field placements two semesters per year. The Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) student completed one semester block placements their senior year. Our program covers five campus sites, Boone (MSW and BSW), Hickory (MSW and BSW), Wilkes (BSW), Shelby (BSW), and the future campus site Morganton (BSW).
The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) has set 2008 standards for Field Education. This area of the curriculum is considered the "signature pedagogy" of the program Field education is considered the central form of instruction and learning in which a profession socializes its students to perform the role of practitioner, connects the theoretical and conceptual contributions of the classroom with the practical world of the practice setting, and is systematically designed, supervised, coordinated, and evaluated based on criteria by which students demonstrate the achievement of program competencies.
Forms:
Field Forms and Due Dates
Field Instructor Information sheet
Field Instructor agreement
Field Hours and Supervision Hours Verification Form
Confidentiality Form
BSW Request for Field Placement
MSW Foundation Year Request for Field Placement
Application for employment based placement
Advanced Standing and MSW Concentration Field Placement Application
MSW field manual
MSW field evaluations
College of Arts and Sciences Internship Contract
BSW field evaluations: MIdterm, Final
Student Evaluation of Field Placement
For more information about field education at Appalachian State, contact:
Heather Thorp, LCSW
Field Coordinator
Department of Social Work
Appalachian State University
Boone, NC 28608
828/262-6389
Email: Heather Thorp
