Field learning lies at the heart of social work education and your development as a clinical social worker. Within the context of the field placement experience, and allied practice courses, you will have the opportunity to integrate theory and practice. Because the School has developed unique partnerships with over 500 public and nonprofit agencies throughout the tri-state area, our placement sites are varied, of high quality, and offer students a rich learning environment.
No school devotes as much effort to matching students with appropriate field learning opportunities.
Field learning will immerse you in the extraordinary range of human and social problems that lead clients to reach out for help. It will give you an opportunity to both develop skills and appreciate the realities of coping with complex problems in the context of specific service-delivery systems.
You will be trained to work with a wide range of populations in diverse practice settings. With an emphasis on training you for clinical social work practice that promotes social and economic justice, your field education will advance your learning as a relationship-centered, reflective practitioner, preparing you for work with individuals, groups, and families.
enhanced field initiatives
The School continues to expand its range of specialized field learning initiatives, including:
- Placements through the Jewish Board for Family and Children's Services, coupled with twice monthly seminars on multicultural work.
- Team placements in after-school programs, with special orientation and advisement from the Partnership for After School Education.
- Experience with evidenced-based practice interventions for the seriously mentally ill at several sites, under a special collaboration with the NYS Office of Mental Health.
- Community-based geriatric care, with joint Nursing and Social Work student teams working under the auspices of the Visiting Nurse Service.
- Unique placements for services to immigrant families, with a special cross-school elective course and field units from several area social work schools.
These placements give students a chance to further develop their skills in specialized areas.
Field learning is an integral part of social work education that aims to prepare students to become skilled social work practitioners by applying social work theory to direct work with individuals, families, groups, and/or larger systems. Students spend a significant number of hours per week outside the classroom engaging in social work practice under the guidance of field instructors. In the first year, the primary goal of field learning is to provide a professional foundation of social work practice skills. In the second, or advanced concentration, year, students focus on developing more specialized clinical skills in the field.
contact us
If you have questions or specific requests, please email our office.
NYU SSW: Field Learning & Community Partnerships
1 Washington Square North, NY, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 998-5920
Fax: (212) 995-4533