BSW Field Program

The USF and Tampa Bay Ten Country Regional area provide a rich variety of agencies and programs that offer approved student field placements for both bachelor's and master's level students. Of special interest are two Veterans Administration locations, 3 hospital systems that ranked in the best 100 in the Nation by U.S. News & World Report America's Best Hospital's 2007 and one of the largest Hospice organizations in the Country. In this region there are over 1000 agencies and programs serving children and families and we offer enhanced field placement support for students enrolled in our special certificate program in child welfare. In addition to its location in a diverse community that is home to over 2 million people, the area has over a thousand trained field instructors in human service agencies affiliated with the University.

Students enter the field in their 3rd semester of the BSW program. The field placement requirement is 480 clock hours or 32 hours per week for 15 weeks. Students are typically in classes one day per week. The practicum is designed and monitored by a School approved field instructor who serves as the agency based teaching faculty representative. Students are enrolled in a professional seminar concurrently with the placement to assist with integrating the full learning experience. As a part of this seminar, students will complete an integrative paper demonstrating the students' ability to integrate the full curriculum with the actual field experience.