Please note that you will not be able to save this application and come back to it later.  Your work will not be saved.

Your Audience

As you complete your application, keep in mind that you are writing for two audiences. The first audience is the field office who will review your work and help determine the field site that will be the best fit for your field education. The second audience is the person who will interview you for a field education placement at the field site. Your application will be shared with the field site to facilitate their preparation to interviewing you for field education.

Components of the Application for Field Education

The application for field education consists of two parts, each of which must be completed at the time of submission. The first part comprises the application for field education. The application for field education provides vital information that will be used to match you to a field site.

The second part requires that you upload one document that includes an up-to-date resume and essays. This document will be sent to prospective field placement sites.  The resume should reflect your academic achievements as well as paid and volunteer experiences. Immediately following the resume and part of the same document, requires writing three one-page essays, one for each of the three fields of practice where you have an interest in completing field education. The essays serve as a sample of your writing for the person who will interview you at the field site, therefore they should reflect your best written work. In each essay include a definition of your understanding of the field’s practice, including any previous work/volunteer experience in this area; populations of interest within the field of practice; share your interest and suitability for the practice area. As you write the essays, you are strongly encouraged to refer to course texts and journal articles for an accurate understanding of each practice areas. Essays should be typed, double-spaced and one page long. 

Prior to the beginning of the semester in which you begin Field Education, the MSW Field Education Coordinator will review your academic transcript and ensure you have met the academic requirements for Field Education which are (1) you have received a passing grade in the social work core courses (SW 600, SW 601, SW 603 and SW 620) that are prerequisites for Field Education. To enter and remain in field education you must meet two academic criteria: (1) you have no more than one incomplete grade and; (2) you have achieved a minimum GPA of 3.0. 

Finally, we ask for you include a photo of yourself. The photo will not be shared with your potential field site, but will be used by the Field Education Office for student identification purposes.

First Name *

Last Name *

Pronouns *
- Select Option He/Him/His She/Her/Hers They/Them

Please enter your G-number *

Email *

Phone *

Country *
- Select Country Afghanistan Aland Islands Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Azores Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Cote D'Ivoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Do Not Use Do Not Use Do Not Use Dominica Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Islands Finland France French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia Moldova Republic of Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Korea Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestinian Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Island Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Reunion Romania Russia Rwanda S Georgia Sandwich Islands Saint Helena Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent The Grenadines San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovak Republic Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan, Rc Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand The Bahamas The Congo Togolese Republic Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States of America Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Vatican City Venezuela Vietnam Virgin Islands (British) Virgin Islands (US) Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Western Samoa Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe

Local Address *

City *

State/Province *
- Select State Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas Armed Forces Afr/Can/EU/ME Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Baker Island California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Federated State of Micronesia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Howland Island Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Johnston Atoll Kansas Kentucky Kingman Reef Louisiana Maine Marshall Islands Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Midway Islands Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Navassa Island Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Northern Mariana Islands Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Palau Palmyra Atoll Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Trust Territory of Pacific Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Wake Island Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming - Select Province Alberta British Columbia Manitoba New Brunswick Newfoundland and Labrador Northwest Territories Nova Scotia Nunavut Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan Yukon

Zip/Postal *

What are your preferred geographic locations? (check all that apply) *
Grand Rapids/Kent County
Holland/Ottawa County
Ionia
Lansing
Muskegon
Not listed Please specify a value for What are your preferred geographic locations? (check all that apply)

Are you part time or full time student? *
- Select Option Part Time Full Time

School Social Work Certification or MSW/MPA/Macro Focus? (check only if applicable)
- Select Option School Social Work Certification MSW/MPA/Macro Focus

Provided below is a list of fields of practice. From the list, select 3 fields of practice where you would like to complete your Field Education.

Fields of Practice

• Administration                                                             
• Aging/Gerontology                                                     
• Child Welfare                                                             
• Community Planning                                                 
• Criminal Justice                                                         
• Developmental Disabilities                                         
• Domestic Violence                                                   
• Family Services                                                         
• Group Services
• Health
• Housing
• Mental Health
• Program Evaluation
• Public Assistance
• Refugees
• Rehabilitation
• School Social Work
• Social Policy
• Substance Abuse
• Veterans

First Choice *

Second Choice *

Third Choice *

Please upload one document that includes an up-to-date resume and essays. This document will be sent to prospective field placement sites.  The resume should reflect your academic achievements as well as paid and volunteer experiences. Immediately following the resume and part of the same document, requires writing three one-page essays, one for each of the three fields of practice where you have an interest in completing field education. The essays serve as a sample of your writing for the person who will interview you at the field site, therefore they should reflect your best written work. In each essay include a definition of your understanding of the field’s practice, including any previous work/volunteer experience in this area; populations of interest within the field of practice; share your interest and suitability for the practice area. As you write the essays, you are strongly encouraged to refer to course texts and journal articles for an accurate understanding of each practice areas. Essays should be typed, double-spaced and one page long. 

Please upload your resume and essays in one document *
Please upload a file with the extension .doc, .pdf, .rtf, .docx, .pub, or .txt with a maximum size of 10 MB (10240 KB)

Please upload photo *
Please upload a file with the extension .bmp, .gif, .jpeg, .jpg, .png, or .tiff with a maximum size of 1 MB (1024 KB)

Upload Field Education at Place of Employment Application (if applicable)
Please upload a file with the extension .doc, .pdf, .rtf, .docx, .pub, or .txt with a maximum size of 1 MB (1024 KB)

Type of Bachelor Degree *
- Select Option BSW Psychology Sociology Not listed Please specify a value for Type of Bachelor Degree

Are you fluent in a second language other than English? *
- Select Option Yes No

If yes, list the language below *

Levels of language proficiency *
Bilingual
Conversational
Beginning Level

Are you fluent in a third language other than English? *
- Select Option Yes No

If yes, list the language below *

Levels of proficiency *
Bilingual
Conversational
Beginning Level

Please rate your computer skills (check one) *
- Select Option Not Proficient Proficient Advanced

Do you have a valid driver's license? *
- Select Option Yes No

Will you have access to a car on days when you will be at your field agency? *
- Select Option Yes No

You are required to meet your own transportation needs to and from the field agency. Do you anticipate any transportation problems or limitations i.e. no license, no car, etc.? *
- Select Option Yes No

If yes, explain: *

You must have completed the four foundation courses listed below, prior to the semester for which you are requesting field education.   Below, please check the boxes that indicate the courses you will   have completed prior to the semester for which you are requesting field education.

SW 600- Cultural Competence for Social Work *
- Select Option Yes No

SW 601- Foundations of Social Work Practice *
- Select Option Yes No

SW 603- Integrated Methods *
- Select Option Yes No

SW 620- Human Behavior and the Social Environment *
- Select Option Yes No

Do you plan on holding a job during the semesters you are enrolled in field education? *
- Select Option Yes No

If yes, how many hours per week do you plan on working? *

Students in the Master of Social Work program complete a total of 900 field education hours over three semesters. Master of Social Work students are expected to intern at the Field Site for approximately 20 hours per week during fall and winter semesters, and 25 hours during the spring/summer semester.  The 900 hours of field education should be completed at the field agency during business hours, as defined by the placement site.

Do you have availability to complete your hours of field education during regular business hours? *
- Select Option Yes No

Are you able to accept a Field Education Placement that provides Field Education hours beyond the standard work day i.e. 8 or 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.? *
- Select Option Yes No

What skills do you expect or hope to learn from your Field Education placement? *

What are your preferences as to the kind(s) of populations or issues with which you would like to work with in Field Education? Please explain why. *

What kind(s) of populations or issues would you not be comfortable working with in Field Education? Explain why. *

Most Human Service Agencies require student interns to submit to a criminal history background check. It is therefore critical that you are informed of how a criminal history background may impact your Field Education. Please carefully read the statements below.

• I understand that any past, current or pending felonies, criminal charges, listing on the central registry, convictions, and/or penalties against me in any jurisdiction may make me ineligible for Field Education Placement.
• I understand that I am required to disclose any past, current, or pending felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/or penalties in this application.
• I understand that failure to disclose any past, current, or pending felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/ or penalties in this application may result in disciplinary action by Grand Valley State University School of Social Work.
• I understand that along with the rest of my Field Education Application, the “Criminal History Background Information” portion of my Field Education Application, will be made available to Field Sites that I will interview with for Field Education Placement.
• I understand that even though the “Criminal History Background Information” portion of my Field Education Application will be made available to Field Sites, I am required to disclose all past, current, or pending felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/or penalties when I interview for Field Education Placement with a Field Site.
• I understand that failure to disclose any past, current or pending felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/or penalties when I interview for Field Education Placement with a Field Site will result in disciplinary action by Grand Valley State University School of Social Work.
• I understand that it is my responsibility to inform the Field Site and the School of Social Work’s Field Education office at Grand Valley State University of any new felonies, criminal charges, listing on the central registry, convictions, and/or penalties that occur after I have begun Field Education Placement. Failure to disclose such new felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/or penalties can result dismissal from the Field Site and disciplinary action by Grand Valley State University School of Social Work.
• I am aware that it is my responsibility to educate myself on how past or pending felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/or penalties may affect my ability to be licensed as a social worker.

Do you understand and agree to the previous statements? *
Yes, I do

Do you have any past, current or pending felonies, criminal charges, convictions, listing on the central registry, and/or penalties in any jurisdiction? *
- Select Option Yes No

If yes, please explain: *

I have completed this form as accurately as possible and understand that this application will be used to determine the Field Placement Site to which I will be assigned, and one that best meets my educational needs. I understand that this information will be shared with potential Field Supervisors. I agree to the release of information from my academic file for the purpose of arranging Field Education placements and evaluating practicum progress.