Social Work Practicum Information
Students must begin the practicum placement process as soon as they obtain candidacy for the BSW program. Students must register within the practicum placement management software and complete the practicum application to start their process of securing a placement. Once Practicum Directors confirm the placement, instructions will be sent for clearances and next steps. If the clearance process is not completed, students are not permitted to attend practicum. Failure to follow and complete this process may impact enrollment, course grade, financial aid and/or time to completion of degree. More details per placement are indicated below.
PK-12 School-Based Placements
Students in school-based practicum placements will supply their clearances and liability insurance to the Office of Clinical Experiences and Candidate Services. If there are specific criteria for your practicum experience, please work with your assigned Practicum Director for this process.
The Educational Specialist, School Social Worker PK-12 certification through the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) is an approved educator preparation program and therefore, requires a satisfactory rating on the PA statewide evaluation form for student professional knowledge and practice (PDE-430). This evaluation may be integrated into another assessment or evaluation within your academic department. All clinical experiences obtained by those planning to seek this certification must take place in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to qualify for PDE certification. If clinical experiences are not in Pennsylvania, students will be required to complete an additional practicum in Pennsylvania to qualify for certification. PDE requires institutions to notify them of out-of-state placements in schools even if students are not seeking certification.
Non-School-Based Placements
Students in non-school-based practicum placements are required/mandated to use CastleBranch for their clearance processing. This software offers a process for verifying eligibility and ensuring compliance with site affiliation agreements.
CastleBranch is mandatory. Students cannot start their practicum until this process is complete. Fees must be paid directly to CastleBranch (financial aid cannot be used). Students are required to monitor their email to receive important updates and next steps from Academic Contract Administration & Compliance Operations. If there are specific criteria for your practicum experience, please work with your assigned Practicum Director for this process.
