The Social Work Field Education program at Deakin University aims to extend the range of the student’s experience of social work across diverse settings, organisational structures, intervention approaches, client groups and social issues. This approach is in keeping with the generic nature of the Bachelor of Social Work.

The focus of a placement is the student’s education and development as a social worker and this requires opportunity and support to experiment, take risks, learn from experiences, reflect and analyse tasks undertaken for the purpose of learning from them. Considerable difficulties can arise if a student is placed in a situation where conflicting role expectations (as student and worker) or conflicting assessment criteria exist.

We readily acknowledge the wealth prior experience students bring to their studies, many through some years of work in welfare settings. It is our joint responsibility to ensure students are placed in entirely new situations enriching their experience further and ensuring a broadening of skills development at an advanced level.

Students requesting approval for a placement in the place of work must submit a completed proposal addressing the following criteria for consideration:

• Students must submit their written request outlining such circumstances directly to the Field Education Coordinator for approval.
• The formal request must be supported by a written proposal for the placement, signed by both the student and agency supervisor, which should address the following points:

1. An outline of the program or department for the placement setting and the type of work the student will undertake,
2. An outline of learning objectives for the placement,
3. The placement is in a different program/department to the students normal workplace setting,
4. The type of work undertaken is different to the normal work undertaken by the student,
5. The placement supervisor (field educator) is someone other than the student's usual supervisor in the workplace,
6. The supervisor is eligible for membership of the AASW,
7. The student will be located in a different physical location to that of his/her usual workplace setting,
8. The student will be placed with a different work team or colleagues to those he/she usually works with in the workplace setting,
9. The student is afforded student status during the term of the placement the signature of the supervisor/agency manager acknowledging agreement and approval of the placement offer and
10. The signed proposal addressing all the above items must be sent in to the Field Education Staff as soon as possible, prior to the semester of placement.