Social Work and Applied Social Studies
Placements and careers
Placements
You will undertake a total of 200 days assessed practice, as required by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Some days, in Year one, are spent on community profile projects. The two block placements (one in Year two and the other in Year three) are normally within a 50 mile radius and arranged by the Placements Officer in consultation with the student and their personal tutor.
The range of placements varies from rural communities to inner city areas. You might be with a statutory agency such as a local authority, a Health Trust or Housing Department for one block placement and then with a large national charity or a small-scale local voluntary organisation for the other. Your placement might be in a residential or day care setting, a fieldwork team, a community-based neighbourhood project or a user-led organisation.
During each placement you receive supervision from a practice teacher who assesses your competence and contributes to the reports submitted at the end of each placement. Placements are assessed by means of a portfolio of work compiled by you.
Careers
As a professionally qualified social worker you will work in a wide range of health or social care settings. Increasingly employment opportunities arise in multidisciplinary settings where social workers work alongside health care professionals such as occupational therapists or community nurses.
Further information about careers in social work and about the full range of qualifying, postqualifying and advanced awards (including postgraduate studies) can be obtained from:
