Every year in Soc 420 we have professionals in the Social Welfare field come to class to describe their jobs and careers. Most of them will say that the most important thing they did was their practicum–getting practical experience on the ground, combined with the degree, proves invaluable and makes our students more marketable in the labor force.

Some possibilities: Mental Health (Center for Human Development, Grand Ronde Mental Health); Criminal Justice (Union County Jail, Adult Parole and Probation, Juvenile Justice, Victims Assistance (in the DA’s Office), Sheriff, LGPD; Department of Human Services (3 divisions: Children and Families, Aging and People with Disabilities, Self-Sufficiency), Community Action (Community Connection of NE Oregon); Domestic / Interpersonal violence advocacy (Shelter from the Storm); possibilities in the local school districts for counseling / behavioral health positions, also with Head Start). Etc. We have alumni working across the community and county, so put some thought into what would be a good fit with your career aspirations.

And take this process seriously. Think about what you want to be doing. Do you want a desk job? Are you more interested in case work? What’s your view on paperwork? Are you good at report writing? Do you have a preference in terms of working with specific populations (children, elderly, developmentally disabled, domestic violence survivors, veterans, etc.)? You want as close a match as possible between your practicum and your current thinking about career goals. You can check out the contacts and get a sense of what’s out there, but we can try to identify other possibilities if you don’t see what you’re looking for, or someone else beat you to it for the term.

Once you’ve identified the agency/organization where you would like to work, you need to make contact with them, make sure they understand what the practicum is (most are familiar with it, but there’s always turnover), perhaps even schedule a meeting with them (some will request this) to make sure that it appears the practicum will be mutually beneficial, work out hours, responsibilities, etc. It is always good to do this with the person/people with whom you’ll be working most closely.

After this process, begin working on completing the contract. Best to do this before the start of the term, as it can take a week or two to get the contract in place and begin.