Meet Five Outstanding MSW@USC Field Partners

Field education is the cornerstone of any Master of Social Work program. It is where you will build your skills and your confidence, giving you the opportunity to demonstrate your competence as a social worker and redefine your role from student to professional. At your field site, you receive the benefit of hands-on experience and working directly with real clients that will prepare you for your future career. At the MSW@USC, our field placement team works with you to find a placement where you will be supervised and mentored by professional social workers who support your education and develop your practice skills. The five agencies that follow are just a handful of our amazing partners. Each season, the number of available agencies and new partnerships we have continues to grow.

 1. Hope For The Warriors

Hope For The Warriors is a national nonprofit dedicated to helping military services members and their families to overcome the effects of war. Robin Kelleher, president and CEO, explains:

Its primary goal was to fill in gaps of need that we were seeing with military families … And what’s so important to the success of our programming is really an understanding of military culture. USC was the one program that we felt really understood that and was making great strides in implementing that in their programming.

Hope For The Warriors has a wide range of programs, grounded in four program pillars: career transition and education; clinical health and wellness; sports and recreation; and community and military relations. Each of these pillars houses two to three different programs designed to alleviate the long-term effects war can have on service members and their families.

Want to get involved? Hope For The Warriors provides many opportunities to support their cause.

 2. Seneca Family of Agencies 

Based in California, Seneca Family of Agencies provides unconditional care through school, community-based and family-focused treatment services for children and families who have experienced high levels of trauma and are at risk for family disruption.

The agency’s core tenant is that youth and children themselves do not fail, but rather are failed by a system that is incapable of addressing their complex and specialized needs. Seneca provides children and families in need with mental health and education services through a number of programs. In addition, Seneca strives to address a child’s need for permanency — a place to call home.

In 2014, USC partnered with Seneca Family of Agencies to offer the first Master of Social Work degree program within a child and family services agency. It gave Seneca employees the chance to earn a highly respected MSW using USC’s online learning platform while gaining real-world social work experience at their own agency. Seneca is currently seeking top Bachelor of Social Work graduates to come on board as full-time employees, who can then go on to complete the Seneca MSW@USC.

Want to give back? Visit Seneca’s website to learn more about volunteer opportunities and becoming a foster parent.

 3. Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center was founded in September 2011 when the National Naval Medical Center and Walter Reed Army Medical Center merged, and it now strives to deliver the best of the best in military medicine. Its mission statement outlines its approach: “We are the flagship of our Military Health System. We ensure patient-friendly access to high quality health care for all we are privileged to serve, while setting the standard in readiness, education and research.”

Walter Reed offers an extensive range of services, including behavioral health, dentistry, and obstetrics and gynecology.

In addition to the services provided to its patients, Walter Reed dedicates resources to its research and education departments. The Department of Research Programs supports a wide range of clinical laboratory studies. Walter Reed is also home to the military’s most comprehensive center for graduate medical education, with 75 medical and allied health programs training nearly 700 health care providers in military services.

Want to help? Learn more about donating your time or your blood.

 4. Coastal Horizon Center

Considered a “home away from home” by many of its clients, Coastal Horizon Center provides professional services for prevention, crisis intervention, sexual assault victims, criminal justice alternatives, and treatment of substance use and mental health disorders. Their mission is to promote choices for healthier lives and safer communities. The programs Coastal Horizon Center facilitates are designed to improve the physical, emotional and social development of children, adults and families in the communities they serve.

One program, Community Outreach Services, has an “office on wheels” — an RV that travels to provide services to people in their own neighborhoods. This mobile office provides medical diagnostic testing for HIV, syphilis and TB, as well as risk reduction counseling, education, referrals and case management.

Another program, Open House Emergency Youth Shelter and Residential Services, is a 24-hour-access emergency shelter for troubled, runaway, homeless, abused, neglected and other displaced youth in the community. Open House cultivates a positive atmosphere designed to encourage personal growth among residents through skill-building and counseling.

 5. Providence Service Corporation

Providence Service Corporation is a national leader in health risk assessment, workforce development and community transportation services for adults, families and the elderly. It operates through a variety of government-sponsored and health care services programs. It provides direct services to clients in their own homes or through community-based resources. Providence Service Corporation is made up of three services: LogistiCare, Matrix Medical Network and Ingeus.

LogistiCare is a transportation network management system that works with thousands of local transportation providers to serve specialized groups of people who require personal mobility solutions. LogistiCare helps its clients overcome transportation challenges to make personal mobility a simple, reliable process.

Matrix Medical Network partners with health plans to deliver innovative, personalized, in-home care to members. Matrix addresses the big picture of health care needs — from specific health conditions to patients’ support systems and environmental factors. Matrix then coordinates care with primary care providers, health plans and community resources to ensure that members receive the care they need.

Ingeus provides back-to-work and health and well-being services to long-term unemployed people, people with health conditions, single parents, young people, seniors in the workforce, and migrants and refugees. Ingeus provides services including employability programs, skills training and health-related support.

Each of our field agencies makes an indelible impact on the communities they serve, and we are proud to have our students working within these organizations. Learn more about our impact!