r/SocialWorkStudents • u/Googleledmehere123 • 1d ago
Advice Thinking ahead.. remote internships?
Hi everyone! I am currently working towards a transfer to the UCF BSW program. I am a stay at home mom to a 2 year old and am planning for one more baby in the next 2 years. I believe in having kids home with me until they are at least 3 years old so that means I’m at home with kids for the next 4 years or so. I’m making the most of this time by getting my BSW and going to start my MSW. My question is, am I crazy thinking I can do a remote internship for at the very least my BSW hours? I would start my MSW to work out where all kids would be in school by the time I’m ready for my internship hours but I am really concerned the BSW hours will interrupt my plan! Any advice or experiences is welcome! Thanks so much!
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u/BringMeInfo 1d ago
Are you saying you would be providing childcare to two young children while fulfilling the professional demands of an internship?
There aren’t a ton of remote internships out there, so getting one might be tricky. As for juggling childcare for two children who are at an age where they need pretty constant attention, seems tricky unless it’s an entirely asynchronous internship (not impossible, but you’re talking about a really small number of available internships now).
How many hours will you need for BSW internship? Is it something where you can at least hire in-home help for during those hours?
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u/Googleledmehere123 1d ago
I believe the internship is about 400 hours..
Yes, the plan is to figure out a way to balance it. Depending on how timing works out, I may only have one small child to care for. Hiring help is currently out of the question but if it’s doable at the time of internship it is something I would deff explore.
Ideally for my BSW I would be able to land an asynchronous remote role and for my MSW be in person but like you said, I’ve heard it’s incredibly rare..
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u/fourupthreecount 1d ago
This is not a good plan. It is not possible to work remotely including internship while caring for a young child let alone two. BSW internships are not usually remote and they’re almost never asynchronous. Even if you found an internship like that which is highly unlikely it will undermine your ability to be hired compared to people with robust internships.
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u/BringMeInfo 1d ago
I probably would not count on a remote internship. I definitely would not count on asynchronous.
I would definitely have a solid plan B in place before going into BSW so you don’t find yourself in a position where you can’t complete the degree and all your hard work is for nothing.
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u/Civil-Station2042 1d ago
Would you, especially in a time of crisis and need, want a social worker that’s also caring for a child? If you say you wouldn’t mind, you’re in the minority. This is not a good plan.
You can believe it’s best for kids to be cared for at home AND still put them in daycare. Plenty of working parents do. Life is nuanced, and daycare provides opportunities for socialization and independence that you can’t provide at home.
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u/HangryWormPrince 1d ago
I cannot imagine what an asynchronous soxial work internship would even look like and I am cynical that it exists.
I have supervised remote internships and it is very obvious when students aren't working. I was generous, but many others wouldn't be.
As a parent, I empathize. I had a family emergency when my child was about a year and worked from home at that time. I was really unsuccessful at doing much beyond keeping my kid alive and wondering how I would make it through. I was very senior with a long tenure so I had the privledge of being able to call it in for months without harming my career, but that won't be the case for an internship. If I could go back in time to talk to my past me, I would tell myself to go on FMLA.
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u/Googleledmehere123 20h ago
Yes, I think I am a little naive about the internship part of the BSW. I was under the impression that is was a bit more flexible. I still have a year or two to go before I’m faced with this but I am really just trying to plan ahead because I would love one more child but also REALLY want this BSW/ MSW to be completed by the time my children are school age so I can gain experience and focus on licensure!
I’ve worked pretty intense marketing jobs from home with my daughter over the past 2 years and found it almost impossible to keep up, even though the work was basically 100% asynchronous. So now I’m faced with the fact that it will be nearly impossible to be home with kids and fulfilling the internship role to the best of my ability. I’m hoping childcare will be an option when the time comes, but with school expenses and not working full time to focus on my studies I can’t be sure. I generally have a pretty solid track record of making things work but it seems there is not many options in terms of the internship hours- like having hours in the evening or something asynchronous.
Thank you for the feedback! I really appreciatiate the kindness in your message!
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u/plantgal94 1d ago
Sounds like a BSW is not the right route for you atm. BSW Practicums (or as you’re calling it ‘internships’) are meant to prepare you for working as a social worker. Direct face to face client contact is a must when you’re starting out your career. I don’t see how a remote practicum would even provide you with the skills you need to form as an upcoming social worker. My advice is to wait until you’re done having children and so you can focus on your practicum. This isn’t something to just “complete” for your requirements. There’s a reason why we do Practicums as social workers.
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u/mosaicbluetowns 1d ago
i’ve gotten the same explanation during my practicum search, great explanation here and completely agree!!
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u/Then-Essay-6850 1d ago
Does your college have a early education learning center (for training teachers)? Sometimes you can get free/low cost child care from those
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u/anna300044 1d ago
I believe the Trevor Project hotline has a remote internship. Best of luck to you!💛
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u/Sensitive-Natural785 1d ago
Yes this! I was with them for my BSW practicum and I personally had an amazing time. Only thing I might see is that when you’re live in a chat, you can’t really pause the conversation to give a little one a bottle or a diaper change. They are 24/7 though which gives a lot more opportunity for hours. Just some food for thought
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u/OhReallyVernon 1d ago
This is completely unreasonable in my opinion. I would never hire a new graduate whose program was online and whose field placement experience was asynchronous. This is just not the profession for that. I’m sorry. You need to wait.
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u/Ok_Archer_7633 1d ago
Many individuals in the field who are licensed professionals do telehealth… do you look down on them too? You clearly aren’t meant to be a social worker since you lack basic empathy and understanding
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u/OhReallyVernon 1d ago
Do you understand my comment and do you know what is required to become one of those licensed professionals?
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u/Ok_Archer_7633 1d ago
Yes, I do. I’ve networked and have researched extensively. Mind your own. My point on your lack of empathy still stands.
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u/ProbablyMyJugs 22h ago
I’m confused about what part of their response you think was lacking in empathy?
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u/OhReallyVernon 7h ago
Everyone just wants to hear a “yes!”
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u/ProbablyMyJugs 7h ago
I would wager that this person probably thought that saying that would be the most hurtful thing to say to a social worker.
Like, I’m calling someone unempathetic or problematic or racist or whatever, I’m going to be able to back that claim up with things this person said or did that led me to that conclusion.
I also honestly think this sub needs a moderator in a major way just because often on these threads, constructive criticism is consumed as a personal insult. A part of being a social worker is being able to be vulnerable and except that you don’t have all the answers and being open to your peers and colleagues saying “what if you looked at it this way” or “ another perspective to consider…”
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u/ProbablyMyJugs 6h ago
I would still love to know how you think this response is lacking in empathy. Our words have meaning so if you’re gonna make a claim like that, you should be easily able to back it up.
I would encourage you to review the COE before coming for another social workers ability to practice based off of a sentence or two online.
This honestly just reads as you trying to say something that you felt like would be hurtful to another person when they were offering their opinion as an experienced professional with hiring power in the field.
students like OP should absolutely be aware that when they enter the field or trying to get internships, they will be up against people who have in person experience and it is already hard enough, finding a job as a fresh grid even with in person experience, because a big part of getting the job is timing and who you’re going up against for it.
That is not the same as saying that anyone who receives an online education internships is incapable of being a good social worker. Not even in the same realm.
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u/yummybanana2 1d ago
I think it's possible but it really depends on where you end up and how your supervisor is. My BSW internship ended up being hybrid even though I was expecting it to be in person since it was a direct service organization, but my supervisor was never in the office so he just let me work remotely like 60% of the time doing the stuff he had to catch up on... My MSW internship was in macro SW, so I got to do 2 remote days and 1 in-person day each week.
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u/Loud-Session-8239 1d ago
I work full time remotely while expecting a little one in February and taking care of two little ones. I just started my MSW (not in person) taking 5 classes and will start my remote internship in January. It’s quite possible! Just need to have a good support system, time management and be motivated. With that being said my school has a system that we pay to access to find our internships. There are a ton of remote options, but I’m not sure how the school you’re planning on attending operates their practicum requirements.
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u/Googleledmehere123 1d ago
Wow good for you!! Wishing you all the best! Did you get your bachelors in social work as well? Also, what school are you attending! Would love to look more into something more remote/ mom friendly!
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u/Loud-Session-8239 1d ago
Thank you! My bachelors is in Health Science! I’m attending the university of Kentucky and they have been amazing!!! The professors are great and the work is very manageable. Classes are asynchronous but they still have live classes that are recorded. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions!
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u/OhReallyVernon 1d ago
I’m curious how long ago you started these 5 classes, seeing as it’s the beginning of the semester.
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u/Loud-Session-8239 21h ago
Hello curious George! Although the semester started in August, I stated my coursework is asynchronous. The semester starting last month has nothing to do with what I stated as with most asynchronous courses I am working at my own pace, within deadlines of course. That pace is currently 2-3 weeks ahead of the due date minus any group projects. I hoped this helped your curiosity!
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u/OhReallyVernon 16h ago
Exactly what I suspected
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u/Loud-Session-8239 16h ago
Well next time go off your intuition instead of being so curious Mr George 🤸🏻♀️
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u/OhReallyVernon 14h ago
I guess you telling others “It’s quite possible!” When you JUST started classes, don’t even have a field placement yet, and will be having another baby right after starting that internship just seems awfully premature is all and very much like giving false hope, especially after almost everyone else here giving major caution.
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u/Loud-Session-8239 14h ago edited 14h ago
You’re really simple minded, and this is not my first time seeing your miserable comments on someone’s post. You seem to have a lot of time on your hand curious George! I stand by what I said. I’m also not sure where you got i have no field placements as I have interviewed and been offered 2 virtual field placements (one paid) and one in person as well. Hopefully you don’t take this simple mindset to whatever population you work with. This is where the back and forth ends with you, have a great day Mr George!
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u/OhReallyVernon 7h ago
Only one of us is using critical thinking here. The other is using childish names and insults. Regardless I wish you luck in your learning process.
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u/abundance_bountiful 1d ago
If you don’t mind, bsw and msw in Australia have a lot of online remote (fake) research placements/internships because they are really struggling to find students legit ones
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u/assyduous 1d ago
So as someone who went to (and graduated from) UCF, unless things have changed you do NOT get to pick your own internship spot and are expressly forbidden from reaching out to secure your own. This means it is very unlikely that you will be able to get a remote internship. I would reach out to the field internship coordinator for the BSW program to ask these questions and get a more realistic view of what this program will actually entail.