Urban Social Work Program
Your career begins here.
Program Highlights
Chicago Center chooses Practicum Placements that have proven track records. Our goal is the same as yours: To prepare you to be the best social worker and to broaden your options for where you will choose to practice once you graduate.
Highlighting cultures from around the world, our trusted network of community based resources will introduce you to their neighborhood through historical context, current initiatives, and often their life's work every week in our Communities and Cultures seminar. Get ready to expand your worldview.
Have access to the entire city and feel like a resident. Master public transportation, sample food from all over the world, enjoy a world class arts scene, and take advantage of everything that comes along with living in the nation's third largest city.
Don't have a place to live in Chicago? You don't have to worry as all of our students live together in an apartment building located in the Hyde Park neighborhood. Gain the life skills you'll need after graduation through managing a grocery budget, cooking meals, and learning in a cooperative living environment.
Explore your strengths, perfect your resume, gain valuable financial knowledge, and get extra support from staff through our LEAD Program. All Chicago Center students participate in six to eight sessions throughout their semester.
I feel like every single day I have the opportunity to come here and make a difference and make an impact on the youth and the agency itself just by completing my daily tasks and being a support for the youth. ​
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Avery Morrison, SP'23
About the Social Work Program
​This program is perfect for you if you are a student who:
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Is looking for a unique experience living and learning in one of America’s largest cities for a semester
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Needs to complete a practicum placement in the social work field
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Is ready to gain work experience in a 4-day-a-week placement
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Will thrive in an independent learning environment, simulating post-graduate life, fostering independence, confidence, self-reflection, and growth
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Students enrolled at the Chicago Center during fall or spring semester will work our staff to find a practicum placement (4 days a week) that best meets their college/university requirements and academic and career goals.
You will receive twelve academic credits for your field placement and 1-2 credits for its included seminar. As a student in our social work program, you will also participate in the Communities and Cultures seminar.
Every week the city will become a classroom and students are able to expand their worldview through experiences in different cultures and conversations with community partners throughout the city. You will also participate in a weekly seminar with Chicago Center’s social work instructor, where you will become aware of the needs and concerns of diverse urban populations at both program and policy levels. You will also adapt and refine your interview and assessment skills. As part of the program, you will fulfill all the requirements (written and reporting) of your campus’ program. The Seminar Instructor will also serve as a liaison to your campus. The Seminar meets once a week for 1 hour prior to the Communities and Cultures Seminar.
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Field Placement: 12 credits
Social Work Seminar: 1-2 credits
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