ADVANCED CLINICAL EDUCATION AND INTERPROFESSIONAL TRAINING (ACE IT) PROGRAM INFORMATION AND APPLICATION GUIDELINES

 (HRSA Grant #G02HP27965)

Thank you for your interest in the Advanced Clinical Education and Interprofessional Training (ACE IT) Program. The goal of ACE IT is to increase the number of bilingual and multiculturally competent clinical social workers providing responsive mental health and substance abuse clinical services to the high need population of children, youth, and transitional age youth (ages 16-25) at risk for mental health or substance abuse issues, and their families” in Pennsylvania.  Please carefully read the information about the ACE IT program scope, eligibility criteria and requirements before completing the application.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

To be eligible for this program, a student must be entering his/her advanced placement year and have selected the clinical concentration.  Full-time and part-time students located at Temple’s Main or Harrisburg campus locations may apply.  We are particularly interested in students who have a demonstrated commitment to cultural diversity, including being bi- or multi-lingual, a willingness to intern in rural or urban areas with high demand for practitioners to work with at-risk children and youth, and a plan to continue to work in Pennsylvania with this population after graduation.

This will be a rigorous training program with requirements and expectations beyond the usual MSW coursework and fieldwork.  If accepted into the program, students will receive a $10,000 stipend for the academic year (paid in increments).  In return, students will need to:

● Participate in a 20 hr bridge course before the semester starts (e.g. in August for the Fall semester);

● Agree to be placed by the field department staff in an agency designated as an ACE-IT partner and meet placement schedule requirements as stipulated by the placement agency (primarily weekday business hrs);

●  Complete all field internship requirements as determined by the field education curriculum and field internship site with a minimum of 18 and maximum of 24 hrs/week during the academic year (minimum of 600 total hrs at the field agency);

● Participate in weekly clinical supervision meetings with the designated field instructor to discuss assignments, work performance, and social work learning;

● Attend monthly group supervision sessions to talk discus experience with other ACE IT students (via chatroom, discussion board on Blackboard, WebEx);

● Attend six 3-hr trainings (3 per semester), each with a different clinical focus;

● Complete additional ACE IT assignments;

● Receive a passing grade for the field practicum courses with strong evaluations by field Instructor, field Liaison and faculty of record;

● Maintain at least a 3.25 GPA;

● Participate in all necessary data collection activities for the evaluation of the program, including but not limited to journal entries, surveys, observations, and interviews, while in and after completion of the program.