School of Social Work

  • As a member, students will enjoy all the benefits of a regular member plus our enhanced student content areas
  • Members can take any of our Continuing Education trainings for FREE
  • Students can attend all our racial justice initiatives for free and bring these events into their classroom with NASW-NYS
  • We have opportunities to strengthen student advocacy skills with hands on experience at all levels
  • Student members are be eligible for division, state, and national awards
  • Student members can apply to NASW scholarships and grants
  • Student members can do independent study at NASW-NYS


  • Student members can represent the student perspective and guide the future of social work in NYS as a Board Member
  • Student members can Chair or sit on a NASW-NYS committee that aligns with their interests and will boost their resume
  • Schools and students can host a Chapter Chat on a topic they are passionate about and want to inform other social workers
  • Student members can start a special interest group and all students can join to network with social workers across the spectrum of the social worker career and around the state
  • Advocate for and develop permanent support systems in the NYS Chapter for yourself and other social workers
  • Schools and student members can co-host NASW-NYS events at your school 

 

NASW-NYS Student Support

In addition to all the benefits of regular member, our student membership has expanded programming and resources to support the scholar in their environment. As members, students have access to all of the below benefits.

Schools can underwrite part or all of the cost of membership for your students. Can’t use funding for membership dues? We also work with schools and organizations to tailor a field experience package to your needs choosing elements of our expanded benefits that are most complimentary to your existing curriculum. Email us at info.naswnys@socialworkers.org to learn more.

Scholarship, Grants, & Awards

The NASW Foundation is committed to enriching the social work profession and empowering social workers to be leaders in social policy and practice. At the heart of this commitment are national educational, research, and awards programs, which provide: doctoral fellowships, graduate school scholarships, chapter research grants, national recognition awards, lectures, symposiums, and special projects. Some of these programs have been in existence for more than 20 years.

Social Work Encyclopedia

Starting with the right sources is key to the success of any research project. Every day, social work students turn to search engines to scour for sources that meet their research needs. Now, the Encyclopedia of Social Work provides an authoritative starting place when beginning your paper or project. A single click allows you to explore the breadth of social work articles, each that has been vetted with precision by an expert editorial board, and all of whom have experience in clinical and academic social work. This ensures that you are accessing articles are of the highest quality, with evident practical application.

Survive & Thrive Student Conference

The Annual Survive and Thrive Student Conference was developed to support BSW, MSW, and Doctoral students through a full day of innovative, and student informed virtual programming. This conference is designed to strengthen students foundation in their present educational experience and broaden prospects as they prepare to enter the social work field. This conference provides tangible training for students as they prepare to transition to the workforce, or graduate school, and unite the powerful NYS social work student body.

Networking

Meet your social work peers, potential employers, and comrades in the fight for social justice. Our 10 Division host a variety in-person and online networking events, steering committee meetings, and continuing education programs that will help connect you with like-minded social workers and employers within your own community. Through engagement with Chapter Committees, special interest groups, anti-racism initiatives, and other programming, your network will grow beyond your Division, and bolster your social work network to statewide and beyond.

Advocate

The NYS Chapter offers multiple ways to embed yourself into and lead our policy and advocacy initiatives. The incorporation of student voices and perspectives is crucial to the development of our legislative agenda, and your Chapter is committed to cultivating individual change agents as well as mobilizing the collective power that we possess within the NYS social work student body. Students are invited to participate and lead on our Advocacy and Government Relations (AGR) Committee and Political Action for Candidate Election (PACE) Committee. Nourish your advocacy skill set from agenda inception, to research, policy and position writing, to grassroots campaign development, direct advocacy at the Capitol, and more.

Strengthen Your Resume

In NASW-NYS, when we say students lead we mean it. Students have a place to lead in every area of our Chapter. This includes statewide and local elected leadership positions, starting or chairing a special interest group, hosting a Chapter Chat, spearheading the integration of anti-racist programming in your school, and many more options. Invest in a specific skill set or area of social work practice, or develop and advocate for support systems for students and social workers at large in New York and beyond. Through these opportunities you will get to know your cohort through student specific work, and tap into mentorships with seasoned social workers across the Nation.

LMSW & LCSW Test Prep

NYS Chapter members get 50% off our licensing test prep courses. Our eight hour licensing courses are delivered as live webinars and a recorded selfstudy, allowing you to take them at your convenience whether at home or on the go. Not a member? You can join the Chapter and purchase the test prep at the member rate for less than the cost of the purchasing at the non member rate!

Social Work Career Center

Members can use the National Career Center to find opportunities throughout the United States and in their own backyards. Through JobLink, you can connect with employers that are recruiting specifically for social workers and seeking the unique skillset you bring to the table. The Career Center also offers opportunity to get one on one feedback about your resume, and how to best tailor it to the areas of practice you are applying to.

Student Loan Forgiveness Advocacy & Programs

The NYS Chapter advocates for the expansion of and increased funding for the NYS Social Worker Loan Forgiveness Program and has successfully advocated for additional funding to the program – bringing the total up $1.72 million. NASW advocates for loan forgiveness for social workers as part of our ongoing work to improve working conditions and salaries, to support social work professionals and to ensure that consumers have continued access to qualified professionals.

Student Loan Support

NASW has partnered with Savi, one of the highest rated student loan technology companies out there, to provide our members with access to resources and expertise to better understand, manage, and repay student loans. The Savi Student Loan Tool analyzes repayment and forgiveness programs to help borrowers make better decisions, with an average savings of $2,064 a year, and hours in paperwork and anxiety. Our members can use a free account to explore options at no cost, and choose a member-discounted premium account to get help enrolling and submitting application paperwork directly to loan servicers, and access one-on-one support with student loan experts.

Be Eligible for Transitional Membership

As a student member, you have access to the reduced Transitional Member rate after graduation. BSW student members who maintain continuous NASW membership are eligible for the discounted transitional rate for BSWs for up to two years after graduation. MSW student members who maintain continuous NASW membership are eligible for the discounted transitional rate for MSWs for up to three years after graduation.

Stay informed on student activities!

Keep your students updated on all things social work education at NASW-NYS by adding them to our student only email list. We will keep them in the loop for you. Click here to add individuals manually or reach out to us at info.naswnys@socialworkers.organd we will work with you to add your students to our social work education listserv.

LEAD & Capitol Action Day
Survive & Thrive Student Conference
Student Leadership Events
New & Emerging Workforce Events
Test Prep, LMSW & LCSW
Racial Justice Initiatives
& Only Other Student Related Activities

EXPANDING THE FIELD EXPERIENCE

How can NASW-NYS support your students that are not (yet!) members? The initiatives below are open and free for all student social workers, no membership required.

VMHTI

VMHTI
For the Veterans Metal Health Training Initiative landing page, click here.
  • VMHTI – All VMHTI activities are supported by a grant from the New York State Legislature. Our goal is to build the capacity of New York’s community mental health workforce to better serve our returning veterans and their families.
  • Free CE Workshops and Conferences – We offer a comprehensive schedule of free CE programs aimed at increasing the number of community health and mental health professionals trained in the assessment and treatment of mental health issues specific to veterans and their families. In 2020, we offered over 22 free CEs through the VMHTI in addition to our other monthly free CEs.
  • One Team Listserv – One Team is a free online resource for clinical providers and students to engage with peers and Veterans about Veterans and military family mental health, increase cultural competence, request specific referrals, and share relevant community resources. Click here to be added to the One Team Listserv!
  • Veteran Voices Panels – Aimed at increasing cultural humility of the mental health workforce in regards to, these panels allow attendees to hear the experiences of veterans prior to, during, and after their service in their own voices. These panels include focuses LGBTQIA+, female veteran, & BIPOC experiences, 9/11, moral injury, peer support, the veteran family unit, and more.
  • One Team Book Club – Join the OneTeam Listserv and VMHTI Advisory Committee in unpacking the impact service can have on our service members as we journey together to help serve those who have served us. Attending these meetings will expand your literacy experience and knowledge by reading and discussing books associated with advancing ones' understanding of servicemembers, veterans and their families.

Anti-Racism

Anti-Racism
  • Revolutionize Social Work: A movement to create transformational antiracist change in social work. Led by the RSW Leadership Team and other BIPOC social workers from around the globe.
  • Revolutionize Healing: The Revolution has successfully connected BIPOC social workers across the world. The Revolution Peer Support Project is a space for BIPOC social workers to connect with peers, process the impact of daily racism, and cultivate power through caring for themselves and their community. Under this umbrella includes self-care, peer support, and affinity groups.
  • Resource page: The best resource for a social worker, is usually from other social workers. Our BLM Resource Center is a living document, continually being updated by submissions from social workers like you.
  • Stories of Strength: Amplifying the voices of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Arab, Asian, and other non-white social workers through media, data collection, and storytelling. For the purpose of empowerment and speaking truth to power. Coming soon!
  • Racial Justice Forum: RJF are a series of free facilitated small group discussions with the purpose of providing opportunity for self-reflection, sharing of lived experiences, and modeling how to have these conversations in work and life.

SIG

SIG
Special Interest Groups (SIG) are member led networks of social workers across New York State and beyond. SIGs connect like-minded social workers on topics, practice areas, client populations, and other common interests for the purpose of sharing resources, and further developing support systems through the NYS Chapter. Any member can facilitate a special interest group, and all social workers benefit from the activities of these groups.  SIGs plan CE programs, host in-person and online events, support the growth of individuals and social work practice areas, and help to ensure that the NYS Chapter is inclusive and representative of all social workers.

Join a Special Interest Group

    • Working with Older Adults

    • Veterans Book Club

    • Rural Social Work Network

    • Private Practice Work Group

    • From the Ashes; We Rise: LGBTQ+ Only

Chapter Chats

Chapter Chats
Chapter Chats initially emerged out of a need to socially connect social workers while practicing physical distancing. They have grown into an accessible and easy way for social workers to share resources, network, and engage with one other across the State and Nation. These are conversations hosted by social workers, for social workers. Open to all who would like to attend, and any NASW member is invited to host a topic or conversation! Want to host or suggest a topic for a Chapter Chat? Shoot us an email at info.naswnys@socialworkers.org! Attend or view any Chapter Chat for free!

Topics include: What is Environmental Justice?, Positive Disruption of Social Work Practice and Leadership from a Trauma Informed DEI lens, What is Library Social Work?, Wellness: Cultivating a Deeper Understanding of Relaxation and Inner Peace, and many more!