fieldwork: intern placement tracking (IPT): background

Background
The Intern Placement Tracking (IPT) was developed by Orem, Utah-based Alcea Software. The web-based system was developed in close association with the Brigham Young University School of Social Work. BYU has been effectively using IPT for the last seven years in managing their BSW and MSW Field Placement Programs.

Boise State University School of Social Work was one of the first schools to adopt IPT and works as a partner to further develop the system.

What Does IPT Do?
IPT helps you manage the information you need for your field placement program. IPT maintains and reports information about field placement agencies, supervisors, and students, and track student assignments from semester to semester and historically. It is feature rich, and easy to use.
IPT simplifies the process of collecting information from and communicating with Agencies, Supervisors, and Students involved in your field placement program by allowing them to access and update field information over the internet using a web-browser.
A powerful feature of IPT is online documents. With online documents you can have documents like your learning agreements and student evaluations filled out and stored online without requiring printed paper.
Intern Placement Tracking (IPT) easily organizes and "Tracks" essential fieldwork information, including:

• Student Interns (with color pictures, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, and demographic data)
  
  
• Fieldwork, Agency, and Supervisor Information
  
  
• Fieldwork Placements
  
  
• Comments regarding field experiences
  
  
• Documents such as Evaluations and learning agreements can be competed and stored online
  
  
• Allows for Students, Supervisors, and Agencies to access and update their own information as needed, thereby maintaining a current database of everyone involved.

Why IPT?

IPT serves the needs of everyone involved in the practicum process:

For BSU

• Provides a paperless solution for tracking and archiving all aspects of the fieldwork process.
  
  
• Allows the college to effectively communicate with both students and field instructors.
  
  
• Allows practicum director to make and save notes regarding student placement process as well as their entire practicum experience.
  
  
• Simplifies the accreditation process.
  
  
• Extensive reporting and report customization capabilities
  
  
• For Students
  
  
• Allows students to research potential placement opportunities to find the best possible match.
  
  
• Direct communication help students keep on top of their practicum responsibilities.
  
  
• Eliminates paperwork and provides the student access to their practicum information.
  

For Agencies

• Allows agencies to promote and accurately describe their fieldwork opportunities in order to match students in ideal learning environments.
  
  
• Provides supervisors a one-stop resource to access information regarding their interns.
  
  
• Paperless system allows supervisors to complete all required information online and provides access to completed and working documents.
  
  
• Increases communication between BSU and your agency.
  
  

IPT Functions for Field Instructors

Current

• Provides the ability to promote internship opportunities the best possible students for your agency.
  
  
• Agency Affiliation Agreement serves as the contract between you, your intern(s), and the BSU School of Social Work.
  
  
• Links your assigned student to your record for easy communication.
  
  
• Online field instructor training run through IPT
  
  
• On-site IPT/Field Instructor training

In the Works

• Revised and streamlined Learning Contract for both MSW and BSW students
  
  
• Student Evaluation of Field Placement
  
  
• Fieldwork/IPT section as part of a BSU School of Social Work blog