SOCIAL WORK INTERNSHIP PROGRAM

In partnership with the Social Work Department at Sacramento State and California State University, Northridge, Mutual Housing communities are field placement sites for senior undergraduates and graduate students looking for practical internship experience. Our social work interns get the unique opportunity to experience social work at the micro, mezzo, and macro level as well as exposure to the community organizing model of social change.

As our community organizers work with residents on leadership development, they often encounter immediate challenges that they do not have the capacity to address. Our social work interns enhance our ability to provide referrals and support for these kind of vital needs.

Social work interns provide crucial support to help our affordable housing resident members overcome crisis issues around basic needs that may be preventing them from fully participating in community life. They assess service needs of adult, senior and youth residents and work with those residents to identify, connect with, and effectively utilize relevant community resources. They run empowerment and engagement groups and gain experience in affordable housing advocacy work.

Mutual Housing California works to provide a learning experience in which both students and resident members benefit. Each of the students are part of a cohort of 5-7 Interns who meet weekly for training, peer support, and community.

Here are some of our interns’ thoughts about their experiences:

“When I first heard about this field placement, I knew that it was where I needed to be. From the first day, I was treated like a member of the team and not just another intern. I was able to experience all levels of social work: micro, meso and macro, just by working at one of Mutual Housing’s 16 properties. The Lead Organizer, MSW supervisor and many other members of the team were able to help shape and mold my learning process in the MSW program. I am grateful for the experience I had with my clients and the relationships I have formed this year. I have no doubt that this placement will help me in the field of social work for years to come.” -Tiffany Guerra

“Mutual Housing gave me the oportunity to work with multi-cultural clients, and I was able to gain experince in a wide variety of problems that the clients encounter. The experience that one encounters while interning at Mutual Housing is very rewarding, because you are able to work in the client’s natural setting and this makes you able to have a much closer and open relationship with the clients and you are able to see their progress week by week. Also, the staff at Mutual Housing are very frinedly and helpful. It was definitely a pleasure to intern at Mutual Housing, and the knowledge and experience I gained will come a long way for me.” -Griselda Cancino

“It was challenging working at Mutual Housing as an intern, but rewarding when the time was over. This internship definitely pushed me to work and react differently than should I have been working somewhere else. You’ll definitely learn a lot about being disadvantaged by being in their territory, and you will think twice about ‘traditional views of social work’. My advice, remember to keep an open mind, you’ll definitely learn more than you’ll either want or expect.” -Anna Yang

Please contact your university’s social work field education department if you are interested in working with us.