Social Work
Welcome to Stellenbosch University

Field Practice (Service Learning)

The practice education programmes of our Department are regarded as the standard bearer of our social impact. Around 300 students are annually placed for field practice (service learning) at approximately 40 welfare organisations, supervised by some 55 social workers. In total, practice education comprises approximately 90 continuous community projects, 200 small groups of 8 sessions each, continuous intervention with 500 families, individual intervention for 7 weeks with 80 individuals, 100 continuous sessions mentoring vulnerable children, and 60 research exercise projects.

Volunteering

Mentoring of vulnerable children

​Casework
  • Child protection​
  • Child abuse
  • Foster care
  • Couples counselling
  • Family counselling
  • Parent education
  • Substance use
  • Domestic violence

 ​​Groupwork

  • Life skills for teenagers, street children and primary school children
  • Development of body consciousness in primary school children
  • Support groups and behaviour modification for school children with at-risk behaviour
  • Preparation for secondary school
  • Trauma counselling for children who have lost a parent or are going through a divorce/separation
  • Diversion groups for youth offenders
  • Life skills for adults in a rehabilitation programme
  • Diversion groups for adult offenders
  • Parent education groups
  • Substance misuse rehabilitation groups
  • Support groups for people with cognitive disabilities
  • Support and educational groups for adults
  • Women empowerment
  • Anger management
  • Support groups for the elderly

Community work
  • Awareness campaigns for welfare organisations
  • Needs assessments of communities
  • Drug and alcohol use awareness for children and adults
  • Crime prevention
  • Child protection awareness and prevention
  • Sexual assault awareness
  • Awareness and prevention of bullying behaviour in schools and on social media
  • Women empowerment
  • Youth mentoring
  • Foster parent recruitment, training and support
  • Aftercare support and network support for rehabilitated drug misusers
  • Awareness on mental illness

Research

  • Topics relate to the various stressors that welfare organisations are experiencing in their service delivery.