A blended immersion course: advancing practice for social work students working with military members, veterans, and their families

This paper presents a specialization blended immersion course in social work with military, veterans, and their families that includes a 3-unit elective course for Master of Social Work (MSW) students incorporating a virtual (i.e. synchronous) class component and an eight-day visit to the Washington DC area. Data collection from over 60 students over a four-year period was collected, and mixed methods analysis indicated success in knowledge acquisition related to social work practice and policy with military and veteran communities. This study supports other research findings on the usefulness of immersion experiences in acclimating students to different cultures, in this case, military culture. Additionally, as today's digital education platform evolves in light of COVID-19 more students are engaged in online education. As such, this paper describes a framework for combining methods of instruction, such as blended and immersive experiences, that can be useful for social work education and in advancing practice in working with these populations.