The MSW program at Saint Mary’s has partnered with an organization called “Dramatic Improvement” in an exciting pilot utilizing professional role-players in the online training of our MSW students. The role-players, who are experienced facilitators and trainers, portray a variety of clients and users of social work services, interacting with both students and instructors to realistically illustrate typical social worker/client situations.
“Dramatic Improvement” is a UK-based training company with a global presence. Founded in 2009, they specialize in utilizing roleplay to enhance and quickly convey learning points, often with a deep emotional reinforcement. They have worked with the Bank of England, extensively at all levels within the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) and with Warwick Business School’s MBA program (ranked 8th in the world by Forbes).
The MSW program is utilizing Dramatic Improvement to allow opportunities for social work students in their clinical courses and internships to practice their clinical skills in a controlled environment, with trained actors who can emulate real client situations and emotions. Students have benefited greatly from this partnership, and we look forward to continuing our MSW student roleplaying with this renowned organization!
