Field Experience Placements

When submitting your field forms to help our team arrange your placements, you will be asked to define your 'territory' as follows: are you seeking a placement in Calgary-and-Area or Out-of-Area?

A note to all Field Experience I Pre-Service Teachers:

We recommend you enroll in EDUC 440, Lab B99 early. This really helps the UPE Field Experience team anticipate and recruit for your Field Experience I placement. Thank you in advance!

Considerations for Field I in Calgary & Area:

Calgary & Area placement sites are informed by the EDUC 430 section you have enrolled in. Please refer to the Registration Guide - On-Campus for details. Your placement information form helps us to confirm your location and additional considerations. 

• Your EDUC 430 section will prioritize your Field Experience I placement in a specific area or quadrant in Calgary and Area. 
• The section areas are informed by the Field Experience I - Anticipated Areas Calgary and Area map. When selecting your section, we recommend referring to the map.
  • This map is intended to assist Pre-Service teachers with their EDUC 430 section choice. The boundaries / areas of these sections are not guaranteed. Placements are determined by Partner School availability and willingness to host our Pre-Service Teachers. 
  • Please know placement sites are limited and we appreciate your flexibility. 
• Only Field I is informed by your EDUC 430 registration section. Field Experience II, III and IV placements will be informed by the 'Field Experience Placement Information Form'. 

Considerations for Field I in rural and remote locations "Out of Area":

Out of Area placement sites are informed by your Placement Information form submission. This submission allows the Directors of Field Experience to begin the out-of-area placement process as soon as is possible.

• Please remember to enroll in the correct EDUC 430 section, based on your geographical area. Please refer to the Registration Guide - Community Based for details.
• Important: Your Field Experience I placement will be secured by the UPE Field Experience Team.  Under no circumstances should you recruit or pre-arrange your placement with a school or school board. 
• If you are requesting an Out-of-Area placement in EDUC 440, please ensure that you have completed the Field Experience Placement Information Form. Making this request does not guarantee an Out-of-Area placement. Out-of-Area placements for on-campus students are subject to geographical restrictions and placement availability. 
• Your placement location will be based on your Community-Based application address. 

The location of your placement will be determined by three elements:

1. Attention to diversity of experience,
2. Attention to teachable subject area, and
3. Willingness of a partner teacher to volunteer to mentor.

Your residential location will be considered although it is secondary to those elements.

• Every effort is made to place student teachers within a reasonable traveling distance from their place of residence, however, based on available school sites, this cannot be guaranteed. While we aim to secure a placement for you within a 60-minute commute of your home, travel times could be up to 90 minutes (one-way).

The Placement Information Form

You will be asked to submit your "Placement Information Form" through our online student field experience ("SFE") portal. When submitting your form, you will be asked a variety of questions that assists us facilitating your placement.

The Field Experience team uses the information collected through the form to determine your preferences, ineligible sites, potential conflicts of interest, residential address during Field Experience and access to a vehicle or public transportation.

We strongly encourage you to include your preferences, professional and educational background, and interests in this form as this information helps us and our educational partners choose the most appropriate placement and partner teacher for you.

• We cannot guarantee that you will be placed in your preferred school board/division(s). When you complete your placement information form, we encourage you to include many areas, school boards and areas of interest in your preferences. With this greater flexibility, we will make every effort to place you in the best placement possible!
• Out of Area placements are offered by the local school district superintendent’s and human resources offices. When securing your placement, we work closely to ensure the School District has all the information they need to secure the best possible placement. Your Out of Area placement will be offered by the School District, based on your program, pathway, placement information form submission, residential location AND placement school and partner teacher availability, subject and grade expertise, interest, and commitment to supporting our pre-service teachers.
• Community-based students: We rely on your Bachelor of Education application address when securing your Field Experience placement.  

March 2022 Update: The placement information form for Field Experience will be open in April. 

We look forward to collecting your Placement Information in April. This form is required and will ensure we have the correct information to secure your Field Experience placement.

In April we will update our website with information about 2022/ 2023 Field Experience, including important dates, how to submit your placement information form. 

• You will not have access to the Field Experience Placement Information form until you have enrolled in your Field Experience course. Please reach out to UPE Field Experience if you have any concerns about your submission or access.
• Please check your Fall and Winter registration and ensure that you are enrolled in your classes. The Field Team's communications rely on your registration in the appropriate Field Experience courses. Please register for your Field Experience courses through the UCalgary Student Centre.

The location of your placement will be determined by three elements:

1. Attention to diversity of experience,
2. Attention to teachable subject area, and
3. Willingness of a partner teacher to volunteer to mentor.

Your residential location will be considered although it is secondary to those elements.

Do you consider my interests and preferences?

Yes! When completing your Placement Information Form, we strongly encourage you to include your preferences, interests and professional and educational background. This information helps us and our educational partners choose the most appropriate placement and partner teacher for you.

Who makes the placement?

Final placement decisions are made in the Undergraduate Programs in Education office and are contingent on placement availability. Preferred school divisions are not guaranteed.

• The faculty will assign student teachers to specific schools, partner teachers and supervisors/instructors for the field experiences.
• Under NO circumstances shall student teachers contact a field site regarding their placements until they have been confirmed and posted by the faculty.
• Pre-arranging placements with specific schools and/or teachers is NOT permitted.

Can I change my placement?

This is not normally possible, unless a mistake has been made in the placement process (for example, you have erroneously been placed in a school that you once attended as a student).

• Final placement decisions are made in the Undergraduate Programs in Education office and are contingent on placement availability. Preferred school divisions are not guaranteed. 
• The faculty will assign student teachers to specific schools, partner teachers and supervisors/instructors for the field experiences.

Our Bachelor of Education students undertake 20 weeks of in-classroom practicum, or field experience, organized into four, cohort-based courses.

Our Field Experience practicums are designed to ensure you have the experience you need to become an In-Service Teacher, structured to develop skills and confidence. 

• Field Experience I: 2 weeks
• Field Experience II: 4 weeks
• Field Experience III: 6 weeks
• Field Experience IV: 8 weeks

Yes! Your residential location will be considered, although it is secondary to these elements: Attention to diversity of experience; attention to teachable subject area; and willingness of a partner teacher to volunteer to mentor.

Every effort is made to place student teachers within a reasonable traveling distance from their place of residence, however, based on available school sites, this cannot be guaranteed. Placements may have a travel requirement of up to 90 minutes from your home. Our priority is to give you the best placement possible with a focus on partner teacher availability and school willingness to host pre-service teachers.

• Out of Area Field Experience placements are made with the understanding you have access to a vehicle. We cannot make accommodations for transit in areas outside of Calgary - please ensure you are able to get to the places requested. 
• Calgary and Area Field Experience placements: If using public transportation, our rule for public transit is maximum 90 minutes from your home to the school (one-way) on Calgary Transit. If travelling by car, our rule is maximum 90 minutes from your home to the school (one-way).

Out of Area placements are field experience placements in rural and remote areas.

Community-Based preference for admission into this program is given to students in rural and remote areas of Alberta. As field experience (practicum) placements can be arranged across Alberta, in the Northwest Territories, and in rural and remote British Columbia, students in these areas may also be considered. 

These placements occur in school divisions that are not considered Calgary and area. 

Field experience placements can be arranged across rural and remote areas in Western Canada. We have successfully placed Pre-Service Teachers across Alberta, rural and remote British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, Nunavut, and Schools in Indigenous Communities across Western Canada. Field Experience placement requests east of Manitoba will not be considered. 

Out of Area placements are offered by the local school district superintendent’s and human resources offices. When securing your placement, we work closely to ensure the School District has all the information they need to secure the best possible placement.

Your Out of Area placement will be offered by the School District, based on your program, pathway, placement information form submission, residential location AND placement school and partner teacher availability, subject and grade expertise, interest, and commitment to supporting our pre-service teachers.

Out of Area Field Experience placements are made with the understanding you have access to a vehicle. We cannot make accommodations for transit in areas outside of Calgary - please ensure you are able to get to the places requested. 

You will receive an email from the Field Experience team, inviting you to complete the Placement Information form. 

1. Please register for your Field Experience courses through the UCalgary Student Centre.
   • You will not have access to the Placement Request Form if you have not registered for your Field Experience Course.
2. In April, you will have access to the Student Field Experience (SFE) portal to access the Placement Information form. 
   • When completing this form, we will ask you a variety of questions. We strongly encourage you to include your preferences, professional and educational background, and interests in this form as this information helps us and our educational partners choose the most appropriate placement and partner teacher for you
3. Please regularly check your UCalgary email - if we have questions about your placement preferences, we will email you. Please check your Fall and Winter registration and ensure that you are enrolled in your classes. The Field Team's communications rely on your registration in the appropriate Field Experience courses.

Note: Any requests must be submitted via the Placement information form. To ensure accuracy, requests submitted via email are not recorded due to the high volume of emails the UPE Field Office receives.

Field experience placements are scheduled in a 'chunk', meaning that when you are in field, all of your other courses stop, and you will be at your partner school from Monday to Friday, for whatever that school's hours are (and then some!). Check out the Field Experience date section, to get an idea of what that scheduling looks like (dates are, of course, are subject to shifting from year to year!).

We encourage you to review your role and responsibilities as outlined in the Pre-Service Teacher Field Experience Handbook.

Seminar Dates & Times

Mandatory Seminars are scheduled for each practicum. These dates were posted on the UPE Field Experience webpage in July. Seminars are determined by your Placement Location, not your pathway.

When completing the Placement Information Form, you will be asked to provide a list of schools you attended or graduated from within the last 5 years, schools where family or friends presently attend or work, and schools where you coach and/or volunteer.

You will not be placed in schools where you attended or from which you graduated within the last 5 years or where family or friends presently attend, work or have a professional affiliation.

• It is the responsibility of the student to notify the faculty of any ineligible sites, where family or friends attend or work, and sites in which the student has volunteered or attended. Failure to comply with these conditions may jeopardize successfully completion of the field experience, and affect the validity of teacher certification. 

Out of Area placement considerations: Exceptions may be made in remote communities. List any ineligible schools as requested; if necessary, the Director of Field Experience will discuss this with you.

Pre-arranging placements with specific schools and/or teachers is not permitted.

Your placement will be secured and confirmed by the Field Experience Team. 

Under no circumstances shall student teachers contact a field site regarding their placements until they have been confirmed and posted by the faculty.

We encourage you to comment on your background knowledge, expertise, and experiences that you have had outside of your academic studies that may be useful in a school setting. 

Many of our students have diverse backgrounds, and interests and areas of expertise that include languages, sports, specialized skills, trades, or interests. This section helps us better understand your strengths, professional goals and other considerations when securing your placement. 

Like you, our Partner Teachers also have very diverse teaching assignments, and getting a better sense of your interests helps make the best match possible!

Please note: For Field Experience III & IV, your placement must be 50% in your teachable subject area.

During the orientation and welcome sessions, we will have Field Experience sessions to outline expectations and provide you with the opportunity to ask questions!

For a more in-depth look at your Field Experience, please read the Pre-Service Teacher Field Experience Handbook.