Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (LAC DMH) Stipend
The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (LAC DMH) offers an $18,500 stipend to select MSW students across Los Angeles County who demonstrate a commitment to public mental health. Students awarded a stipend must commit to one-year of employment post-graduation in a clinical capacity at an agency either directly operated or contracted by LAC DMH. Please consider this notice with the understanding that the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work is simply sharing information about the LAC DMH stipend program. Administration of this stipend program is managed by Phillips’ California Stipend Program of Campbellsville University at the Los Angeles Education Center (CULAEC).
Stipend Amount
$18,500 per academic year, disbursed in two installments of $9,250 each.
Eligibility Criteria
Students who are graduating between September 1, 2024 and August 31, 2025 are eligible to apply.
Applications will open Wednesday, December 18, 2024 and close Wednesday, February 12, 2025.
Interested students should first review the Phillips' California Stipend Program website before attempting to complete the application. Information provided on this website will assist students in preparing for what is needed for the application. Additionally, please go to this website to complete the application when it opens.
Students awarded the stipend must attend an orientation on either March 27 or 28, 2024, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. This is required in order to receive the stipend.
How to Apply
The application process will take at least thirty minutes to complete and must be submitted once the process is started. Students will be unable to resubmit an application if there are mistakes. It is highly recommended that students complete the sample application, then cut and paste the information into the formal application document for submission.
Students are encouraged to prepare in advance for the multiple required essays in the application, which have a maximum 200-word count.
- One essay asks students to convey their interest in and commitment to working within the LAC DMH delivery system.
- Two of the essays ask students to demonstrate personal background/individual strengths and their work experience.
- Three of the essays ask students to detail their clinical experience providing in-person care and telehealth services, and to explain the importance of service provision within a multidisciplinary team.
Additionally, students will be asked to complete some general information at the beginning about qualifications and experience, limited to a maximum 50-word count.
The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health is looking for MSW students who are committed to providing clinical services in public mental health (not administrative services). They are also interested in students who are bilingual (i.e. speak one of the threshold languages listed on the website) and who want to serve underresourced, vulnerable populations (i.e. clients experiencing homelessness, clients with chronic or persistent mental illness). Please note that you do not need to be bilingual to receive the stipend.
Questions regarding the 2024-2025 LA County DMH stipends should be submitted via email to: caconsortium@campbellsville.edu
Christina (Tina) Paddock, LCSW, associate teaching professor, is the LAC DMH Stipend Coordinator for USC Social Work. Please keep in mind that Professor Paddock simply serves as a liaison with CULAEC, so she should be contacted only if students have further questions AFTER reviewing the aforementioned information and AFTER first communicating with CULAEC.
