The role of case management is becoming an increasingly popular role for beginning social work practitioners particularly at the undergraduate level. Yet despite the popularity of this role, few students are immediately attracted to this role. Experience over the past eight years at the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare suggests that student case managers have held widely divergent attitudes about this role during their field practicum experience. This qualitative study attempted to study the process of role socialization and strain among four student case managers during their firts field experience. The author draws several conclusions centering on the need to integrate clinical practice knowledge in conjunction with primary case management activities including outreach work, resource acquisition and advocacy.