Careers in Social Work
If you are looking for a career with meaning, action, diversity, satisfaction, and an abundance of options, consider Social Work. Social workers are people who care about people, who want to make things better, and who want their work to make a difference. Social workers help people function the best they can in their environment. This can mean providing direct services or therapy. Social workers also work to change social conditions through changing social policy.About the Profession
Few
occupations can offer the variety found in Social Work. Social workers
are found in public agencies, private businesses, hospitals, clinics,
schools, nursing homes, private practices, police departments, courts,
and countless other places. Social workers serve individuals,
families and communities. They are managers, supervisors and administrators.
They serve at all levels of government. They are educators, therapists,
and researchers. They are also elected political leaders and politicians.
Educational requirements
To be a social worker, one
must have a degree in social work from a college or university program
accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. The undergraduate
degree is the Bachelor of Social Work (BSW). Graduate degrees
include the Master of Social Work (MSW) or Ph.D.
Degree programs include classroom study and field experience. The BSW prepares graduates for entry level practice. The MSW is needed to be a therapist and for other advanced practice. The Ph.D. is useful for doing research or teaching at the university level.
Social Work Careers
Gerontology
Our population is aging. This translates into a tremendous need for social work with older persons and their families. Social workers help older adults maintain independence, arrange income assistance, organize recreational groups and support groups and generally improve the quality of life for elders.Child Welfare
Child welfare workers advocate for America's most silent minority: children. The social worker helps to ensure the well being of children, primarily by supporting and strengthening their families.Child welfare workers investigate cases of abuse and neglect and provide services to the children and their families when needed.
In cases where families can't or won't protect their children, social workers may recommend foster care, or, in cases where parents are no longer able to parent, work with the courts to find adoptive homes for children. Child welfare workers can often make a critical difference at a key moment in a child's life.
The UM-St. Louis Social Work Department works closely with the Missouri Division of Family Services to train child welfare workers.
Child welfare workers are found in adoption agencies, child day care, and public and private child welfare organizations.
School Social Work
Many school systems employ social workers to help children with emotional, developmental or educational needs. School social workers are often part of a team helping children with physical or learning disabilities or emotional problems who face child abuse, domestic violence, poverty or other problems.School social workers work with families, teachers, and staff to provide services that often prevent more serious problems from developing.
School social workers are found in elementary and secondary schools, special education placement offices, counseling centers, and early intervention programs.
Justice/Corrections
Social workers can be found in courts, rape crisis centers, police departments and correctional facilities.Social workers may plan and provide substance abuse treatment, help with domestic disputes, provide trauma or critical incident services to enforcement officers, or work with victim assistance programs.
Social workers' activities in corrections and justice are diverse, providing the chance to use a range of skills.
Employers include prisons, courts, police departments and victim services programs.
Health Care
Social workers are needed in hospitals, clinics, and other medical and health care settings to facilitate medical and emotional treatment. These social workers assess a patient's needs, plan for care after hospitalization, educate patients and their families, and help them cope with emotional problems related to the illness.Social workers are vital members of the health care team often helping other health professionals understand the social and emotional aspects of illness.
Health care social workers are hired by health maintenance organizations, nursing homes, hospitals, clinics, hospices, and group homes.
Mental Health/Clinical Social Work
Many people at some point in their lives need mental health services to cope with life stress. Clinical social workers are the largest group of professionally trained mental health providers in the United States, supplying more than half of counseling and therapy services.Social workers emphasize helping people help themselves. They are found in a wide variety of settings. Many have private practices.
All clinical social workers must have an MSW. They must be licensed or certified in the state in which they practice.
Mental health social workers are found in community mental health centers, psychiatric hospitals, residential treatment centers, employee assistance programs, schools, and family service agencies.
Developmental Disabilities
People with developmental disabilities, which can include mental retardation, cerebral palsy, autism, epilepsy and other conditions may use social services to help improve social adjustments and to learn to be as independent as possible.Parents of children with developmental disabilities work with social workers to learn to be advocates for their children, to understand their legal rights and to find special services.
State and local agencies, medical facilities and schools hire social workers to work with the developmentally disabled.
Employment/Occupational Social Work
Occupational social workers may help corporations re-engineer their structure and methods to improve efficiency, creativity, productivity, and morale. Or social workers may work for a union or be involved in job counseling or organizing.Many social workers are hired by employee assistance programs (EAPs). The social worker may own the EAP or be employed by a business or union. They help employees cope with a range of problems including work stress, substance abuse, domestic violence, single parenting and vocational rehabilitation.
Employers include corporations, businesses, EAPs, and labor unions.
Public Welfare
Public welfare has provided income and support services to society's most vulnerable groups - children, the ill, elderly, and the disabled. How to foster self-sufficiency and move people into the mainstream is a major challenge, complicated by an increase in social problems and a decrease in funding.Public welfare social work entails planning, administering, and financing programs; training and supervising staff; and setting and evaluating standards and criteria for service delivery.
There are plenty of challenges in public welfare waiting for creative thinking and leadership from social workers.
Employers include public and private social welfare agencies.
Communities
Social workers also work with communities to coordinate and facilitate activities to improve social conditions, enhance the quality of life, and bring people into the political process.Administration and Management
Administration and management are other areas in which social workers have special skills. Social workers help formulate policy, set goals, design programs, develop budgets, direct personnel, determine resource allocation, develop public relations plans, and evaluate programs.Public Interest Groups
Social workers are often hired by public interest groups, the government, advocacy associations, trade associations and others to help develop policy. This often means analyzing legislation, drafting position papers, testifying at hearings, working with the media, and lobbying elected and appointed officials. They may write grants or conduct demonstration work.
How to enter the profession
The first step towards a career
in social work is to obtain a bachelor's or master's degree in social
work from a college or university program accredited by the Council
on Social Work Education, like the program at UM-St. Louis.
Where to seek more information
School of Social Work
117 Bellerive Hall
One University Blvd.
University of Missouri-St. Louis
Telephone: (314)
516-6387
Fax: (314) 516-6416
*Information for this document was taken from Choices, published by NASW.