Why I am training to be a social worker:
I have picked social work as my future profession because I have a passion to help people. One of my professors at SEMO has told me never to use “to help people” as my response when asked why I have gone into social work. But I have no other way to explain my decision. Becoming a social worker I will have many opportunities to interact with diverse populations, have chances to learn about different cultures, and help someone who does not know what else they can do in the situation that they may be in. These are all exciting tasks that I cannot wait to do when I become a social worker. I have been told that this profession is a hard one to do, and I believe this. But that just means there are going to be challenges that I get to figure out solutions to. I want to be able to help as many individuals as I possibly can in my lifetime and a good way to start is by becoming a social worker.
Picking social work was not a hard choice for me, I did start out my college freshmen year as a nursing major but I soon realized it was not the career for me. Once my sophomore year came around I declared my major in social work. The social work profession has a lot of choices in what kind of social worker you want to become. Some choices that a professional social worker gets to make include; what type of social worker, what population do you want to work with, and do you want to work with individuals who live in a rural or city area. The great news with all the different choices that a social worker makes, the social worker can decide to go after a whole set of new answers to those questions. When I was deciding whether or not to become a social work major I really thought about if the profession would fit me. To be a social worker to me one must be able to keep calm in stressful situations, they need to be flexible with plans either with meetings or clients, be organized so you keep up with all responsibilities that will come along with being a social worker, and most importantly you must know when it is time to speak, listen, or take action in situations throughout your day. I shortly will graduate from SEMO and be able to say after I get my license that I am finally a licensed social worker, and I could not be more excited.
What is a social worker?
A social worker is someone who has gone to school for at least four years and obtained their bachelor degree in social work. Once someone has completed the four years and graduate with their degree they can then go take the license exam in whatever state they live in to become a licensed social worker. However, there is more to being a social worker than just a degree. Someone has to have a want to help other people and have the drive to keep them going in the social work profession. This profession is a helping profession so if you do not wish to try and help someone else than social work may not be the career for you.
Why are they important?
Social workers are important because they advocate for all individuals no matter who they are. Advocating is when someone stands up for something or someone. Social workers stand up for the populations who normally do not get heard. They are important because they do not stop fighting for their clients and they are not quite about injustices that may take place against their clients or others. Social workers are able to provide services to the communities that they work for or they are able to help a client obtain what they need by providing resources.
What I wish people knew about my field:
People need to know that social workers are there to help. They are not just in your life to take your children away or to snoop around your home for one little thing wrong. But instead, that social workers want to do all they can to help you. They are doing their jobs when conducting a home visit to make sure that you and your children live in a safe environment. Social workers are there to help guide you in the direction best suited for you. They help find resources around your area to use in helping not only your family in their situation but also other families. I understand that sometimes a social worker has to be the “bad guy” in situations with clients but this is because they want to see the client exceed in whatever program they are in.
I also want people to understand that no social worker is in this profession to make money off of them. Yes, we have a salary but it is most likely lower than most individuals realize. If someone is thinking about becoming a social worker to make as much money as they can, it really is not the right profession for them. If someone looking into this field wants to be praised for their efforts, it probably will not happen often. The social work profession can be a thankless job for the most part because you are coming in at rough times in people’s lives and you will sometimes be who they let their anger out on. If or when that happens just keep in mind they most likely are not mad at you but you are the closest person to them.