Is Social Work the Career For You?
What Is Social Work?
Social work is the study and practice of improving people's lives. People employed as social workers apply their knowledge of human development, behavior, and interactions to help people better their social, economic, and cultural conditions. The National Association of Social Workers defines social work more specifically as:
“...The professional activity of helping individuals, groups, or communities to enhance or restore their capacity for social functioning and to create societal conditions favorable to this goal. Social work practice consists of the professional application of social work values, principles, and techniques to one or more of the following ends: helping people obtain tangible services; providing counseling and psychotherapy with individuals, families, and groups; helping communities or groups provide or improve social and health services; and participating in relevant legislative processes.”
The Skills You Need to Excel
Social work, above all else, requires an unwavering passion for helping those in need. Social workers need to be both sympathetic and objective when working with their clients – they should be able to feel empathy for the people they help, but also able to step back and assess a situation fairly.
To be successful in this field, you must be emotionally mature, responsible, and communicative. Because you will work with people ranging from police officers to the homeless, housewives to drug dealers, you should be comfortable interacting with a wide variety of people. You should also be good at working independently, and at maintaining positive relationships with clients and fellow social workers.
The Truth About Burnout
The honest truth about the job of a social worker is that it is often thankless, tiring, and upsetting. Social workers work long hours for relatively little pay, and sometimes do not receive the gratitude they deserve in return for the time and energy they dedicate to helping people in need. Because social workers are most often employed by the government, their places of work are often understaffed, leading each social worker to be overworked and assigned heavy caseloads.
The people they are assigned to help often don't want to acknowledge that they need assistance, and can thus be spiteful or unresponsive to the social worker assigned to their case. The hours are long and require immense flexibility on the social worker's part, involving working into the night, on weekends, and being on call to handle emergencies.
For these reasons, the burnout rate of social workers tends to be high, although being fully realistic about this danger before starting is the best way to approach the job. Often, volunteering or interning is an effective way to gauge whether you could withstand the pressures of a career in social work before committing to a degree and, later, a more permanent position.
Different Careers Within Social Work
A large number of careers involve helping the needy. For this reason, a degree in social work qualifies you for employment in many different fields. Below are short descriptions of several major careers employing people with a background in social work.
- Family therapists work with individuals or entire families to help them resolve issues causing tension, angst, and unhappiness, with the aim of helping family members reconnect with each other and restore familial harmony.
- Substance abuse counselors help people suffering from different forms of addiction understand, battle, and overcome their addictions. They help them come clean and, in some cases, help them find housing and employment.
- Parole officers work with people who were in jail or prison and are transitioning back into life outside of the criminal justice system. They oversee them and try to ensure that they are following the rules of their parole, such as taking drug tests, obeying restraining orders, and showing up to their jobs.
- Psychologists study human mental processes and behaviors. They can also meet with individuals in the capacity of a counselor and help them work through issues such as anxiety, depression, relationship problems, and addiction.
- School counselors work in elementary or secondary schools, and serve as a resource for students, families, teachers, and staff. They provide guidance and support for those who are struggling academically or dealing with issues outside of school.
- Hospital administrators oversee the functioning of healthcare institutions, ensuring that the system runs smoothly, and that patients receive the treatment they need.
Salary and Job Outlook
Most social workers can expect to earn between $30,000 and $50,000 annually, while the highest-paid employees earn over $65,000 per year. Those working as medical or public health social workers tend to earn the most (an average of $46,650 in 2008), while those working in mental health and substance abuse earn the least (a median salary of $37,210 in 2008).
The field of employment for social workers is expected to grow by 16 percent, which is faster than the average for occupations in the next decade. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the outlook is especially good for people with a specialization within social work, particularly those who work with the elderly and with people living in rural areas of the United States.
Article Resources:
Indiana University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics