Hello to everyone! This is my first post here so please bear with me!
I am 28 years old and have recently had my "lightbulb" moment where I realised that Social Work is the career I am best suited to, the career that I can seriously see myself in for the next 35+ years and the career I know my skills and experience can be put to best use.
To that end, I have decided that in 2014 - due to work commitments and financial goals - I am going to try and get a position studying Social Work at postgraduate level. At this stage, I have a few questions which I would be greatly appreciative of any replies;
1. My past experience. I understand relevant experience is essential to get on a Social Work course. Currently, I teach English abroad to children from nursery right through to high school and have been for the past three years. I also volunteer at a local orphanage in the country where I live and help out the kids to develop key life skills. Previously to moving abroad, I worked in a homeless shelter which provided temporary accommodation to homeless people who were suffering from marriage break ups, alcohol and substance misuse and the whole spectrum of life devastating things that can happen.
Is this experience seen as relevant? Will it stand me in good stead not only to get on a course but also to secure a job afterwards?
2. The future of Social Work. I am entirely confident in my ability to succeed in the course and in the profession. That's not to say I'm being arrogant, I just "know" myself and "know" deep down that I would make a good social worker. What I'm worried about is the apparent lack of employment opportunities in this doom and gloom age. I want to be sure that the huge investment I will have to make both personally, professionally and financially is going to be worth it.
Is this situation likely to improve? What is the general feeling amongst those both newly qualified and those who have been working for a while in terms of securing employment on permanent contracts?
Sorry for so many questions in my first post. I am excited to get feedback on where I stand and super excited to get started in my journey to a career that would be so fulfilling.
Many thanks!
Be careful. This is my personal opinion only of course. But in the team I am in, about half of my social work colleagues are from overseas. They are "permanent" staff, with work permit issues etc. There are reasons for this. The word exploitation gets mentioned. Do you really know what being a social worker in the statutory sector is like? Do you want to be a bureaucrat? Do read some Max Weber, it's much more relevant to social work today than it was when read it in my training. What used to be a simple form has now mushroomed into almost a book, over and over. Most of my life is spent in front of a computer, I see clients with an eye on the clock, etc etc. With so much red tape to deal with and a thriving blame culture, if I were 25 years younger I would do something else. Join the police for example. Or teach English abroad. .... but who knows, by 2014, sanity may have returned.
Social work, not in the statutory sector, is pretty good. Get the bad stuff as well like any job. Social work is a great career (I am, admitedly, only at the beginning of it).
Don't believe in "Lightbulb moments" outside of the scientific world. I think this is just wishful thinking coupled with a little naivety.
It is good to seek opinions but I fear the OP will cherry pick the positives and ignore the negatives.
SW training has become long and hard and not that particularly relevant in my view.
Just the very title of this thread leads me to say, seek charitable work in Africa rather than waste important years, before becoming completely disillusioned.
And if you think there is a blame culture here, you should live in San Andreas (Thank you, thank you, I'll be here til Thursday)
Andy_Pandy: Social work, not in the statutory sector, is pretty good. Get the bad stuff as well like any job. Social work is a great career (I am, admitedly, only at the beginning of it).
andy can you tell me what the non-stat sector social work is?
Shirack: Don't believe in "Lightbulb moments" outside of the scientific world. I think this is just wishful thinking coupled with a little naivety. It is good to seek opinions but I fear the OP will cherry pick the positives and ignore the negatives. SW training has become long and hard and not that particularly relevant in my view. Just the very title of this thread leads me to say, seek charitable work in Africa rather than waste important years, before becoming completely disillusioned.
completely agree
as genuine question to the OP - what do you think you will be doing in social work? i say that because sw is nothing like what i thought it would be when i made the decision - not even the good bits.
As shirack says the training is fairly irrelevant to stat social work (ironically the thing they have to be training you for) and the course will at best give you a rose tinted view of it and at worst completely con you by its picture of what you can achieve in stat sw.
the thing is you'll go into stat sw and everyone will say - oh well the real social work is done in non - stat, which seems to be where you are now - so why bother leaving? Not sure the money is worth it tbh!
with regards to whether you'll get a job it will depend on loads of things that largely arent in your control including your placements so its all a matter of trusting to fate.
out of interest is there a role for sw in homeless and substance misuse? I know a sw that works in substance misuse but im not sure its as a social worker and its more the fact hes an ex crack addict that makes him good rather than his qualification. Id like to work with homeless people etc but ive been told that the badge of social work puts them off immediately?
romeo2001: Andy_Pandy: Social work, not in the statutory sector, is pretty good. Get the bad stuff as well like any job. Social work is a great career (I am, admitedly, only at the beginning of it). andy can you tell me what the non-stat sector social work is?
What about some roles in the private and voluntary sector?
Andy_Pandy: romeo2001: Andy_Pandy: Social work, not in the statutory sector, is pretty good. Get the bad stuff as well like any job. Social work is a great career (I am, admitedly, only at the beginning of it). andy can you tell me what the non-stat sector social work is? What about some roles in the private and voluntary sector?
sorry wanted some firms names - am genuinely interested - i keep hearing tha quote on here and elsewhere but no-one can ever point to specifics
Barnardos, Family Action, Children's Society are non statutory in the sense of they do social work, but are not part of the Local Authority.
RubyTrue: Barnardos, Family Action, Children's Society are non statutory in the sense of they do social work, but are not part of the Local Authority.
NHS, prison service, military ?
Some roles within private fostering agencies and vol ones. Not all are carrying out statutory duties. I just finished working with a local care provider. Lots of big or small providers out there. Local social enterprises/charities.
Lets not also forget about roles not so much working with vulnerable people but others such as roles in HR and management... use social work skills quite effectively
Phoenix House working with substance misuse, just one example.
Andy_Pandy: Some roles within private fostering agencies and vol ones. Not all are carrying out statutory duties. I just finished working with a local care provider. Lots of big or small providers out there. Local social enterprises/charities.
do you have any names tho?
and with the HR thing - yeah i thought that but tricky pointed out that they have their own professional qualification and tbh im not sure the roles overlap that much anyway
what are you doing now then? you going into stat?
You're right, it is a fulfilling career (If you haven't already been put off by the cinics!) and SW definately needs people with a refreshing attitude who want to make a difference in people's lives.
I studies at post-grad level (the bonus is that it's only 2 years) and didn't have any stat experience previous. I only worked for a private children's home for about 3 years. Why not phone some uni's and ask what experience they would like to see. You still have time to gain experience - even if it's a bit of voluntary work.
When I qualified, work was not hard to find - it was more a case of choosing which offer to accept. Things are different now and in the local authorities I'm involved with SW jobs are few and far between. I'm currently a locum and there seem to be loads of agency roles around although a fair chunk of them want applicants with experience. That said, they'll always be a need for Social Workers.
Hi everyone and many thanks for the many replies! I kinda expected the tone of the replies to be honest as in my quest to retrain in a career that would give me satisfaction, all I seem to hear are moans and groans and reasons why I shouldn't bother!
Teaching - don't do it, you need to work really hard and deal with all sorts of crap from people who don't want your help.
Police Force - stay well away, crap hours and crap money for dealing with the lowest of society.
Social Work - don't even think about it. You have to work really hard in a demanding environment for little pay and little recognition.
I understand people who have been doing a job for a while becoming disillusioned. I tend to look past that. It happens in all fields as far as I can tell.
I'm not afraid of hard, demanding work, long hours and what seems to be above average pay and conditions. I really think as a career social work is the one that ticks all of the boxes I am looking for. I can prepare myself for the admin part of it and deal with that best I can.
What I am looking for are answers to the questions 1 and 2 in the original post, namely, is my experience enough to get me on a course and what the future of social work holds in terms of employment opportunities.
Many thanks for all who have responded!
Romeo, the non-statutory sector in the UK is fairly limited as far as qualified Social Work opportunities are concerned. I have worked in the past quite a lot in multinational projects and my impression was that the UK is the only one relying on unqualified workers and volunteers where others would employ qualified Social Workers. I refer for instance to family support projects, youth projects, substance misuse, homelesness, inmate support and rehabilitation etc. I have always viewed these as traditional Social Work roles, however UK seems to try to cut costs at all costs...
I still think that Social Work is a fantastic career, as long as people join it with a realistic expectation of the role and are prepared to put up with the gamble of finding employment after graduation. I am not sure what "lightbulb moment" the OP had - but I am sure it did not involve masses of paperwork, fighting over resources and probably involved some pride in letting others know what they do for a living and expecting some appreciation for it, too. This is where a lot of new starters become disillusioned. I think there is a strong need for good, competent Social Workers in this country, too many good experienced ones retire or go do something else, but I am afraid nobody can guarantee a job at the end of the course and some areas have higher need for workers than others, so availability to relocate might unfortunately be needed...