Calling Social Workers!

[WishfulThinking]

Hey everyone,

I know I don''t post a lot, but I have a question I think the members of this forum might be able to answer better than some of my other available resources. I apologize in advance if this is kind of long! If it sounds like I am all over the place and an emotional wreck it''s because I kind of am right now!

I have recently been considering getting an Masters in Social Work and am wondering if any members who are in social work or a related field or have an MSW could weigh in on a few questions I have. It seems to be really hard to find information about what social workers actually DO on a daily basis, so if anyone wants to share a little bit about their actual experiences that would be awesome! I am curious about the pay scale to debt ratio, since I have heard that social work positions tend to pay poorly and unless I am able to get a scholarship of some kind or financial aid that I don''t have to pay back, I will need to take the cost of education into consideration as I decide what to do. Also, how is the job market for social work? Even if the positions are not very high paying, are there positions generally available, or is it extremely competitive? Does the ranking of MSW programs have an effect on ability to find employment/higher paid employment, or is the degree more important than the prestige?

A little bit of background about me:
I graduated last year with an honors degree in Political Science and Gender Studies and have been working in a low-income public school as a reading instructor for English language learning students through AmeriCorps. I plan to continue this position next year as well, but after that I need to find another job or apply to graduate school, so I feel like I need to take some steps toward figuring out a plan for what I am going to do. I have a lot of experience with research in public policy, social movements/social problems, American politics, etc. but until last year had not much experience working directly with people, just studying the meta concepts and large-scale issues. This past year I have been working with disadvantaged children and their families and have really enjoyed what I''m doing. It seems like social work would be an area where I could combine both of these things--policy level structures/thinking and working with individuals--reasonably well, which is why I am considering it.
I really always thought I was going to be a lawyer, but I am not prepared to go to law school just because I don''t know what else to do with my life. I know too many people, especially Poli Sci majors, who did this and really regretted it. I am also not wild about the debt of law school in comparison with the horrible job market in that field. I briefly considered being a professor and think I would like that, but again, job security is pretty awful, and since my wife is currently working toward her PhD and plans to become a professor, I think it might be just too difficult to be a two-academic household [based on what I have heard about the difficulty, that is--we have been warned against doing this.]

Lastly, I am considering taking some Early Childhood Education credits at a local community college this coming year in hopes of being able to secure a job after my AmeriCorps position ends. I am having a lot of trouble finding a job with "just" a BA since my undergrad fields weren''t especially vocational and feel like I need some more vocational type education to get anything that is available in our area [Central CA]. I figure there are reasonable options available for people with an ECE background and the courses are super cheap and seem interesting so it can''t be too bad, right? On the other hand, I am worried I will seem completely random and like I don''t know what I want do with my life [''cuz I don''t!

] when it comes time to apply to grad school and I will need to submit these transcripts along with my others when I apply. If anyone has any thoughts about whether this would, indeed, look random, or whether these courses might actually be somewhat relevant and interesting and related to social work [keeping in mind that I would likely work with children] that would be welcome as well! I just don''t want to ruin my chances of getting in by being a disorganized mess.

If you''re evn still reading you probably deserve a cookie or something! Thanks so much for taking the time!

 

[oddoneout]

I''m in Canada so the situation is probably different but I know teaching and social work are very hard to get into and even with education do not pay that well. Sorry if this is discouraging.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Not sure if this will help but I am getting my master''s in a related field and have a totally UNRELATED BFA. The university that I am attending didn''t care as long as I have an undergrad degree. A few classmates even have law degrees. Some schools did want a related undergrad degree so you really need to research schools. I don''t know much about Social Work but know that it does have a high burn out rate. I think in that field (similar to the one I am going in) you have to be really good at detaching your work from your real life. As for salary I believe it is similar to teaching. I don''t think anyone ever goes into the social work field to get rich but I think the rewards make up for it. I am a big believer in following your passion. Hopefully someone with a MSW will chime in b/c I doubt my post is helpful. Haha. Just wanted to encourage you that it is never too late to switch careers.

 

[Scorpioanne]

I have a MSW and started out with a BA (then BSW as there was no way to get into the MSW program without a BSW). One of the things that I love about social work is that there as so many choices for work. You can do anything from child protection, palliative care to counselling to working for a chool district or doing research or writing policy. You could work for the health district or the government or for a community based organisation. That said, as you might imagine, all of these positions require you to do different things however I guess, interviewing and assessment would be common to almost all positions in social work.

I spent 20 years working as a counsellor for a sexual assault centre (CBO) and really wasn''t paid well but it was really satisfying work. I am now working as a placement coordinator (I place students in thier practicums) for the Faculty of Social Work at the local university. I love my new job, it is such an exciting time for students and now that I am older I have to say the pay is wonderful and the possibility of a pension is a big draw. I am making about 12K more than I did at the Sexual Assault Centre.

I love being a social worker even though my role is different now it is still very much connected to social work.

 

[Snicklefritz]

Hi Wishful!
I graduated with my MSW in May 2009. I immediately got a job at a local agency that operates crisis, EAP and corporate communications lines. Basically, I talked people through various crises over the phone and called ambulances/police when necessary. There was a lot of paperwork but I got used to that. Pay was $34,000 - and that''s unfortunately pretty high for an MSW. (If you get your LCSW pay rates usually increase depending on the job.) I left in March because it was too stressful, and have since had a heck of a time even getting an interview. And, the jobs I have been looking at pay much lower than $34,000. I don''t think it would be this bad if the economy weren''t shot and social service budgets weren''t being cut left and right.

A friend of mine, who also got her MSW is working for a local community mental health center. She goes into homes and works with families with children with behavioral problems. She makes appointments to fit her schedule, plans outings with the kids, and monitors parent-child interaction. It''s a tough job and it''s difficult to keep everyone happy. I know there''s a lot of paperwork, and I think that''s really the only part that she truly hates. Overall, I think she finds it fulfilling. She gets paid $30,000 or so.

Another friend with an MSW started in development at a nonprofit, but hated it and moved into an executive assistant position. Don''t know what she made, but she is now planning to go to law school. And a third friend is working with children who were removed from their homes by DFS. It took her almost 6 months to get a job, and she was one of the top in out class. She has regular meetings with the kids to make sure they are coping, and also meets with the families to chart their progress to determine when/if the kids can come home. Don''t know what she makes either. She seems pretty happy with this line of work though. She always wanted to work with kids, and her emphasis in grad school was school social work.

I hope I''m not making it sound too grim. Though my job was stressful, I found it rewarding. I still plan on getting my LCSW - already took and passed the test - and think direct practice might be more fitting for me - less crisis oriented. If you have experience working with the disadvantaged, and you found it fulfilling then social work may be the right line of work for you. There''s not much I can say to redeem the fact that social workers get paid so little, even with a Masters - it is what it is. If you go on craigslist in your area and look up nonprofit jobs you can get an idea of what jobs are out there and what they pay. Other places to look are on hospital websites and career search engines. Best of luck!

 

[Sizzle]

I just graduated with my MSW from a big 10 university this week! I dont currently work in the field, but I''m a federal employee and hope fotransfer within the fed govt and work with vets. Starting salary is expected to be around 60k. Thus wilm be a paycut. But i will be dojnf something i love. This salary is NOT typical

 

[Snicklefritz]

Wishful,
I forgot to mention that your experience should be very helpful in aiding you to find a job. My experience is limited and unfocused. That''s one of the hurtles I''m currently facing.

 

[Haven]

Hi Wishful!

I''m not a social worker, but my godmother is. I''ve shadowed her at work multiple times, and heard a lot about her previous jobs because I''ve brought several students over to her to spend a day with her when they considered going into social work. SO, from that perspective, here''s what I can share:

- What will you do on a daily basis? What positions can you hold? There are so many different positions you could hold as a social worker. Among other things, my godmother has worked with the parents of children who are terminally ill in Children''s Memorial Hospital, she has worked with prisoners in a maximum security prison, and she now works as a school social worker in a suburban high school. Obviously, she spends her time doing very different things in the school than she did while at the hospital or at the prison. I know that she now sees many students a day, fills out a lot of paperwork, talks to parents, and runs an outreach program for at-risk students and takes them on retreats and organizes workshops and presentations for them. I don''t really know what she did every day in her other jobs because I never shadowed her when she had those positions.

- Pay. All I know about that is if you work in a school district you''ll get paid on the teachers'' salary schedule, be enrolled in the teachers'' pension program, and have all the same other benefits as teachers. My former suburban high school salary schedule starts brand new teachers and social workers with no experience and a Master''s degree at about 55K. I know that''s not much, but the schedule is pretty sweet.

Otherwise, I can share that my godmother is one of the hardest working people I know. She carries a lot of stress home with her, and while she thought working in the high school would be less stressful than working at Children''s Memorial, she''s learned that it isn''t. However, she HAS been in her HS position for nearly 15 years now, and she was only at the hospital for a couple of years before she had to leave from burnout. I know that she tells my students that it is an extremely rewarding, gratifying job, but that it does take a lot out of you. And trust me, she is one tough cookie.

I know I''m a total outsider, but I hope the info helped a little. All of my students who have gone on to pursue social work degrees (or who have the goal of pursuing one) are extremely compassionate, caring, selfless individuals. (That''s why I''m willing to take a day off from teaching to bring them to my godmother''s school and shadow with them!)

Good luck on your search for a job!

 

[AGBF]

Hi, wishful-This is one terribly jaded MSW talking to you, woman . I was about to tell you to forget the MSW and go become a special education teacher or something that could actually find you gainful

employment...but everything is cyclical. Even special education teachers are starting to lose their jobs in California due to the budget cuts there! One can never predict the future. My father, a social worker from the

1940's, used to tell me not to worry about my job in a depression since social work jobs were counter-cyclical and more social workers were needed in a depression (hah!). The truth is that an MSW is a useful and

flexible degree and it will allow you to work in a variety of settings doing a variety of things if you pursue the degree. Being a social worker is, to me, a calling. I wouldn't fool around taking extraneous courses and

wasting your time and money. If you plan to do it eventually, just do it now. I have seen many people waste thousands of dollars getting wrong masters degrees (not that you mentioned that) in an effort to become

psychotherapists by what they had hoped would be a shorter, cheaper route! Also: I know you. You would be a good social worker. You have the basic material that it takes to be one. Now you need some good

field instructors for, as I once wrote when I was taking a course to become a field instructor, no one is born a social worker! Good luck!


Deb/AGBF

 

[kennedy]

I got my MSW with the intention of becoming a psychotherapist. I agree with others who said that it''s a very versatile degree, especially in a state like California where they are very well-respected and the licensing requirements are stringent. While it''s true that it isn''t likely anyone is going to get rich being a social worker, some jobs pay better than others. For instance, I know many LCSW''s in private practice who make upwards of $150-200/hour for their clinical services (this will vary, of course, depending on level of experience, additional training, and location). I have a couple of friends who do hospital social work and one makes around $60,000 a year and the other makes closer to $80,000 a year. I would imagine the pay would be much less in a community based organization. You will have a ton of options getting an MSW -- it''s a great degree to have. I thought about going the MFT route since I knew I wanted to do clinical work, but decided against it because the degree is much less versatile and doesn''t transfer as well from state to state (or country to country, for that matter). Good luck!

 

[WishfulThinking]

Wow, thank you all for the wonderful and helpful replies and advice!!

oddoneout- it might be depressing, but if that''s the truth I need to know that! Thanks for weighing in.

Tacori- Thanks for your input. Your post was helpful! It''s good you mention that about the different schools. Of the programs I have been looking at, most really only care that I''ve got a BA from a liberal arts college with at least a few credits in sciences and maths, social sciences, humanities, etc., regardless of major. This is perfect because I do have that. I am really going to have to work on detaching my work from my real life. I am not so stellar at that, but I also haven''t had the training that social workers in the work force have, and I work a somewhat similarly stressful position right now.

Scorpioanne- Thanks for responding! I, too, like the versatility of the degree. I can really see myself doing many of the things that would be available to me after graduation, depending on where I did my fieldwork and what I specialized in, of course. Your post was very helpful! Your position at the university sounds very interesting as well, and funny you mention that, because when I was talking to my wife last night she wanted to know if it was a degree that might be able to translate into university work. Wherever we end up we''ll always be at a university or college, since she''s a professor!

Snicklefritz-Thank you so much for giving your perspective! I definitely see how you could get burned out working many of the jobs available to people with MSWs. I suppose if I hated it I could always go to law school, right?

Just joking.... sort of. The reason I am so deliberative is because I am afraid I''ll make a mistake and have to go back to school and waste tens of thousands of dollars figuring it out. I do find my current work fulfilling, but it''s a little bit frustrating, as I work with a population that has a lot of needs and my job scope is VERY narrow--teaching elementary reading skills--so I can''t really address any of the other issues. However, those issues are still making my job and the lives of my students very difficult! I think if I could hep these students or even put in my best effort at doing so I would feel less discouraged by my job, but obviously it''s not an appropriate part of what I''ve been hired to do! Thanks for the suggestion to check out craigslist for positions, I will definitely do so!

Sizzle- Congratulations and thanks for responding! When you were looking at schools, did you find the ranking of the program to be helpful? I am wondering if I should shell out for one of the higher ranked schools if I''m accepted [often more expensive] or go to a less recognized program that costs less. The work you are hoping to do sounds very interesting!

Haven--Thanks so much for your input! Your indirect experience is very helpful to consider. The work your godmother does in the school sounds very interesting. It sounds like my school would benefit from a program like that! The teacher''s salary schedule is actually loads better than the other projections I''ve been hearing, and honestly doesn''t sound that bad to me. Than again, I work more than full time and make less than 14k a year at the moment, living in a high cost area of the country, so I suppose anything sounds better than this!

In some ways I can really wrap my mind around that kind of salary because we''re not doing too poorly on the income we have now, even though they''re quite small, and honestly coming from a low income background I didn''t ever envision myself making six figures! However, I would like at least some financial security and the ability to not be as destitute as my parents have been my whole life.
To address the rest of your post, I am definitely willing to work hard, but I am a tiny bit concerned about the level of stress I''d take home with me. My mother is not a social worker, but her previous jobs have all been with Head Start, so she did a lot of social work-ish components and she was always very stressed and underpaid. Then again, for all my whining when I am stressed, I do thrive on the feeling of accomplishment I get when I am able to successfully finish whatever it is that is stressing me out so much.

AGBF--Thanks for responding! I was hoping I would hear from you. Unfortunately, around here being a special ed teacher isn''t really a guarantee of having a job either.... it seems that was the go-to degree when everyone rushed off to get their MA in Ed a few years ago. I suppose if I''m stuck between two degrees that are both less likely to help me find gainful employment, I should go with the one that will help me get a job doing something I am confident I will love! I also totally see your point about not fooling around and taking extra courses and wasting my life away. Usually I feel the same way, but I am in kind of a weird position at the moment where we are stuck in one geographic location while my wife finishes her PhD [a laborious and time-consuming endeavor--we plan to be here at least another 3 years before she will be geographically mobile] and I am not yet prepared to seek out an MSW in an area of the country where she will be far away. I am not really interested at the program at her university for a myriad of reasons, and even if I were to be admitted to the closest school to us, we''d have a really terrible commute that I don''t think would be conducive to happy living. My current plan is to wait as long as I possibly can before I start to resent her keeping me from going to school and then to apply to the programs I want to go to rather than the ones closest to us now and see how it pans out. In a best case scenario she will be able to move with me. That said, I may need some additional credentials to get a job in my area in the interim, which is why I was considering the classes. They only cost like $400 total for all 4 of them, so it''s not exactly a huge financial commitment, but I don''t want to appear as scattered as I feel when it comes time for admissions committees to look at my records! Sorry I wrote you a novel about that! Thanks for your words of encouragement. It''s nice now that I am bouncing around the idea of becoming a social worker how many of my friends and family have said they think I''d make an excellent one!

kennedy--Thanks so much for weighing in! I guess the versatility of the degree also leads to variations in the salaries. What a range I hear! I guess I should make some guesses about what kind of work I think I''d like to do and look into those specific salaries, just to get an idea. Thanks for giving me the food for thought. You also mentioned that an MSW would be somewhat versatile for transferring state to state? That would be very helpful as we''re not really sure where we''ll end up living long-term and may live in many states before we have even a semi-permanent location.



Thanks again, everyone! I hope I don''t sound like a jerk being so concerned about the financial aspect of it. As I mentioned above in my response to Haven I am not really set on making a lot of money in whatever career I end up with, and to me, coming from a family where my parents'' combined income was less than 55k, some salaries sound like a lot to me! That said, I have enough practical experience at this point to know that life is expensive and I''d rather not spend my my whole life struggling and destitute. I guess that is what is making it so hard for me right now to choose to do this MSW. I am confident it''s the right thing to do, but I can''t wrap my mind around sending myself into a notoriously poorly paying field after my parents worked and sacrificed for me to attend a top-ranked 4 year school. Financial security, not being wealthy, but having the things we need and some of the things we want, is very important to me. I guess I have a lot to think about!

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

I''m not a social worker, or even working in that field now, but I was until I quit to go to law school last year.

My role was policy and service management, and the majority of my staff were social workers. I can probably answer your question as to what the job involves on a day to day basis, but bear in mind that I am based in the UK, so there may be some significant differences. My background and training was in psychology (to masters level) but I did not have a social work qualification. If I''d stayed in the job, I would probably have worked towards a social work degree, because I wouldn''t have been able to progress to director level without it.

A bit of day to day stuff:
Most social work departments here are organised into teams - generally childcare, criminal justice, adult care and older people''s care. If there''s a prison in the area, there may be a prison team too, actually based in the prison but with links to the criminal justice team. Most people specialise in one area and may undertake further studies in their field, such as a masters degree in criminology or child protection, for example. A lot of people here do this part time while working in the field.

Day to day, each team member carries a caseload. Basic grade social workers will be supervised by a line manager and senior social workers will report to a head of service, generally. Everyone has a supervisor or mentor at some level and many decisions are taken by a multi- agency case conference, rather than an individual social worker. This means that once you''re past basic grade, there are opportunities for management and mentoring roles as well as casework. A lot of work is done in partnership with other statutory and voluntary agencies (police, health, third-sector service providers).

My most recent experience was in child protection services, so I''ll try to describe some day to day work there. First thing, staff would generally start off at the office. They would check with the out of hours duty workers that nothing had happened overnight to anyone on their caseload that would need their immediate attention. Then they would carry out any visits required. Often, a whole day could be spend on these visits. In child protection, some children have to be seen daily or x number of times a week by a social worker, by court order. If a routine or an unannounced visit threw up any concerns, the rest of the day could be spent dealing with them. Each visit has to be written up in the electronic files as a formal record.

Where decisions about a child''s situation are required (for example, where things have deteriorated or a new risk to the child is identified) there is often a multi agency case conference. It is usually (but not always) the job of the caseworker to arrange this. Arranging meetings with professionals from three or four different agencies can take up a frustrating amount of time and unless you work in a very well resourced department and have a fairly light caseload, it probably feels like that''s all you ever do some days.
The case conference may conclude that things are acceptable and no remedial action is needed, but they may also decide that the situation needs intervention, so there may be a lot of work in carrying out a formal assessment, getting a court order in a real emergency, even finding a foster placement. This can happen for example where a family member returns from prison in a different area, having committed a sexual offence. Happens more often that I would have thought and can mean that child protection procedures need to be followed that day, so if you find out about it at ten to five, don''t plan on going home that night.

These examples are just a snapshot- obviously there is a lot more to the job, but that gives a flavour.

If you work in a small department, or in a cross-service role, be prepared for issues like dealing with a child protection case then having awareness of (if not input to) the criminal justice aspects of the perpetrator''s case too. That can be difficult, to say the least. There are also specialist teams for fostering and adoption, children with disabilities and transitions teams (working with young people with long term support needs through the transition from school and childcare services to adult services).

If you go for a policy or management role, there will be a lot of working with other agencies, both on a case by case basis and at a corporate level. In Scotland anyway, a great deal of service planning is now done on a partnership basis, so you have to be comfortable as a negotiator for your agency at quite a senior level. While the aims may be common, the priorities can be very different and while pooled resources can result in better services, they are very difficult to manage.

There are a lot of peripheral things you can be involved in too, if you''re interested in policy and development roles. For example, I was very involved in equality and anti-discrimination policy, emergency planning and civil contingency planning. I worked at a national and regional level to develop continuity plans to provide essential services in emergencies (you haven''t lived until you''ve tried to bulk purchase inflatable morgues from a company rep with whom you do not share a common language or time zone...). Other things beyond my own service that I was involved in were data sharing and protection projects, capital building project management (I loved that and did some UK government project management qualifications while I was working) and national work on planned legislation.

Sorry, this is starting to read like a CV, but my point is that you can do a lot of very varied work and casework isn''t the only route you can go down as a social worker. A basic grade social worker in my experience will be worked like a borrowed mule. Too many cases, not enough hours in the day and not enough resources to achieve the outcomes you would like a lot of the time. As a senior social worker or a team manager, you''ll have that to contend with, plus a lot of management issues and difficult decisions that will affect lives - get them wrong and you''ll do real, lasting harm. Plus, you''ll have some policy manager randomly checking your casefiles for quality, adherence to legislation and outcomes. Also, the policy people will have loads of really really good ideas that you''ll have to implement (and the UK has policy makers at a local, regional and national level for you to contend with...). Social work in the UK generally operates in a local government context (with a few exceptions) so there are also opportunities to use transferrable skills at a corporate level, as well as within a social work department.

I would not like to be a caseworker. It seems to be highly stressful and people do burn out, particularly in child protection.

So, I''ve written far too much here, but if there''s anything helpful in it, disregard the rest.

Jen

 

[Sizzle]

Yikes, I have lots of typos! I graudated from the University of Iowa. Here''s a link to the social work website. There''s alot of info on there.

http://www.uiowa.edu/~socialwk/

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

Date: 5/16/2010 11:08:58 AM
Author: Sizzle
I just graduated with my MSW from a big 10 university this week! I dont currently work in the field, but I''m a federal employee and hope fotransfer within the fed govt and work with vets. Starting salary is expected to be around 60k. Thus wilm be a paycut. But i will be dojnf something i love. This salary is NOT typical

Congratulations on your graduation, Sizzle!

 

[Sizzle]

Date: 5/16/2010 3:58:33 PM
Author: Mrs Mitchell

Date: 5/16/2010 11:08:58 AM
Author: Sizzle
I just graduated with my MSW from a big 10 university this week! I dont currently work in the field, but I''m a federal employee and hope fotransfer within the fed govt and work with vets. Starting salary is expected to be around 60k. Thus wilm be a paycut. But i will be dojnf something i love. This salary is NOT typical

Congratulations on your graduation, Sizzle!

Thanks! I have a habit of collecting degrees (I also have an MBA), but I think I''m done now!

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

You should meet my husband. He has more letters after his name than in it. I think it was a hobby for him, getting degrees. I also suspect he isn't done yet.

 

[Karl_K]

A couple of my clients hires a bunch of them,,,
35k a year to start and not one lasts 5 years and very few last 3 years before they are burned out.
And they have a ton of applications submitted for each job opening.

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

Date: 5/16/2010 4:32:13 PM
Author: Karl_K
A couple of my clients hires a bunch of them,,,
35k a year to start and not one lasts 5 years and very few last 3 years before they are burned out.
And they have a ton of applications submitted for each job opening.

I think that depends on the area of practice. We used to get a lot of applications for posts in adult care and criminal justice. One vacancy generated 122 applications last year. However, for the last few vacancies advertised in the childcare team, we had very few applications. We had to re-advertise a couple of times to fill the post. It''s a hard, hard job and often attracts a lot of unfair blame and criticism. There is a lot of staff turn-over and yes, a lot of burn out.

 

[NOYFB]

Hi,
I''m an LCSW and have been practicing social work for 6 years now. I currently work in a hospital, but have also worked in nursing homes and in child and family services.

I can tell you that the money sucks, unless you are in healthcare. You will never become wealthy being a social worker. I currently make $57K which is GOOD for a social worker, but the downside is that I don''t really get to use my clinical skills at the hospital. I do discharge planning, which means I refer patients to home health agencies and nursing homes. There is a lot of paperwork (as someone else mentioned) and a lot of documentation. It''s interesting at times, but also very monotonous. When patients need *counseling* they don''t call me. They call the psychiatrist. They call me when patients need bus passes or resources for shelters or substance abuse treatment. Of course they also call me whenever they don''t know what else to do, because, well, they think I have the power to *fix* anything. LOL

That being said, i have always wanted to open my own private practice, to really utilize my clinical skills and do what it is that I went into this field for in the first place - to HELP people! But there is so much involved in that process that it intimidates me - finding/paying for office space, malpractice insurance, finding and maintaining clients, getting contracted with managed care companies, etc. The start-up costs/sacrificies keep me from really pursuing it...for now at least.

I''m always looking for jobs...I get job alerts daily. I can tell you that working in a community based agency, while it may be fulfilling professionaly, will not pay your bills. It''s sad. I find jobs every day that I think "Wow, that would be great!" and then I see that it pays $30K. Now, don''t get me wrong, I knew going into this field that I wouldn''t become a millionaire, but when you''ve worked in those kind of jobs (my first social work job paid $25K) and are thinking about going back to that micro level work, it''s discouraging.

I actually interviewed for a job a few months ago, with a company that provides a web-based program to assist with hospital discharge planning (which my hospital recently implemented and I was THE representative for my hospital in the implementation) and had I gotten the job, which I was so confident that I would (long story...I''d been their contact for the implementation, had had several phone interviews, been flown out to Boston for all day interviews, etc...) I would have enjoyed a serious pay increase ($75-100K!! hich is UNHEARD of for a social worker!!) But, I didn''t get the job.
But....it gave me hope that there are jobs are out there for social workers that actually pay what it is that I (and every other social worker) think we are worth.

I don''t want to discourage you from following a dream if this is what you want to do. I''m just trying to paint the picture of the reality of it. You already have a good base knowledge and experience. If you are passionate about helping people, go for it. I honestly cannot see myself as anything else than a social worker, so i take the good with the bad.

Good luck to you. And feel free to ask me any other questions

 

[BeachRunner]

I am not a licensed social worker, but my job duties surely entail social work. I work for the government where I assess individuals for Long Term Care Medicaid services. In addition, I also maintain a caseload to ensure their services are continually meeting their needs. My primary client is the elderly but have some people with mental illness too.

I got lucky; I interned during my senior yr of college (mandatory) and got hired with that company after my internship. I worked there for 2-3 yrs where I gained experience. I wouldn''t be able to get the job I have now without that experience (which I''m sure is the case w/ any job out there now).

I thought about going back for my masters in SW, counseling, etc, but decided against it. There really are soo many field you can go into w/ a social work degree. Hospitals, hospice, nursing home, mental health, private practice, community clinics, jails, prisons, probation, schools, etc.

As far as pay; again, I lucked out. I make what some MSW''s would make plus I get an annual raise so it works out. Don''t go into this field for the money because there is not a lot there. It is a calling, and I''ve seen lots of people get burnt out. But, looking at my co-workers now there are more older employees that have been there 10+ yrs than younger people like me (i''m 27).

I do believe the job market will also be there for social workers as there will always be a need for them. I live in a big city and they interviewed about 20 applicants for the position; don''t know how many applied. Like I said before, experience is key when it comes to landing a SW job, IMO.

 

[AGBF]

Date: 5/16/2010 2:04:02 PM
Author: WishfulThinking

Unfortunately, around here being a special ed teacher isn't really a guarantee of having a job either....

A couple of days ago there was an article in, "The New York Times" on the collapse of the teaching profession. I had known that it hit California first, but budget cuts in other states have made those states cut

teachers, too. As, "TheTimes" reported, even special education and the sciences, once the provinces of the the privileged, are now no longer safe areas for teachers. "Even hard-to-fill specialties are no longer so

hard to fill. Jericho, N.Y., has 963 people to choose from for five spots in special education, more than twice as many as in past years. In Connecticut, chemistry and physics jobs in Hartford that normally attract no

more than 5 candidates have 110 and 51, respectively."


AGBF

 

[smiles]

Hi WishfulThinking!!

I am in Canada as well so it may be slightly different but I thought I might chime in anyways (probably the biggest difference here is that we don''t have the LCSW/LMSW designations that you guys have). I have a undergrad in the field from a university in Canada but am about to start my MSW at a university in the states.
A few thoughts...
- I think your undergrad degree goes perfectly well with an MSW. Not sure what you were thinking but in terms of $$ I feel like you may be able to get a higher paying job in the administration/policy making type of job (maybe working for the government or state?) than in a community agency.
- Community agencies pay nothing and (at least in my city) you definitely do not need your MSW to get a job in one. Most people working in direct service at community ahencies here have their social service workers diploma (so no degree from a university at all but a college diploma) or the BSW. An MSW in Canada should technically increase your potential earning by about 20K. People doing jobs like employment counselling, domestic violence shelters, crisis counselling etc.. are probbly looking at earning $30-37K.
- The best paid SW jobs here are either for CAS or the government.
- With an MSW I would be looking for jobs that pay at least 50K. (maybe 45K to start with)
- in terms of the ECE courses I do think they could be relevant but I think the work you are doing with the real life experiences are much more practical and appealing on a resume. That said, if the courses are inexpensive and you think you would enjoy them (do you get a certificate or anything for finishing?) it could be worth it.
- I am not sure how much school cost but I am doing a 14 month "advanced standing" program (b/c my undergrad is in SW) and it is $35,000 in tuition excluding fees, books, my living expenses and that is without taking away scholarship money.
- In Canada job prospects for SWs are "good" (as long as the government keeps funding programs). While it is tough to find something in the field I think it would be do-able. For example, for myself, my goal is to find full-time employment within 6 months of graduating next year. I do feel this is realistic.
- To ditto what everyone else has said, I think it is a very versatile degree and I do not blame you at all for caring about the financial aspect of the job. Social workers need to have a home and food too!