Calling all Social Workers

...whinge, perhaps?

How many of us are here (Don, Joshua and me + two others I know not on this site) an how many are on their way (Paula, et al)?


Here is my latest observation... so I have been making home visits to families living in council housing. I came back to the office one day and asked "So does the housing association furnish these places? The three I saw all have nice leather couches and and huge screen tvs!" Um, no was the answer. Many of the families I work with are living off so many benefits that they can afford the best furnishing. Disability Living Allowance for the kid, Carer's Allowance for themselves, often unemployment benefits, Child Benefits (for each child in the home).... oh the list goes on.

Anybody else see the same thing?

Imagine if the government pulled a welfare to work type scheme all of the sudden. Whoa, just think of the savings! Often times I think the services and beliefs here are 20 years behind America (or at least my little part of California)! They are trying integration in schools but no training for teachers or get this... no support services for kids who do mainstream! What? Oh wait, there is one Special Education Needs Coordinator (SENCO) in each school, but really there should be more. I am working with a family who has a kid that was out of school for 3-4 years because they couldn't find a placement for him. How do you do that to a 7 year old?

I like my work though, really. 

Would any of the Social Workers here be interested in meeting, or setting up a regular communication site?  I think it would be great for all of us transplanted social workers to get together and talk a bit....share information etc....

Don, I'd be interested in either or both (once I actually get over there  ). There will be 12 of us joining Merton (one of these days) and, from what I understand, numerous others working at various Boroughs around London as well as other parts of the UK. Maybe start a thread asking who would be interested, then go from there?

Hey! 

I have a few questions regarding social work and what type of schooling it intails.

Do you need to finish up GE's? If so which ones? In college I took random classes like Pyschology, Math, English & Sign Language. I didn't know what I wanted to do so I just took random classes that seemed fun too me. Will any of those count towards the GE's?

At the University of Phoenix they have a Bachelor of Science in Human Services/Management program (Online). I'm guessing I'll need to do the GE's ontop of the actual classes for the Bachelors so...including ge's how long would it take...start to finish?

 

I'm not sure what GE's stand for.  Also, if you want to do social work, your best bet is to get a degree in Social Work, especially if you want to work in the UK.  Some places such as hospitals or schools will not take degrees other than Social Work in the USA.  What type of social work are you interested in?

GE- General Ed.

Best to check the school of social work you'd like to attend and go from there. all degrees require completion of GE in different areas like math and arts etc.

Some of your credits might be transferable but, to obtain a Bachelor's degree in Social Work will take 3-4 years no matter how many credits who have so far. It's because the social work courses are pretty much one-after-another. Each course is a prerequisite of the next one up. There's very little fudging on the four year program. You might be able to cut that down to three by going all year round, but it'll be tough.

I'm not sure what GE's stand for.  Also, if you want to do social work, your best bet is to get a degree in Social Work, especially if you want to work in the UK.  Some places such as hospitals or schools will not take degrees other than Social Work in the USA.  What type of social work are you interested in?

GE's are general ed classes. Im not sure I want to do it, I was just looking into it seeing as social workers are in need there. 

Hi guys!

I had to post this as I think its exciting news!

The NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) are offering social work traineeships for people who have previous experience of working with children and young people.

You will work in a team for the on-the-job training as well as completing the NVQ and social work degree.

Here is the website for furthur details:

www.nspcc.org.uk


Wish me luck as I am applying for one of the places!


Angela

Good luck, Angela! That's a wonderful opportunity!

GE's are general ed classes. Im not sure I want to do it, I was just looking into it seeing as social workers are in need there. 

I think I stated it before on your other thread.  If it's not something you were thinking about before you found out it would be useful to have in the UK, then it probably isn't for you.  It's a hard job.  You deal with people at their worst in most social work jobs.  However, I am always excited when someone chooses this as their career path.  But I've seen people start to really change their minds after they have started their coursework or after they have graduated.  Those people were the ones who wanted a degree in something they could use and were somewhat interested in it but not as much as others and then have to go back to school or try another career path.

reeeeka, If you want to practice social work you will most likely need a social work degree. The university where I got my bachelor's degree in SW( and where I am now getting my MSW) offered only the last two years of study towards the BSW. So, like you, I took my general university required courses at another school and transferred to my current school for my Jr. and Sr. years and grad. school. You may want to look for schools in your area that have a SW degree and see which of your credits will transfer.

That said, if you plan on working as a social worker you need to be prepared to provide support and encouragement and be a staunch advocate for people who have suffered and are probably still suffering. You will need to deal with and have true compassion for people who have engaged in behavior out of desperation or just from having been mistreated, behavior that a person might find disturbing. You will have clients who have suffered in ways that you cannot imagine. You will have clients like the mom whose baby was found floating in a lake in a plastic bag.

SW is not a profession to go into lightly; the work is rewarding and also difficult, the pay is not great and you will be exposed to a great deal of human suffering and it's accompanying baggage. I happen to LOVE it, but it is not the right job for everyone. I am not saying that it isn't the right job for you, but you should know what you might be getting yourself into.

 I am sure that, whatever field you chose, there are many schools out there that will accept your transfer credits. So if you choose to get a university degree, you are already on the way. Good luck!

reeeeka, If you want to practice social work you will most likely need a social work degree. The university where I got my bachelor's degree in SW( and where I am now getting my MSW) offered only the last two years of study towards the BSW. So, like you, I took my general university required courses at another school and transferred to my current school for my Jr. and Sr. years and grad. school. You may want to look for schools in your area that have a SW degree and see which of your credits will transfer.

That said, if you plan on working as a social worker you need to be prepared to provide support and encouragement and be a staunch advocate for people who have suffered and are probably still suffering. You will need to deal with and have true compassion for people who have engaged in behavior out of desperation or just from having been mistreated, behavior that a person might find disturbing. You will have clients who have suffered in ways that you cannot imagine. You will have clients like the mom whose baby was found floating in a lake in a plastic bag.

SW is not a profession to go into lightly; the work is rewarding and also difficult, the pay is not great and you will be exposed to a great deal of human suffering and it's accompanying baggage. I happen to LOVE it, but it is not the right job for everyone. I am not saying that it isn't the right job for you, but you should know what you might be getting yourself into.

 I am sure that, whatever field you chose, there are many schools out there that will accept your transfer credits. So if you choose to get a university degree, you are already on the way. Good luck!

Very well said, Liz. Those of us who are social workers understand sometimes how difficult it is to show compassion when a client has done something most would consider horrid or appalling but we know that we must, somehow, find it within ourselves to try to understand what event(s) or circumstances motivated their action.

Another difficult aspect of social work is to KNOW what someone should choose but stand by them and be supportive when they choose another path. None of these things are easy but it is what we signed on for and what our clients need from us.

reeeeka, I mentioned on another thread that your compassionate nature was commendable. If you think that you can learn, in time, to show compassion even when you are appalled by someone's behavior, then pursuing social work may very well be for you. Some people are born with this ability, some can acquire it over time.

My university program was such an excellent one - small university, small program, all of the professors knew all of the students. They were very good at working with the ones who struggled with these issues, eventually weeding out those not really suited to social work. Just be realistic with yourself about who you really are....deep inside. You'll find your path. 

I think I stated it before on your other thread.  If it's not something you were thinking about before you found out it would be useful to have in the UK, then it probably isn't for you.  It's a hard job.  You deal with people at their worst in most social work jobs.  However, I am always excited when someone chooses this as their career path.  But I've seen people start to really change their minds after they have started their coursework or after they have graduated.  Those people were the ones who wanted a degree in something they could use and were somewhat interested in it but not as much as others and then have to go back to school or try another career path.

Yeah I was into it a few years ago but was really turned off at the thought of parents being pissed at me and seeing children cry and taking them away and...It just seems like a very emotional job. I doubt I could handle it lol.

Yeah I was into it a few years ago but was really turned off at the thought of parents being pissed at me and seeing children cry and taking them away and...It just seems like a very emotional job. I doubt I could handle it lol.

Well, don't work with children then!  LOL  I've had a parent offer to 'get rid of me'.  However, she did have a severe personality disorder, these are things that you run across when working with people's children sometimes. 

Yeah I was into it a few years ago but was really turned off at the thought of parents being pissed at me and seeing children cry and taking them away and...It just seems like a very emotional job. I doubt I could handle it lol.

not all social workers "take children away" (aka child protection).  I don't and wouldn't want to work in that environment... I get plenty of dysfunction in my job with out the abuse bit. Social workers work in schools, with older adults, addiction, people/children with disabilities, foster care, adoption, in hospitals.... oh so many things!!

Like Liz I did my undergraduate course work in two years, but that was after getting all the requirements and that is the trickiest part as you are figuring out.

What I like best about social work is that you can switch your area of focus to find what best suits you. I've done fostering, community counseling, school social work, disabilities work... who knows what's next?