What made you want to have a career in Social Work

[LittleDarlings]

I am sitting here thinking about why I want to pursue and MSW... I don't know. I mean I know I want to but I have no clue why.  I always wanted to do the counseling aspect of social work just because I went/go to counseling and I know how I feel when I leave and how it helps me and I would love to do that for someone else. My goal is to work in private practice and ideally I want to do couples counseling and stuff like that but what kind of people am I going to be dealing with? Am I honestly going to be able to give these people a non-judgmental opinion? I mean I am super opinionated and I can (and have) called people out on their stupidity.  I obviously know as a counselor I can't do that, and I am just wondering how this whole thing will work out.  I mean at this point I have applied and I am not withdrawing my applications so I guess I just have to wait and see, if I don't go back to school I don't know what I will do with my life.  I will be stuck completely and I hate that.  Do you think your time in the Masters program changed you at all, I have read that it is like a time for personal reflection and stuff so maybe that will help? I have no idea.  

Edited December 19, 2013 by Pinkster12

[nightwolf1129]

I served in the military for 8 1/2 years working in engineering and logistics/supply.  When I got out of the service in 2007, I was offered a job working a nuclear power plant but quickly realized that that line of work was not very fulfilling---I wanted to learn about and better understand people.  After I got laid-off in the Spring of 2009, I enrolled at a local college and pursued a B.A. in Psychology.  It was then, during my coursework in Psychology (particularly a course in Clinical & Counseling Psychology) that I began to see the importance of examining mental health issues on a family/societal level.  Over the course of 2 1/2 years, I took courses in both Psychology and Sociology that helped me better understand not only the world around me and how we interact, but why I am who I am as I (like many of us) am a product of my upbringing and subsequently my parents' upbringing as well.  More specifically, I recognized the importance of self-examination and how true change comes from within.  During my senior year I had the opportunity to intern with an intensive case manager and that really began to open my eyes to the field of social work.  Upon graduation last year, I got offered a job as a research assistant studying PTSD among the Veteran and military population.  As a Veteran and former military dependent myself, this experience has really broadened my understanding of the issues many returning Veterans and their families face.  My goal, as a potential clinical social worker, is to help improve the lives of our current and future military and Veteran population because if it wasn't for the assistance I received from the VA in my transition from the military, I probably wouldn't be here.

[LittleDarlings]

That is pretty awesome, it's cool that you are focused in one particular area. I guess I am having a hard time with the fact that I have no idea what kind of situations I will deal with and how can I not be biased or feel a certain way? I mean isn't that human nature? 

[hj2012]

I guess I am having a hard time with the fact that I have no idea what kind of situations I will deal with and how can I not be biased or feel a certain way? I mean isn't that human nature? 

 

I think it is in our nature to be biased, but the beauty is that we can learn to overcome them. In your course as a social worker (and in life in general), you will 100% definitely meet people who make life decisions that, to you, seem questionable. I believe that to grow and mature, you have to learn to empathize with people whose values and goals are diametrically opposed to yours. This doesn't mean that you approve or support their decisions -- it just means that you approach others with the mindset of helping them, even at the expense of your own frustration.

 

For example, I recently had a friend who got a DUI. In this case, my friend was distraught and came to me for advice. Though my instinct was to tell her off for doing something so incredibly irresponsible --  I am morally opposed to drunk driving -- I suppressed that desire. I tried to weigh my words according to how much they will help HER, not serve as a conduit for my own biases. In this case, berating her and telling her she was irresponsible (something she already knows) does nothing to help her current situation, so it would be for my own benefit and not hers. She was already feeling like a crap human being and was looking for advice, not confirmation that she was worthless. 

 

However, I can say that I would have reacted very differently a few years ago. I'm not a social worker, but I've been working as a teacher, and I can tell you that the experience has made me much more open-minded and patient with others. Nothing like hormonal teenagers for testing your patience.

 

Over time, you will find that many of the things that struck you as irresponsible or silly are now just representations of the diversity of the human experience. I'm much more understanding of the circumstances that shape people's decisions and how what seems best to me isn't always best to everyone else.

 

Anyway, if you really can't see yourself letting go of some of your biases and putting other people's needs above your own ... I would really rethink social work. It's a draining job, even for those who aren't judgmental and easily frustrated.

[nightwolf1129]

As someone who is probably the most stubborn person I know, you won't change if you're not willing to change.  You've probably heard the saying "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't force it to drink".  I think this really speaks true about the field of social work.  I'm currently volunteering helping local Veterans find employment and build job-related skills.  But as many of us know, finding a full-time job IS a full-time job and most jobs won't simply fall into your lap.  Why?  Because you have to work for it.  As a job search mentor I find that often times their motivation level is somewhat to be desired, but I can't force them to do anything.  Ultimately that responsibility falls on their shoulders.  I view myself like a driver's ed instructor.  I may be in the passenger seat with a chicken brake, but they're behind the wheel, steering the car and in control of the brake & gas.  In other words, I'm simply acting as a guide who recommends a path to go down but ultimately they're the ones who are making the decision.  And yes it sucks sometimes because I am someone who wants to be in control, but I've had to learn to let it go.  As someone who's political and social views are somewhat of a minority in a "blue state", I've had to learn to keep my opinions (and biases) to myself and look at the situation unbiasly.  It is then, when we can look at a situation unbiasly, that we're able to take an objective approach to the issues we're facing as a social worker or therapist.  I hope that makes sense.

[Purplescarves]

It's impossible to ever see things objectively or without some level of bias. That's just the reality of being a human. We never completely leave our opinions at the door. Rather, you learn the ethics and values of the profession in social work school and you start to strive to reach them. You start to recognize your values, biases, and the situations in which you make judgments that would be detrimental to the client. Sometimes you do really well with a client and other times you are actively struggling in your mind trying to maintain a nonjudgmental attitude. It's a lifelong practice. Maybe you are so opinionated because you care so much?

What would you consider to be stupidity? Being a social worker doesn't mean you stop questioning things and judging. You can "call people out" in this work, but the important things are why, when, and how you do it. I worry more about you feeling as if social work school is the only way to not be stuck. I encourage you to think more about your options and why social work. Grad school is an investment in multiple levels and you will definitely want to know once you become a student.