Do you want to help people? Have you got a burning desire to make a difference? If so, then social work could be a great career move for you.
Social workers see the best and worst of human nature and witness extraordinary acts of kindness and terrible cases of neglect. Suffice to say it’s a role which can be challenging and rewarding in equal measure.
So why should you become a social worker? We’ve put together a list of the main reasons people enter the profession. See how many you can identify with.
Top reasons to become a social worker.
- You’ll never be bored – Social work keeps you on your toes and every day you’ll face new challenges, working with different people and dealing with unexpected situations. Situations will crop up, so you have to be flexible and ready to respond at short notice.
- It’s not a desk job - You’ll spend time in the office but equally you’ll be out and about visiting people’s homes, community centres and hospitals. It’s not 9-5 either - you could be called out at all hours to deal with an emergency.
- You get to help others – Arguably one of the most satisfying parts to the job is making a difference. You get to help people and change their lives for the better and there is no greater reward than seeing someone overcome difficulty or help them through a crisis.
- It’s challenging – Social work is rewarding but it’s also highly challenging because you’ll be confronted with some pretty distressing situations during your work. It doesn’t just stretch your professional skills but will challenge your emotional ones as well – you may have to deal with children who have been abused or adults with drug or alcohol issues.
- It’s diverse – Social work is extremely varied and you can branch off into many different specialisms as your experience grows. You could work in child protection, mental health, the prison service or with victims of domestic violence to name but a few.
- You’ll learn plenty about yourself - Social work can help you to develop different skills. You might find you’re great at communication or leadership. Creativity may be of benefit in difficult situations when you have to think outside the box to help people.
- It empowers and gives you a sense of justice – Every day we see stuff which upsets us – homelessness, children being neglected, adults suffering from the ravages of drugs – but as a social worker on the front line you actually get to do something about it. You can use your emotion and work practically to help tackle some of these issues.
Social work isn’t for the faint hearted but if you want a career where you can genuinely say you do make a difference to other people’s lives then apply now and start changing things for the better.
