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License To Choose
Not everyone working in the field of social work is a “social worker.” A person becomes an official, certified social worker through state-organized testing and licensing. To give you an idea of the range of work types available to accredited social workers, here are ten different types of social work jobs.

ADOPTION AGENT:
Adoption agents assist in the process of successful adoption from both the biological family’s side and the adopting family’s side. They meet with the birth parents to attempt to ensure the smooth separation and decisive resolve that will be required to achieve a successful adoption. Likewise, they work with adoptive parents to prepare them for the potential frustration and elation involved in the adoption process. They determine whether a particular adoptive family will make suitable parents, fulfilling any special needs the child may have. Adoption agents match families according to desired openness of the adoption, assisting with visitation in some cases. They do any follow-up required to ensure that new families are working well.

CHILD WELFARE OFFICER:
Child welfare officers work with families of children with difficulty socializing, parents with disabled or ill children, parents with daycare challenges, and parents with disabilities or addictions. They work for government or community agencies, hospitals and schools, ensuring the safety of children who are at risk of becoming neglected, critically ill or otherwise endangered.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE WORKER:
Social workers involved with criminal justice often evaluate criminals and criminal behavior to determine probable causes, patterns, states of mind, and appropriate sentencing for criminals facing juries. They also assist police in the process of catching criminals by interpreting criminal activity and recognizing possible clues in the creation of criminal profiles.

HEALTHCARE COUNSELOR:
Healthcare social workers offer counseling to families with members who are experiencing acute or terminal illness. They help develop support systems for people with recovery and rehabilitation challenges. They may assist in the organization of support groups for people with similar illnesses, or help to arrange for in-home care for patients who must continue recovery after hospital discharge.

HOTLINE ADMINISTRATOR:
Health hotlines are comparatively recent resources that have demonstrated usefulness in the preservation of social health. Qualified social workers provide appropriate training and supervision for hotline staff and volunteers, who offer emergency and crisis counseling to the public and social service networks. Organizations and specialists in a range of areas, including chemical abuse, domestic abuse, debilitating illness, and family planning, await calls from people reaching out in their hour of need. These organizations also assist government agencies in tracking the social needs of a given geographic and the success of existing social services.

OCCUPATIONAL SOCIAL WORKER:
Occupational social workers are employed by companies or corporations to manage the emotional or physical challenges faced by their employees. Occupational social workers may track the health of the employees as a group or manage the needs of an individual employee. They assist individuals in finding counseling appropriate to his or her difficulty or represent an employee’s special issues to his or her manager when personal crises affect a worker’s performance.

PROTECTIVE SERVICES WORKER:
These social workers assist police agencies with investigating reports of domestic neglect or abuse of children or adults. They often determine and initiate legal action to remove abused people from dangerous home environments, placing children in foster care or adults in emergency housing.

REHABILITATION COUNSELOR:
Rehabilitation counselors work with recovering addicts or criminal offenders. They help clients take different paths from those that brought them to the point of intervention. Whether providing detoxification or incarceration counseling, or post-release counseling and follow-up, they track progress and manage setbacks with their clients, helping to provide the stability that many in rehabilitation have difficulty developing for themselves.

SCHOOL COUNSELOR:
School counselors diagnose and assist in the treatment of students with learning disabilities, socially and developmentally challenged students, and students growing up with domestic conflicts. By attempting to manage and combat these challenges early, these social workers help students during their primary years of growth. Effective counseling during a person’s school years can provide the best chance for that individual to maximize his or her talents later in life.

SHELTER OPERATOR:
Social workers involved with homeless shelters and emergency shelters are often the sole advocates for citizens whose special needs would otherwise go unrecognized. These counselors assist those in crisis by providing shelter, food and support options that may assist them to achieve safer lives beyond the shelters. They also provide information to government agencies regarding the numbers of people in need, types of assistance most often sought, and what follow-up is necessary to remedy the dangers that threaten their clients’ well-being. This could mean drug rehabilitation programs, battered women’s services or foster care.

Passion For Compassion

• Lend a hand. Social workers like to assist people. Being around people, offering comfort, providing options, and inspiring hope are all part of the job. Help out around the house and in the classroom. Be patient with others and try to find solutions for any disputes. Try your hand at caring for kids at home or babysitting for neighbors. Be helpful to and respectful of senior citizens whenever you have the chance.
• Volunteer! There are so many ways that you can contribute, starting today. Search under keywords KIDS VOLUNTEER on the Internet for social agencies that take student volunteers. For instance, you could serve food at a homeless shelter, help make Christmas ornaments for families without the resources to buy them, and create Valentines and chocolate treats with nursing home residents. You might also discover social work agencies or hotlines where you can volunteer and learn about social work from the inside.
• Be cooperative. Social workers have incredible patience and work well with all kinds of personalities. This is a skill you can work on your entire life, so it’s never too soon to start. Catch yourself as frustration sets in, and attempt to calm tensions rather than escalating aggression. Avoid projecting a bad attitude when communicating your concerns and desires, and take responsibility for your feelings instead of blaming or crediting them to others.
• Surf and turf. Search on the Internet by keywords SOCIAL WORK and SOCIAL SERVICES to learn about how to become a social worker and to read testimonials from social workers providing services in a variety of areas.
• Watch the news. Check your local TV news and newspapers to find social work efforts going on around you every day. Updates on social programs, services and workers often make their way to the headlines in your community.

In Someone Else’s Shoes
The best social workers are problem solvers. They recognize an individual or group with special needs and attempt to find solutions for their disadvantages. Can you imagine what it would be like to suddenly lose your ability to walk? How would you need to adjust your everyday life? Would you be able to get around your school in a wheelchair? Would your chair fit in your family’s car? What changes would have to be made in your lifestyle and surroundings? Would you be able to continue with your favorite hobbies, or would you have to pick up new ones?

For this activity, imagine that one of your parents is suddenly dealing with narcolepsy – an illness characterized by the sudden and uncontrollable attack of deep sleep. What immediate changes would your family need to make and how would each family member need to adapt?

First, make a list of three immediate challenges that would accompany such a diagnosis for your parent. Some examples are driving, work and childcare. On three pieces of paper, write one challenge at the top of each piece.

Next, use the Internet to research ways in which social workers and social services could help your family to acclimate to a new way of life. Are there courses and support groups available for families with a narcoleptic parent? Are there organizations that help advocate for clients whose illnesses threaten their work performance or ability to safely watch over young kids? Find three resources available to your family to attempt to combat each of the three challenges you’ve listed and write them on the related piece of paper.

Next, list any new or “second tier” difficulties associated with the three helpful resources on each problem sheet. For example, a course being offered for families dealing with narcolepsy may only meet a long distance away from your home during the evening. This may mean that a reliable babysitter and driver will be needed during class and commuting time, meals will have to be planned in advance, and funds will need to be secured to pay for the course, babysitter and extra gas.

Lastly, attempt to search for resources that may help your family resolve these second tier difficulties. Are there agencies that assist people with low-cost driving solutions? Record your findings.

As you can see, one challenge often leads to many. Though you’ve only scratched the surface, from this exercise you should be able to see how social services assist those in need, and which resources are available to the public. You can do this exercise as many times as you like, substituting a different challenge each time. It’s a great way to learn about the social services available in your area and to find volunteer opportunities for young people with interests in social work.

Q. In what type of social work are you involved, and what about it is not what you expected?

Marian L., a Licensed Independent Social Worker in Cincinnati, OH, says:

I am involved in clinical social work. That means I see children, adolescents, and adults who have a variety of problems around learning, working, playing, and in relating to other people. We meet in my office and talk about the problems. What we talk about is very private. Some people come only a few times and some people come to meetings for many years to learn about themselves.

When I became a clinical social worker, I expected people in my profession to get along easily because I thought they worked on their own problems. Boy, was I wrong! It is very important for professional counselors to work out their own problems before trying to help others, and to exemplify the idea that health is about continuing to better ourselves throughout our lives.