What Are Some Career Alternatives for Social Work?

Question by chikeymonky: What are some career alternatives for social work?
I have a BA in Social Work and minored in Psychology. Currently, I work in the training/education field. Can anyone suggest other career opportunties?

Best answer:

Answer by No A
You don’t say where you’re located or what your licensure is. I work at a community mental health facility and our social workers do anything from case management, crisis intervention, rape crisis, vocational training, group work, alcohol and drug counseling, and with an LISW they even do counseling. There are also social workers at Human Services, Children’s Services. and I have a social work instructor that has a private practice.

Answer by waswisgirl1
According to the US Dept of Labor, here’s some of the career options for someone with a social work degree:

*Child, family, and school social workers provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to maximize the family well-being and academic functioning of children.

*Medical and public health social workers provide persons, families, or vulnerable populations with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, or AIDS.

*Mental health and substance abuse social workers assess and treat individuals with mental illness or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs. Such services include individual and group therapy, outreach, crisis intervention, social rehabilitation, and training in skills of everyday living.

*Other types of social workers include social work planners and policymakers, who develop programs to address such issues as child abuse, homelessness, substance abuse, poverty, and violence. These workers research and analyze policies, programs, and regulations. They identify social problems and suggest legislative and other solutions. They may help raise funds or write grants to support these programs.

*Other career options for social workers include teaching, research, and consulting. Some of these workers also help formulate government policies by analyzing and advocating policy positions in government agencies, in research institutions, and on legislators’ staffs.

*Some social workers go into private practice. Most private practitioners are clinical social workers who provide psychotherapy, usually paid for through health insurance or by the client themselves. Private practitioners must have at least a master’s degree and a period of supervised work experience. A network of contacts for referrals also is essential. Many private practitioners split their time between working for an agency or hospital and working in their private practice. They may continue to hold a position at a hospital or agency in order to receive health and life insurance.

*Through direct counseling or referral to other services, social workers help people solve a range of personal problems. Workers in occupations with similar duties include counselors, probation officers and correctional treatment specialists, psychologists, and social and human services assistants.

*A good friend who has her social work degree runs the employee assistance programs for a number of corporations, and use to work as a chaplain assistant in a hospital, a youth program director at a church, and worked in a group home for runaway teenagers.

For information about career opportunities in social work, contact:
National Association of Social Workers, 750 First St. N.E., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20002-4241. Internet: http://www.socialworkers.org

Good luck!

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