Career change from Social Work?

[winneythepooh7]

I have been thinking A LOT about getting out of this field for a TON of reasons lately (which could be a whole other thread in itself). The problem is I have NO IDEA what else I would be qualified for. I have worked in the social services field since 1998, primarily in mental health. Going back to school is NOT an option because I already owe 80K in loans. I also need to make at least the equivalent of what I am making now salary wise. I've been talking with friends and co-workers and they feel I am a good Social Worker and encourage me to look into doing Administrative work in this field, but even that doesn't appeal to me much due to all the bureacracy we are faced with "at the top". I like supervising, but even that can be frustrating at times. I don't think there are many Social Workers on these threads, but I was wondering in general if anyone has any advice or suggestions. Most of my "frustrations" have more to do with stuff like working with incompetent staff, lack of services available, dealing with burnt out Social Workers, that kind of thing, and not the clients themselves really. I know that no job is perfect but I think in my field, especially, with the state of our country today, things are definately going to continue to get worse. Help!!!

[AChiOAlumna]

Hey winnie...

I'm not a social worker. I'm a marriage and family therapist working towards state licensure. I spent three years doing social work-related duties for County mental health while accruing licensure hours and can appreciate your frustrations!!! I finally had to leave my job because the caseloads were out of control and all we were doing was putting out fires!

As a social worker, you have A LOT of options...especially since you are an LCSW...your license goes a lot further than my MFT licensure, which is restricted to my state. You can even go into a university or community college as a counselor for disability services (especially with YOUR mental health background!), the student health center, or career services.

May I suggest that you look at the aspects of social work you DO like and see what jobs fits those parts...

If you'd like to PM me to talk further, I'd be happy to talk...

[PsychTau]

Hmmmm.....I agree. I think you should identify what you ENJOY about your job, and use that as your guidepost.

Thinking about the state of Arkansas (each state could be different), you could work at a college or university as a counselor in their counseling services, you could be an internship coordinator for their social work interns, maybe an academic advisor specializing in the social science majors, you could go work at a private psych hospital doing therapy there, you could find a private long term psych facility (for children or for CMI adults) and be a therapist, you could work in a med/surg hospital as one of their social workers, you could possibly teach undergrad or community college classes (maybe in sociology?....depends on what the schools want), you might be able to work in a public high school/junior high (depends on what the district requires...some are so desperate for good workers they waive the 2 year teaching requirement/teaching license), you could work for a daycare that specializes in children who can't handle regular daycare (due to illness or behavior problems), you could be an admissions coordinator (blech! some people like it, I didn't) in a psych hospital, you can be a research assistant (may not pay much though), you could do prison evaluations.....well, that's it for right now!!

I have a master's in counseling psychology, which qualifies me to be a therapist. After working 8 years in the psych field (and volunteering for AST for 6 years), I jumped ship and I'm now a Greek advisor. I had plenty of background classes in my major....it was a matter of having the knowledge about Greeks and not necessarily the "Higher Ed/Student Affairs" degree. So a career change can be done without going back to school, but you have to sit down and figure out what skills and talents you have, then find a job description that you can match.

Good Luck to you!
PsychTau

[Honeykiss1974]

Originally posted by winneythepooh7
I have been thinking A LOT about getting out of this field for a TON of reasons lately (which could be a whole other thread in itself). The problem is I have NO IDEA what else I would be qualified for. I have worked in the social services field since 1998, primarily in mental health. Going back to school is NOT an option because I already owe 80K in loans. I also need to make at least the equivalent of what I am making now salary wise. I've been talking with friends and co-workers and they feel I am a good Social Worker and encourage me to look into doing Administrative work in this field, but even that doesn't appeal to me much due to all the bureacracy we are faced with "at the top". I like supervising, but even that can be frustrating at times. I don't think there are many Social Workers on these threads, but I was wondering in general if anyone has any advice or suggestions. Most of my "frustrations" have more to do with stuff like working with incompetent staff, lack of services available, dealing with burnt out Social Workers, that kind of thing, and not the clients themselves really. I know that no job is perfect but I think in my field, especially, with the state of our country today, things are definately going to continue to get worse. Help!!!

Have you ever considered being a Social Worker for a heath system/hospital (we called them Case Managers)? I'm thinking more along the lines of an acute care facility (either for profit or not-for-profit). You would be dealing with mostly patients (ie. uninsured, terminal, etc.) and medical staff.

Just a thought...

[winneythepooh7]

Hi all. I don't know if it is the stress of the holidays or what, but things are getting much worse. I find myself getting REALLY upset several times per week and it is to the point where I just don't want to do this anymore. I feel like I wasted 3 years in grad school and a whole lotta money as well. But again, I still don't know what else I could be qualified to do. I've gone on interviews with other populations in my field and continue to send out resumes but I just don't feel like this is what I want for the rest of my life. I don't see the profession getting any better, in fact, I think it is getting worse and WORSE. People (and not clients either, ie. other Social Workers) are down right mean in the field too and I find myself feeling sick to my stomach on Sundays thinking about having to go to work the next day. My friends and family have even begun to notice a change in me too because I just don't feel like doing anything anymore except laying low when I am not at work. I like my clients and the people I work with but other then that, I am really hating what I do. Sorry for the rant, if anyone has any advice, please help!!!!!

[AChiOAlumna]

Hi winney....

G-d! You sound just like I did this time last year! i had that same stomachache on Sunday nights and multiple breakdown sessions weekly...now that I left I feel much better....

What brought you to the field of social work? What do you like about social work (in general...not related to any specific job)? How can you incorporate your ilkes into a new position?

Have you considered getting out of the government-run agencies, which are filled with BS and bureaucracy and go into a corporate-run field? That's what I did and it helped immensely! Do private-funded hospitals, like Kaiser or St. Joseph's have openings for LCSWs in your area? The nice thing about these type of establishments is that they take care of their own. If you do a good job, you get noticed and appreciated for it...

I wish you the best of luck...it can be tough this field....there are options out there for you!! Hopefully you'll find it soon! I'd hate to see another good SW'er drop out due to a bad system!

[winneythepooh7]

I think that is the major problem I am having right now at work. Because I work with mostly clients who are mandated to services by the courts, we have these wretched people always nagging us about what we are NOT doing for our clients. It is hard because we have clients that have basically burnt all their bridges and are now not eligible for a lot of services and these court-established agencies are always taking it out on US when the clients can't get services. If a client is unwilling to go to rehab, it is our fault. If a client has tried to hurt others because they are antisocial, it is our fault. If a client can't get into supervised housing because they've terrorized clients in another supervised housing setting it is seen as our fault. I am getting tired of dealing with people who are not my actual supervisor or client telling me that I am not doing my job right. I am also sick of just putting out fires or being seen by clients as a "police officer" always calling 911. I didn't go to SW school for that. I am sure it would be a lot better in a hospital or private agency. It just sucks right now because in NYC, like every major city, I am sure, the market is flooded with Social Workers. Because of that, it is difficult to switch populations because they want you to have experience with that particular population and they also have an endless supply of applications to choose from. For example, I thought about working with the elderly and I have actually gone on interviews for this population and I have noticed the same pattern: "All your experience lies in mental health, you don't have experience with the elderly". So I feel pretty stuck right now. After the holidays I am going to get together with my old field instructors and see if they have any connections for me. In the meantime, it still sucks though. I have a meeting this morning with those horrible people I was describing above. Ugh. I wish it was just Thursday already.

[FeeFee]

Hey Winnie,

Check out the NYC Dept of Education website and see if there are any openings for School Social Workers. I'm in the process of getting a Master's in School Counseling, and the school where I'm doing my practicum has a School Social Worker there. I also know someone who just got a position as a School Social Worker, and she worked as a Social Worker someplace else before that.

Do you know any relatives and/or friends who work in the school system? If so, speak to them.

If you do become a School Social Worker, at least you'll have all the school holidays/vacations to look forward to.

[AChiOAlumna]

Originally posted by winneythepooh7
I think that is the major problem I am having right now at work. Because I work with mostly clients who are mandated to services by the courts, we have these wretched people always nagging us about what we are NOT doing for our clients. It is hard because we have clients that have basically burnt all their bridges and are now not eligible for a lot of services and these court-established agencies are always taking it out on US when the clients can't get services. If a client is unwilling to go to rehab, it is our fault. If a client has tried to hurt others because they are antisocial, it is our fault. If a client can't get into supervised housing because they've terrorized clients in another supervised housing setting it is seen as our fault. I am getting tired of dealing with people who are not my actual supervisor or client telling me that I am not doing my job right.

OMG! This reminds me SO much of county mental health! Can I tell you how many times I got blamed for the clt's actions. "Well you must not be a good enough MFT if you can't get him/her to do blank." I even had a woman scream at me in the clinic lobby stating I wasn't helping her and that I've done nothing for her in all the months that she was coming!" (In reality, I had scheduled many appointments with her and she'd constantly no show!)

It's almost like these clts EXPECT the service rather than recognize that these services are a gift. Unfortunately, the way the system is set up, it only fosters the dependence the clts have on us, so it's as much as losing battle for the clt as it is for us!

Sounds like you've got a good plan to talk to your professors...also, try going onto www.socialservice.com to see what else is out there!

[Munchkin03]

Have you considered going into Student Affairs? As a few people have mentioned, Health Education, Counseling Services, and Disability Services offices at universities often have LCSWs on staff.

Not only would you have a school calendar, you'd also have access to classes if you wanted to go back to school without incurring more debt.

[winneythepooh7]

In NYS, there is a different process and license to become a school SWer. Also I think you have to have a lot of experience in a school first. I love this idea though. I actually have gone on interviews for not school SWer but similar positions for SWers in schools and the response has always been "but all your experience lies in mental health" and "you don't have school experience". I think Munchkin is on to something and I am going to start looking into it more after the holidays. I just need to get through the next few weeks first. Also, we are very short-staffed here and need another SWer which leads to higher stress levels in the office for the entire team. I'll keep you all posted though.

[FeeFee]

Originally posted by winneythepooh7
In NYS, there is a different process and license to become a school SWer. Also I think you have to have a lot of experience in a school first. I love this idea though. I actually have gone on interviews for not school SWer but similar positions for SWers in schools and the response has always been "but all your experience lies in mental health" and "you don't have school experience". I think Munchkin is on to something and I am going to start looking into it more after the holidays. I just need to get through the next few weeks first. Also, we are very short-staffed here and need another SWer which leads to higher stress levels in the office for the entire team. I'll keep you all posted though.

My friend who just became a School Social Worker did not have any school experience either (I'll ask her to double-check).

Good Luck in whatever you decide.

[AXO_MOM_3]

Winnie - Have you thought about "job shadowing" or volunteering some time to get some experience in the areas you are interested in? Volenteering has led me to at least two jobs before. If you could spend one night a week working with the elderly in a home, then you will get to know the people who work in that facility...which might lead to a recommendation for a job should one open...just a thought. Research before you start and pick a place that you really want to work based on salary and benefits. Just a thought!

[Tippiechick]

Winnie, as much as you like dogs, you might think about becoming a groomer! You mentioned becoming a vet tech in another thread, so it might be up your alley. There's a VERY exclusive school in NYC. (NYC School of Dog Grooming, I think.)

You know, as a groomer, I make more money than I would have teaching. (I make more money than my cousins who have their masters.)

If you love dogs, and I know you do, you might enjoy it. It is refreshing to only have to deal with dogs all day. They are so much better than people!

[winneythepooh7]

Thanks Tippie!!!! I got some info about a Vet Tech program and there is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much math involved, and that is just not my thing. I will look into this though, thanks