colleges with degrees in social work

[PsychTau]

Originally posted by amgn253
I am currently a case manager for the elderly. I love my job. I help them arrange services, make sure they are living comfortably and safely in their home, and make referrals when needed. Coordinating services to me seems more like social work. When I think of getting an MA in counseling, I think of being in sessions with clients helping them work through issues, not that I wouldn't be interested in that.

Well....I have nothing else to say except that you nailed that right on the head!!!! I have an MS in Counseling Psych, and maybe it's just me....but if I were doing case mgmt services I'd feel like I wasn't using my degree. You can be just as qualified with a counseling degree...but the SW fits much better.

Can you take a class or two at the SW school as a non degree seeking student that might help you get in (especially if you get A's)?

PsychTau

[IowaStatePhiPsi]

Originally posted by lilcatwngs
I'm a social work major and was wondering if there are any others or graduated members who could tell me if they enjoy it and if it is worth it. Hugs, Katie

My sister and my mother are social workers. It can be stressful at times but both enjoy their work.
My mother has her BSW from Valporaiso University and her MSW from University of Iowa. She just resigned from working with Hospice as a Bereavement (sp?) Counselor.
My sister got her BSW from Wartburg College. She has worked with after-school programs for troubled youth and has worked with programs assisting Bosnian and Serbian immigrants to settle in the Des Moines area. Currently she's working for the Salvation Army and works with Sudanese immigrants settling in the Omaha area.

[winneythepooh7]

Originally posted by PsychTau
Well....I have nothing else to say except that you nailed that right on the head!!!! I have an MS in Counseling Psych, and maybe it's just me....but if I were doing case mgmt services I'd feel like I wasn't using my degree. You can be just as qualified with a counseling degree...but the SW fits much better.

Can you take a class or two at the SW school as a non degree seeking student that might help you get in (especially if you get A's)?

PsychTau

PsychTau has made some really excellent points. I was a Clinical Social Work major but decided upon graduation that I don't want to do strictly "therapy" at this point in my life. It is more rewarding to me to be out there in the field actually linking my clients up to services to better their lives instead of just sitting in an office all day listening to them. Eventually I want to do this, but not right now. With an MSW you learn about a lot of different theory to work with difficult clients and how to link it your practice. I am sure it is similar in counseling. Depending on what part of the country you reside in, it may not matter what you get your degree in. Here in NY, it is more worthwhile to get an MSW because most jobs in the field are for MSW's. The suggestion about trying to take classes non-matric is also great. One of my former supervisors had her heart set on NYU. It is really difficult to get into their MSW program because there are only a limited amount of spaces. She got turned down once but took classes non-matric and got in her next time around. I'd say keep trying to get in. Keep working in the field and getting experience. Once you DO get in things are gonna get crazy and you are going to miss all your free time. But don't give up. Things seem to fall into place at the right time in our lives. Good luck!!!!

[winneythepooh7]

if you are a SW junky like I am and love discussion about the field, yahoogroups has a lot of wonderful SW listservs. Just go to yahoogroups.com and put in "social work". There is also a forum there for SW students. Have a great day!

[PsychTau]

Originally posted by winneythepooh7
With an MSW you learn about a lot of different theory to work with difficult clients and how to link it your practice. I am sure it is similar in counseling. Depending on what part of the country you reside in, it may not matter what you get your degree in.

I got my degree in Arkansas, where the U of A has a large SW program, and UCA has a Counseling Psych/School Psych program (they both turn out LAC/LPCs). We can get pretty competitive for jobs between the two groups, but a large part of that is politics between the two schools. (The Counseling Psych and School Psych programs go farther than the Counseling programs in that it teaches us how to give, score, and interpret psychological tests. It leads to a Licensed Psychological Examiner).

Probably the biggest difference I've noticed between the two degrees is that counseling prepares you to focus on the individual. Sure, you take family therapy classes and group counseling classes, but a large portion of the theory and techniques focus on the individual and what's going on with them personally. Social Work seems to focus more on the individual and how they interact with others....things like getting them connected with services in their community, school based programs, etc.

Of course there's always crossover, and everyone learns the basic theories....but when I've talked with SW students, their assignments seem to focus on observing clients interactions with others and their environment, while my assigments tended to focus on the individual.

Anyway, that's what I've seen here in AR....but of course each area can be different.

PsychTau

[amgn253]

Taking a class a quarter as a "non-admitted" student is a possibility at the school I applied to, so I have that as an option. The thing that sucks is non-admitted students aren't eligible for financial aid, so I would have to pay for the class out of pocket. It would be about $750. Yikes!

I'm trying to stay positive, but getting my options ready if things don't turn out the way I want. There are 11 weeks until the quarter starts, so I still have a little bit of time to hope that "A spot opened up for you!" letter shows up.

[FeeFee]

Originally posted by PsychTau
Probably the biggest difference I've noticed between the two degrees is that counseling prepares you to focus on the individual. Sure, you take family therapy classes and group counseling classes, but a large portion of the theory and techniques focus on the individual and what's going on with them personally. Social Work seems to focus more on the individual and how they interact with others....things like getting them connected with services in their community, school based programs, etc.
PsychTau

I'm currently working on my Master's in School Counseling. As part of the program, I have to take 2 fieldwork placements at a school and 1 at an agency (non-school).

The purpose of the fieldwork at an agency is to give us a broader view and knowledge of the different social sciences. Besides, as school counselors, we would have to spend some time referring a student and/or their parents to services that are outside of our scope of work.

In NYC, I noticed that having a MSW is very profitable...

[winneythepooh7]

[

In NYC, I noticed that having a MSW is very profitable... [/B][/QUOTE]

Yeah except the field is totally flooded right now. And agencies want to pay less and less so they will hire less-qualified people. The licensing law is going into effect this September so I hope that changes this problem in our field. I know that people in private practice make good money but I have awhile to go before I want-and am able-to do that. I think that in order to provide good services to clients of any population a BSW should be a minimum requirement and with therapy, nothing less then an MSW.