Qualifications for a Career in Social Work
Social workers play an important role in improving the lives of individuals and families. They provide direct care services, such as helping families obtain public assistance, advocate for clients in need; and offer clinical services, such as psychotherapy and evaluations. The qualifications for a career in social work depend on your educational goals and your desired level of employment. You can become a social worker in certain fields with just a bachelor's degree, while other fields require a master's or doctoral degree.
Direct Care Social Workers
Direct care social workers, also known as direct service social workers, provide assistance to people with a variety of concrete needs, such as housing, food and advocacy with public service agencies. Direct care social workers -- who may be case workers or mental health assistants -- may provide assessments, intervene in crisis situations, help formulate treatment plans in certain settings and intervene on behalf of their clients with governmental agencies, such as when applying for Medicare and other benefits. You might decide to work with a specific population, such as children and families or homeless individuals. To work as a direct care social worker, you need to be compassionate, understanding, dedicated and hard-working, and have a high tolerance for frustration.
Direct Care Education and Training
Most direct care social worker positions require a bachelor's degree in social work. However, some positions will accept a bachelor's degree in a related field, such as psychology or human services. Some positions may also accept direct field experience in lieu of a degree, or in lieu of a degree in a social services-related field. Sometimes, social workers with a master's degree will work in direct care positions, but this tends to be the exception to the rule. People who want to become a direct care social worker may choose to complete an internship during their undergraduate studies.
Clinical Social Workers
Clinical social workers provide clinical services, such as psychotherapy and evaluations, to their clients. They may work in private practice settings, schools, mental health clinics, employee assistance programs, hospitals and community services agencies. Some clinical social workers work in supervisory positions, as the director of a nonprofit agency, for example. Like direct care social work, you must have good people skills, be dedicated to the needs of your clients and be able to tolerate high levels of frustration. You may work with high-risk populations, such as sex offenders or substance abusers, so it's important to be compassionate and empathetic, and avoid being judgmental or biased.
Clinical Education and Training
Clinical social work requires a minimum of a master's degree in social work, although some practitioners have doctoral degrees or advanced certification in psychotherapy. To practice clinical social work, you also need to obtain a license in your state. Licensure requirements vary by state; generally, you must pass an examination in clinical social work and submit proof of at least two years of supervised postgraduate clinical experience. Various professional organizations offer voluntary credentials in specific areas of clinical social work. To obtain these credentials, you must meet the requirements of the accrediting organization. For example, the National Association of Social Workers offers Qualified Clinical Social Worker and the Clinical Social Worker in Gerontology credentials.
2016 Salary Information for Social Workers
Social workers earned a median annual salary of $47,460 in 2016, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On the low end, social workers earned a 25th percentile salary of $36,790, meaning 75 percent earned more than this amount. The 75th percentile salary is $60,790, meaning 25 percent earn more. In 2016, 682,000 people were employed in the U.S. as social workers.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Social Workers
- National Association of Social Workers: NASW Standards for Clinical Social Work in Social Work Practice
- National Association of Social Workers: NASW Professional Social Work Credentials and Advanced Practice Specialty Credentials
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook: Social Workers
- Career Trend: Social Workers
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