Personal Statement For Social Work

I began my social work studies over twenty-five years ago at Utah State University in Logan, Utah. I never questioned my decision to pursue a career in social work; I loved my classes and worked hard to learn as much as possible. But the information I gained in undergraduate school simply opened the doors of my education. Most of my learning has come through constant questioning, personal research, and especially through work and life experience. Through these experiences I have encountered the challenges faced by individuals, families, and society and have been able to further access and develop the innate personality traits and abilities that originally led me to study social work as well as learn and practice the many skills necessary to be a successful mental health counselor.

My main reason for applying to the Simmons School of Social Work is that it is an accredited university with an excellent reputation as an educational institution and offers an MSW program that is predominantly online. I attended Thomas Edison State University online and earned my bachelor’s degree with a GPA of 3.9. Once I made the decision to continue my education, I searched for MSW programs that were available online with CSWE accreditation in compliance with New Jersey State social work licensure. I found that Simmons’s specialized program in clinical social work is well suited for my educational needs.

My passion for helping the vulnerable is one reason I ‘am inspired to become a social worker. I also want to be available to provide support to those who have nowhere else to turn. My experience in social work has taught me to celebrate the small victories towards positive changes. I look forward to gaining the skills and knowledge to aid me in becoming a successful social worker.

I have been engaged in social work practice for over 12 years, and I regularly integrate my clinical social work practice experience into my classroom so that students have a sense of what their future careers might look like. In addition, I serve as academic advisor and mentor for approximately 25 students of a variety of ages and experiences. I see my role as an advisor as both mentor and guide. I also use advising to help socialize students to the expectations of social work practice. I have also served as field liaison to students completing practicum, in which I have provided support and guidance for students so that each student has a meaningful practice learning experience prior to entering the field. Additionally, in my current role, I have provided intensive mentoring to students of color and students with disabilities so that they continue to stay engaged in their learning

I cannot emphasize enough the passion I have for child welfare services, I like helping individuals, children to be exact. I cannot see myself doing anything else with my life I never wanted to do anything else in life. I have demonstrated a great deal of capacity for success in the Indiana child welfare scholars program by a number of things: one, staying commented to one major; two presenting myself as a practicing child welfare worker; three, pushing myself to always do better in my classes. Once I knew I wanted to go to college in order to achieve my dream social work was my only option. If I did anything else it would have been for the money I would not have been for the right respectable reasons.

Social work is a career that finds and chooses you, rather than you selecting it. Social work has always been an immense portion of my life even when I had no recollection of what social work entailed. My life revolved around so many situations that had a social worker stepped in, my life would be totally different than it is today. Many individuals and agencies lack the compassion and empathy for oppressed people. Having been in many circumstances, has given me the experience and background that influenced me to go into social work, as well as the understanding of my role and responsibilities that I will assume as a professional social worker, and my reasons for selecting the program at ASU School of Social Work and thoughts on how the Mission Statement addresses my career goals.

Upon entering my undergraduate years, I searched for a school of study that would allow me to work alongside these vulnerable populations and fortunately found social work. Over the next four years, I saw my interests range from school social work to international social justice to health care and beyond. The ability to study so many different areas of social justice appealed to me, as this BSW degree equips me with the generalist practice knowledge to enter practically any practice setting. No matter where this degree takes me, social work offers thousands of career options, so I know I will revel in this long-term commitment to the profession.

My career thus far has shown me that I am dedicated to working in a helping profession and that I hope to continue to learn and strive to be effective in this role for the forward progress toward access to equal opportunities and quality of life, wich is integral to the health and peacefulness in the larger communities within which I will work. My experiences during my professional positions working with children, adolescents, parents, and families have directly contributed to my desire to persue a master’s in social work as the next important step in my career. In order to further my education, I have taken several graduate courses in social work, education, and psychology. I have enjoyed graduate classes and being a part of a focussed learning community.

Many personal and professional life experiences have been my motivation to pursue a degree in Social Work. Although I was unaware that this would later be my profession of interest, my personal life situations caused me to have to come into contact with a few social workers. The social workers that I have had the opportunity to meet have helped me with overcoming poverty, mental illness, child abuse, emotional instability, and domestic violence. My interest from pursuing a career as a parole officer, then a physical therapist to now a Social worker all shifted to this decision based on my life. Over the years I found myself enjoying helping others in need such as when I was employed as a Correctional officer and talking an offender from committing suicide causing me to question my future and whether I was in the wrong field.

I am writing to inform you of my interest in the Fall of 2015, Bachelor of Social Work program at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Attached you will find my application with applicable documentation.

When I get my degree in Social Work I hope to be working with developmentally disabled children and adults. I hope to be working with developmentally disabled people because my mom works with them so I grew up around them, and my little sister is autistic. Growing up around developmentally disabled people as well as having an autistic sister has made me feel compassion towards them and want to help them in their everyday lives do things that they are not fully capable of doing on their own. In my chosen degree there are many ways that the four subfields of anthropological training could be helpful. One of the four subfields, Archaeology could be helpful to me in my degree in social work by helping me better understand why some developmentally

Two years have passed while hours have been poured into extensive research on every avenue outside of social work, from a Masters in Public Health to a Masters in International Affairs, each seeming as though they might provide the most benefits in future endeavors or leading towards this elusive path I thought I was seeking. At the completion of countless hours of research, I found my heart and mind consistently return to the core, where I started, a Masters in Social Work. With a MSW, a multitude of positions in various specialties, populations, and settings are available, but beyond the versatility of a MSW, a social worker is simply who I am at the core and never a career path I had a say in choosing. One and a half years in the Peace

I am applying for this course because, from a young age I have always wanted to make a difference in people's lives. I have worked with children, young adults and the elderly for 4 years. It was through this experience that I discovered that I enjoyed working with a vulnerable client group. This experience gave me the motivation to want to study Social Work. I have worked in multi disciplinary teams (MDT) which included other health care professionals that include doctors, teachers, nurses and physio-therapists to name a few. The experience I gained taught me how to support a client in a person centred way maintaining their individuality and dignity. I learnt how to problem solve, confidently contribute in meetings which concerned the client and their well being. I used the client's care plan, preferences as well what I knew about the client to contribute. This helped me sharpen the frame of what would be expected of me in the future once I become a social worker.

In a privileged setting, all of the levels of privilege come together to better someone’s experience in a certain setting. I have had the privilege of getting my kindergarten through twelfth-grade education in a district that is very fortunate. I was given all of the tools I needed to be successful. Besides the factor of my anxiety, I was always told I could do anything I set my mind to. This gave me the desire to strive for the best. With the fortunate school district, I was able to strive all throughout my career allowing me to choose my top choice in colleges and in careers. The college I chose has allowed me to follow my passion and hopefully will lead me to fulfill my dreams of becoming a social worker in the pediatric unit of a hospital.

My interest in pursuing a graduate education social work was fostered by my observation of the usage of the health care system. Through interactions with those around me, while volunteering and working in my community, synagogue, and camps, I saw how often the health care system was not conducive to providing the change in others lives. These opportunities of working with youth and families provided me a glimpse of how there was a need by individuals for emotional and psychological support and it was not being met. I saw how often times these individuals did not know to how to utilize resources and obtain support services. Frequently I saw how when an individual or their family member had a mental health crisis, the situation was compounded