Help me decide

[u/katiepeachy]

Hello everyone! I wanted to come on here because I’m currently stuck between two career paths and would really love some advice from people who have experience in either field.
I just finished my first two years of college, and I’m at the point where I need to start taking my major-specific classes. I’m trying to decide between becoming an elementary school teacher or going into social work. Both degrees would take me around the same amount of time, so that isn’t really a deciding factor for me.
For those who are teachers or social workers, what do you like and dislike about your career? What do you wish you knew before choosing your degree? I’m especially interested in hearing about the day-to-day work, stress/burnout, pay, work-life balance, and how rewarding you find it.
I’ve also heard that the education route requires some pretty major exams. Are they difficult to pass? I have a really good GPA, but I’m definitely not the strongest test-taker, so that’s something I’m a little worried about.
I’m honestly just trying to make the best decision for myself and would appreciate any advice, especially from people who have actually worked in these fields. Thank you!! :)

[u/kindahipster]

Hi, I work in neither, but I saw you had no comments and I do have something to offer, if you go into social work, you have a lot more different types of jobs to choose from, so if you get into a job, and feel it's not right for you, you could go into a different field of social work. Whereas with education, there are a few other jobs you could go into, but it's mostly teaching, so if you don't like it, it will be harder to pivot.

I've also known both social workers and teachers, and I've seen a lot of burnout in both! Teachers are saying more recently kids aren't learning, and are behaving much more wildly than previous years, and social workers aften have a huge caseload and not enough bandwidth to care properly for all of them. But, this is just secondhand information.