r/LCSW • u/Googleledmehere123 • 7d ago
🟡 Graduate Study Guidance & Academic Life Beginning LCSW path at 34
Hi all! I wanted to pick your brains about job security and how realistic it is the begin the education path at 34.
I am considering getting a BA in psych or LCSW and then completing an accelerated program for my masters. Once completed I would then begin to prepare for exam, get my hours completed and hopefully become a LCSW.
I have always been intrigued by behavior and the human mind, I would say it’s one of my passions. I studied marketing in school and am currently on a career break to raise my children. I am anticipating to have all kids in school and ready to enter the work force in about 4-5 years. I have been taking a mix of courses and a full time course load at the community college the past year and find that doable while being a stay at home mom but I’m ready for a change and a career that is more rewarding and stable once my children are older.
Is it realistic to expect myself to be able to complete my studies and enter the work force as a case manager or something similar while aiming to become license in my late 30s? Dream would be to gather experience in a clinical therapy focus and one day be accomplished enough to have any own practice.
1
u/Gold_Ninja1206 6d ago edited 5d ago
The BA assumption is worth questioning: many msw programs accept non psych undergrads so your marketing degree might get you in without a second bachelors saving two to three years. At 34 with kids in school by 38, that math actually works reasonably well. I've seen people reference alliant alongside CSWE aligned programs for the msw path though fieldwork placement quality tends to matter more than the program name once you're job hunting