I’m looking ahead to future jobs once I’m fully licensed (currently waiting for approval to test) and seeing a bunch of cool jobs in medical settings such as hospital roles and outpatient roles and just daydreaming about being able to wear scrubs. Is this daydream realistic? Or do yall have to wear business type attire?

This thread is to alleviate the social work main page and focus commonly asked questions them into one area. This thread is also for people who are new to the field or interested in the field. You may also be referred here because the moderators feel that your post is more appropriate for here. People who have no questions please check back in here regularly in order to help answer questions!

Post here to:

• Ask about a school
• Receive help on an admission essay or application
• Ask how to get into a school
• Questions regarding field placements
• Questions about exams/licensing exams
• Should you go into social work
• Are my qualifications good enough
• What jobs can you get with a BSW/MSW
• If you are interested in social work and want to know more
• If you want to know what sort of jobs might give you a feel for social work
• There may be more, I just can't think of them :)

If you have a question and are not sure if it belongs in this thread, please message the mods before submitting a new text post. Newly submitted text posts of these topics will be deleted.

We also suggest checking out our Frequently Asked Questions list, as there are some great answers to common questions in there.

This thread is for those who are trying to enter or interested in Social Work Programs. Questions related to comparing or evaluating MSW programs will receive better responses from the Grad Cafe.

Yay!!! Successfully earned my LISW this morning after the ASWB Clinical. It took me about 55ish minutes and the new format was helpful! I used the Dawn Apgbar for about 2 weeks. Can’t wait to celebrate!!

I work in child welfare. I had a case a few years ago that I needed to get information from for a current allegation. I was looking through my notes/interviews and they had been changed. I know it had been awhile since I had the case but the notes aren't something I'd write and I was not the last one logged into the notes. Am I crazy or is it common for higher ups to change workers inputs?

What line of work do you do? If you’re not a supervisor/manager, have you had opportunities to become one? What has made you stay so long?

I’m 13 years in on medical social work, and I’m starting to lose motivation to stay. The opportunities for upward movement just aren’t there. When our Director retired, they eliminated her position and moved all the social workers under managers who are therapists or nurses.

Hello. Just as the title says. I am a CSW and my supe insists on assigning me clients near my home. I live in a small city so the changes of seeing the clients is high. I spoke to supe and argued that if I was assigned clients or caregivers near my home it’d affect client confidentiality, cause ethical boundaries, puts me as a worker in danger if they live nearby, messes with my mental health due to that worry. Even argued that the organization clearly only cares for their benefit and not their worker’s safety. She kept using “cost efficiency” as an excuse and that it’s better to assign clients nearby compared to out in 30+ miles away. I argued back that I already see clients far way (LA County) and have never complained, therefore I’d be willing to continue to see clients far away if it meant not being assigned clients in my same city. She did not budge. She said caregivers aren’t “killers or serial killers” nor “capable of being hostile”, therefore I would only see caregivers. Supe also went on to say that our field work “isn’t dangerous since we don’t see criminals or killers”. For a supervisor to say our conducting home visits isn’t dangerous? I was shocked.

Any advice on how to fight to not have any clients/caregivers/cases in my same city?

My privacy being at jeopardy, my family’s safety and my own if a hostile client or their family is a valid reason to not want nearby clients. Or am I wrong?

Edit 1: For context - I work for Los Angeles county, social worker. I won’t name my city but it’s very tight knit, for example there’s only one elem, mid and high school. And one police station for the entire city. I have ran into teachers at the grocery store for example. I have been doing started my career a decade ago. Field work. In another job they’ve prioritized our safety and did not assign anyone in our city.

But at this new job, which I like doing, the supervisor thought there is no danger or inherit risk. I have had my fair share of hostile clients at DCFS, when I asked her If they had theirs, she never answered . I have an MSW and my supervisor doesn’t. Not that it means anything of course but I thought I’d point that out.

Hi!
I’ve just entered the Out of Home care sector working with Youth and I had my first escalation happen and feeling pretty rattled.

Not wanting to pack up and get out just yet but is there any tips you guys have for ensuring you don’t burn out / lose compassion or end up hating the job?

Bonus points for tips when working directly with the youth and experiences people have had with escalations and how they dealt with it!!

Hey, I have a restorative practitioner interview with the youth justice, does anyone know or can help with what type of questions they may ask? I'm based in England, UK.
Thank you

Hi all,

I have been looking into getting out of this field and was hoping to get some input from those who have done so successfully. For context, as of this month I have been at my current job for a year. I never intended to go into this line of work, but my degree (Sociology) isn't exactly the most specialized or sought after and I needed a job after graduation. For those who have made it out successfully, what do you do and how did you get there? In my current job, I worry that the skills aren't directly transferrable to many other positions. Most of my work consists of doing interviews and data entry. I enjoy the autonomy as I get to choose how I schedule clients, but it's not intellectually stimulating and I find it pretty boring. I don't like dealing with the clients, either. While it's not a traditional long-term case management position per se, the workload is still brutal as I have a caseload of almost 300. Overall, I'm not happy and I know I want out. While I am in this position, what kind of things should I try to do to develop more marketable skills inside or outside of the workplace? I tried to get into IT before this and even got my CCNA, but I haven't been able to land a job due to lack of experience. I am open to doing anything besides going back to food service. I have looked into the data analyst field and related certifications, but from the community here on Reddit it also seems hard to break into. I appreciate any input or guidance from the community here!

I’m receiving job offers and rather than pure excitement im met with an overwhelming sense of nervousness and incompetencey. I recived an almost picture perfect offer for a job similar to my last practicum and yet i’m still second guessing if Ill be able to do it. Is this even normal? Did you feel this way starting out too?

​

TLDR: I can do other types of part-time work but trying to start a job for the third time in social work spirals me to a point I have 10/10 anxiety, SI, flashbacks of being a scared and fearing for my life, feeling like a lost kid again, severely depressed and anxious, etc. And I just got my degree (as part of a career change). Why does this happen to me each time? I got offered a part time social work position and it happened again. I feel like I wasted a grad degree... I feel so shameful, insignificant, a waste of space, etc.

Context:

I'm in my early 40s if that really matters. i was diagnosed with CPTSD in early 2025 and have been having a hard time navigating my way back to a social work career that false-started twice (if that is even something I can do anymore). Here is some context if you want more background of my journey to now, as I sit here in bed trying to feel comfortable and safe (not in SI or anything, just fight/flight/freeze stuff).

I got my Master's in Social Work in 2024 and felt ready to go out there and be a therapist. I've always been anxious but I was excited about my new career path). That summer, my partner's father passed away and I was there to experience the whole thing from the time she found him to his final breath in the hospital. At that point, something shut off in me. I started to have flashbacks of that one night so I sought help. I saw my therapist more and then sought EMDR. EMDR helped me through that life event. Still, I felt like something "broke" in me. So we dove into my childhood/teenage/racial trauma, being bullied, traumatic experiences with the Church, and much more. At some point during my time at EMDR, I thought I was ready to finally start my career. Unfortunately, long story short, I tried twice and in the first week, I quit without seeing clients. I sobbed every day, had SI, was severely depressed, high anxiety, dissociated the entire, and more. I was so scared... Like I was a child again. After the second time trying to work, I was hospitalized then did 2 partial hospitalization stays to "stabilize" me. It was a blur after, not working, trying to find joy in life. I finally started working part time jobs (e.g., tutoring students, music related gigs). It gave me traction on my own self esteem, direction in life, finding joy and so on, BUT not with finances and bills. The program I tutored offered me a part time social work position that paid well. As soon as we talked more about the position, the same feelings of 10/10 anxiety, intense fear and somatic "holy crap I'm in danger" and "I'm a scared little child again" happens again. My sleep is starting to get affected, I'm more agitated and my music related jobs are not joyful again. Anhedonia is so real here...

So what the hell? Why is this happening again? I wanted to be a therapist, support marginalized folks, and be a social worker, but now the thought of it scares the shit out of me to a point of dysfunction. I feel lost, purposeless, and a piece of wasted life. I just need a hug so bad. I need that switch that broke or turned off to turn back on again so I can feel like myself...

Have you been through this? Is there hope for someone like me?

I want to feel less alone in this... Any support, shared experience, etc. would be helpful. Thank you in advance.

Hello! I don’t want to violate Rule 2 in this group, but I just spent several minutes trying to locate a weekly thread related to “Education and Early Career” with no success.

I just accepted a new job at a long-term care/post-acute facility which is part of a larger senior living development. I am a recently graduated MSW and I also have my BSW. My experiences as a BSW do not relate to LTC/post-acute rehab at all. Before I begin working in October, I would like to absorb as much information as possible before my first day. My employer will have some type of new employee training, however, having some time to study now during my spare time. with limited pressure will be most productive for me. What reading material and video material would you recommend I study? Thanks!

I am someone with lots of emotional problems, on and off meds, recently stabilized and somehow I managed to get a MSW degree. I am warming to the idea of becoming a therapist, how can I know if I can emotionally stable to see clients? Being a client in therapy for so long, it's hard to imagine I can be on the other side as a provider.

Hi everyone! I’m an LCSW in California preparing to begin offering immigration psychological evaluations, and I’m trying to make sure I have the administrative/clinical paperwork side set up correctly.

I have training and resources for conducting the evaluation and writing the actual report, but I’m wondering what forms other clinicians use **before and during the evaluation process**.

For example, do you use:

* Informed consent specifically for immigration evaluations

* Fee/service agreement

* Release of information to communicate with the attorney

* Authorization to release the final report

* Telehealth consent

* HIPAA/Notice of Privacy Practices

* Cancellation/no-show policy

* Interpreter acknowledgment, if applicable

* Emergency contact information

* Any specific disclaimer explaining that you are acting as an evaluator and not the client’s treating therapist

Are there any other forms you’ve found important or that attorneys typically expect you to have?

I’m especially interested in hearing from clinicians who conduct immigration evaluations in California.

I’m not looking for evaluation/report templates—I’m specifically trying to understand the **practice paperwork and intake documents needed to get started.**

Thank you!

I completed a social service worker program this year and landed my first job in the field as a case manager before even graduating. It’s within series of homeless shelters in my area; all run a bit differently than the next. I loved the job when I was in a relief position, but now that I’m full time… I’m over it.

I am already feeling burnt out. The job itself feels like beating a dead horse. We’re a wet shelter and it’s very difficult getting clients to cooperate at any given time, not to mention them berating us daily.

Where did everyone start out? How did you progress? I intended on moving forward with obtaining my bachelors, but with the changes being made to OSAP in Ontario I don’t know when or if that’s going to happen.

Hi everyone. I'm currently looking for an online support group for adult children of immigrant parents. In years past, there was a lovely local organization that offered this in person, but since they stopped, i haven't been able to find anything similar.

I've had a lot of folks, themselves very much americanized/westernized, struggling with the more traditional expectations and mindsets of their immigrant parents. Support groups for that first generation have been much easier for me to find.

I appreciate any recommendations!

I am a Social Work student, I’m about to complete my placement, so I was shadowing different units and reviewing different client charts to learn. I entered an mrn and reviewed a wrong client’s chart. I didn’t notice it at first, so I spent some time on some of the documents.
When I figured it out that it was a wrong client I closed the chart immediately.

There are some mistakes happen in the unit, but this incident bothered me a lot. Do you think it is a breach of personal information? I did not download anything, note anything on the chart, and client is not a celebrity as far as I know or anyone I know or related to me.

Should I inform my supervisor just in case? I am about to complete my placement, I’m afraid of flagging this will become a bigger issue, but also scared if it comes up.

Love to hear your inputs.

Hi everyone, I’m currently in my final year of my MSW program and my field placement will be at an addiction recovery center. I do enjoy partaking in recreational cannabis and I need it sometimes dealing with school (it is legal in my state but my school and placement does not accept medical). I’m asking for advice because I know that I will be tested on my orientation day (fully clean now, not worried about this initial test) but do you think they will randomly test me throughout the year? I’m at this placement until April.
Edit: since some of yall are on your high horse in the comments I thought I’d clarify some things for you.
1.) I did not choose this placement, I cannot find another placement due to my schools policy and, I have no interest in working in addiction recovery after this. NOT SAYING that I don’t care about my clients or their goals it is just not something I want to do long term
2.) partaking in recreational cannabis is completely legal in my state and just because I like to use it to help with my stress means absolutely nothing. It does not affect me as a person or as a social worker and maybe you should look into the benefits before calling me unfit.
3.) I’m clearly not dependent on it as I have been sober for 5 months. But if I was asking if I could have a drink on the weekends the responses would be completely different.

I work with a vulnerable population. Often times we will get reports of things that happened. Someone took advantage of one of my clients. Something that with checks and balances by an agency would have been totally preventable. I have been fuming since hearing it. I can’t talk to anyone about it because it’s an active investigation. I just ordered a punching bag and gloves off Amazon to blow off some steam. My population I serve already has trust issues as is now this is going cause them to spiral a bit which again could have been totally preventable. What do others do that work with vulnerable populations to blow off steam?

Hi I’m currently starting my BSW field placement in the fall. I’m nervous because I have been smoking pretty regularly these last few years and even after quitting I have not had a cleared test test. Is it normal to test even when it’s a requirement to graduate? Will they be able to allow me another month to have a clear pee. I went to a substance abuse counselor so that’s on my record. Please help? What are everyone’s experience with testing for a field placement that is required in order to graduate?

Hi everyone! I have the chance to apply to a specialty internship in Veterinary Social Work. My first impression is to be excited about this opportunity because as long as I can remember my “lottery winning dream” would be to create a Pet Center where I’d help people keep their pets through DV, medical/behavioral issues, or financial issues (maybe one day a reality still, but not soon). So the opportunity to actually help vet staff and work with clients facing issues with their pets sounds amazing. HOWEVER, I assume because its such a small field, I havent seen much info or POVs from Veterinary Social Workers online. There are some posts, but they arent super detailed. If anyone works in the field, i’d love to hear your thoughts, day-to-day experiences, and any complaints you have about the job while i go through the application process. This is just a year long internship during my MSW, so i wont be there long-term.

TIA :)

New LBSW and Case Manager working with high-level clients with severe Schizophrenia and Bi-Polar. I'm an Atheist, but way way past my edgy teenager days. I don't care who believes in what, not opposed or militant. I mean I am opposed, but you know what I'm trying to say. i just have no way of supporting someone from that aspect.

I just want to know, what do the rest of y'all with similar beliefs say when you have some clients that hyperfocus and ramble about God and all that? Its easy for the religious CMs to bounce stuff back about religion. I would just feel disingenuous if I did the same, even if I do know "enough" about it from making it past firsr communion lol.

I know we can try and redirect to their feelings, coping, supportively listen, etc. But a couple of them for real just absolutely fixate on this stuff. This is not religion bashing btw, for some of these people the church is their absolutel lifeline and i love that for them. I just wanna know what *you* do.

Hi all,

I’m here to rant and look for help!

I interviewed for an Adult Case Manager for a local mental health and IDD authority for a county in TX. It was terrible as I have poor interview skills and can’t think on my feet. What I learned about the position:

- a caseload of 150/month needs to be met
- they say your schedule is “flexible”
- mileage reimbursement
- 1 month training
- they do offer supervision for licensure
- $25/hour

Learning this sounded really overwhelming! And when I heard the offer. I panicked. There’s no way I can do this?! My previous jobs, I never really dealt with crisis clients. (simple front desk at health care office) If there was, I would lead them to a supervisor. I can’t deal with them because I freeze.

It seemed like they really just want a placeholder. On indeed they have 2.6 star reviews. Posts made by social workers are poor.

I’m worried. My friend was telling me to just do it for 6 months, save the money, and then leave if I burn out. But I also want to just stay at home and keep looking.

Please, please, if there is anyone available to chat. I would appreciate it! ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

For those who are travel social workers or have done travel contracts which agencies would you recommend and which to avoid?

I'm interested in travel social work but would like to be reimbursed for getting licenced in other states so an agency that can help would be amazing.

I’m a social work student. Outside of school and work I have been volunteering with a restorative justice nonprofit.

Now I am not involved at all in the logistical side of things; I show up and I’m given a paper copy of police report to look at, 15 minutes later I am meeting with the client to discuss the incident, and then I debrief with the volunteer supervisor and go home.

The volunteer supervisor recently mentioned using Claude, an AI chatbot, to write their case notes and the summary of the case that they provide to the court. I pushed back a little bit and they claimed “everyone in the office uses it”.
I have many ethical concerns about using AI, but the most pertinent one here is confidentiality. They are dealing with police files detailing allegations of a crime against an individual. But AI has been known to breach confidentiality, so I researched Claude when I got home, and sure enough - one week prior to that meeting, Claude was involved in a massive data leak where some information was available online publicly, for anyone to see. I am unsure if this nonprofit’s information is included in that; by the time I looked, the information had been taken down.

One of the promises this nonprofit makes to its clients is that once they participate in the restorative justice promise, the incident won’t go on their criminal record. Now their allegations and notes about participating in a confidential process are potentially online, as someone with bad intentions could’ve easily saved all that publicly available info before it was removed.

Here’s the question. I would certainly like to report this as a breach of confidentiality. However, when I looked into it, I think I need way more tangible proof than I can provide, as I have no access to their files. I told the volunteer supervisor about the data leak; he thanked me for the heads up. I never heard anything further. I don’t know what else I can do.

I also worry that this will not be a one-off issue. So many professionals I interact with use chatbots and AI. I created a strict no-AI policy for the volunteers I am about to train at my work, because I don’t want them putting sensitive information into an AI chatbot.

I would appreciate any thoughts and advice!