A social worker's job is to help people both through counseling and arranging services for an individual.  There are many types of social workers that work with many different types of people. Clinical and mental health social workers who work with people who have mental or emotional problems and school social workers who work with children and their problems in school are two examples of the kinds of social workers.

    A social worker spent most of his/her workday in the office or facilities where they work, but will occasionally meet with clients in a different setting.  A forty-hour week is a normal workload for a full time social worker.  “The work, thought satisfying, can be emotionally draining” (Occupation Outlook Handbook).  Social workers in the year 1998 made between $19,000 (approximately) and $50,000 (approximately) with a median pay of $30,590.  Those who worked for the federal government tended to make the most and those who worked for state governments tended to make the least in 1998(Occupational Outlook Handbook).

    The minimum amount of schooling required for many entry level social workers is a bachelor’s degree in social work or a related field to social work, such as psychology or sociology.  However, those who wish to advance in their career of those who chose to be in the health or clinical field must have a master’s in social work.  To earn a master’s degree in social work a bachelor’s degree in social work is not required.  Those entering the social work field in the next eight years may not have much trouble finding a job because the employment of social workers of many different specialties is suppose to sky rocket during this time.

Ellen Evans