5 Top Reasons to Pursue a School Social Worker Position
- Protect Children
- Help Shape Young Children
- Work in a Fulfilling Role
- Facilitate Growth
- Enjoy Job Stability
Anyone who has worked in any area of social work would likely tell others that it is a thankless job. School social workers have a unique challenge because they work to promote the social and emotional growth of students within their district by assisting pupils, parents, and teachers with handling the many factors that can interfere with academic performance and socialization.
While the field is a challenging one, there are several reasons for individuals who are interested in becoming mental health professionals in a school setting to become a licensed school social worker. Anyone who is entering school or questioning what they should do with their degree in social work will be interested in learning the top five reasons why active social workers in public schools love their job:
1. Protect Children
It's not unusual for the bureaucracy that is the public school system to overlook individual students when setting school policies. While the district's intention is to benefit the entire student body with the implementation of new policies, some of these policies that are developed affect one student more than the majority.
Social workers may work for the school but their job is to advocate for their students. If they work with a student who is on the verge of being left behind because of a policy or a new standard being set by the district, it is the social worker who will advocate for that student to ensure they get the protection that they need from the sometimes rigid system.
2. Help Shape Young Children
Teachers help to shape young minds every day that they step in front of a classroom. What many people don't realize is that there are other parties involved in the schooling system who help shape young minds. School social workers don't work with all students, but they do help to give the students that they work with the best chance to succeed in life regardless of their circumstances.
3. Work in a Fulfilling Role
Not everyone can wake up and report to a job where they can genuinely say that they make a difference in their daily interactions. Anyone who wants to pursue a fulfilling role where they are making a widespread difference will achieve their goals by working in school social work. It could be as simple as being a role model for students who don't have positive mentors at home or helping students with mental health challenges develop away from their situation.
4. Facilitate Growth
Children are always growing no matter their current skill level or their background. Unfortunately, growth can stall or be stagnant when kids are faced with serious life issues. Service workers in school settings can help to facilitate growth by giving kids access to the resources they need inside and outside of school.
5 – Enjoy Job Stability
Not only is there good job stability in the child, family, and school social work field, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the field will grow by 14 percent by 2026. Since that is significantly faster than the average for all occupations, qualified applicants should not have problems finding quality positions.
Related Resource: 5 Reason to Become a School Social Worker
School social workers must possess a Master of Social Work degree. Currently, research from Payscale indicates that the average MSW in the field earns $63,000 per year. Anyone who is battling with their decision to return to school for their MSW degree should consider these top five reasons to become a school social worker.